- Only a few people around the world have ever listened to the album
- It will be played to the public for the first time in the Museum of Old and New Art
The rarest album in the world that only a few people around the world have ever listened to is on display in a gallery in Australia.
Secretly recorded by Wu-Tang Clan over six years, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin will be played publicly for the first time at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania. .
For 10 days in June, the museum will host small 30-minute listening parties where fans can hear a curated example of the loaned creation.
Housed in its own silver box, the groundbreaking American hip-hop group’s seventh studio album has only one physical copy and is the most expensive ever sold.
The album, which was intended as a beautiful work of art, was once purchased by disgraced pharmaceutical entrepreneur Martin Shkreli for $2 million.
Housed in its own silver box, the groundbreaking American hip-hop group’s seventh studio album has only one physical copy and is the most expensive ever sold.
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was secretly recorded by Wu-Tang Clan over a period of six years
The popular event will take place on Saturday 15 and Monday 24 June at 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM.
Tickets are free if you’re lucky enough to get one when they go on sale at 10am on Thursday 30 May.
It is part of MONA’s Namedropping exhibition, taking place between June 15, 2024 and April 21, 2025, which aims to explore status, fame and ‘the human chase’.
The exhibition of some 200 works of art and objects collected in MONA’s underground galleries will raise questions: What makes the big names great: Porsche, Picasso or Pompidou? What is the nature of status and why is it useful?
Speaking about the album, MONA Current Affairs Director Jarod Rawlins said: “Every now and then an object on this planet possesses mystical properties that transcend its material circumstances.
“Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is more than just an album, so when I thought about status and what a transcendent name drop could be, I knew I had to get it in this exhibit.”
The album is bound by a legal agreement that prevents commercial release until the year 2103, but it can be played at listening parties.
When it was created, it was pressed onto a two-CD copy with the digital master files removed.
Tickets are free if you’re lucky enough to get one when they go on sale at 10am on Thursday, May 30
Founded in 1992 in New York City, Wu-Tang Clan is often credited with changing the way the world viewed hip-hop and revolutionizing the genre.
After its original sale at auction in 2015, it became the property of the digital art collective Pleasr.
The album’s appearance at MONA marks the first time it has been loaned to a museum since its original sale.
It was recorded in New York City and features the voices of the nine remaining members of the group, as well as Cher and Game of Thrones star Carice Van Houten.
In a statement reported by The guard Pleasr said it was “honored to partner with Mona to support RZA’s vision for Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.”
He adds, “Ten years ago, the Wu-Tang Clan had a bold vision to create a single-copy album as a work of art. To place it in an art gallery: make music a living piece like a Mona Lisa or a scepter from Egypt.
“With this one work of art, the Wu-Tang Clan intended to redefine the meaning of music ownership and value in a world of digital streaming and commodification of music.”
Founded in 1992 in New York City, Wu-Tang Clan is often credited with changing the world’s perception of hip-hop and revolutionizing the genre – becoming one of rap’s most legendary groups.
The Grammy-nominated music collective has released eight studio albums, with their second release Wu-Tang Forever topping the UK charts.