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Whatever your view on Ol’ Dirty Bastard, there is one universal truth. The Brooklyn-born rapper was a unique spirit. ODB was a man whose personality was inherently complex and full of contradiction as he proclaimed himself the loudest electricity out there.
Long before Kanye West was crashing award ceremonies and ruining acceptance speeches for innocent pop stars, ODB was there paving the way. He famously interrupted the Grammy’s in 98, setting the record straight that “Puffy is good, but Wu Tang is the best. Wu Tang is for the children.”
In this documentary ODB gets down to the gnitty gritty and lets you into his dirty mind, which really is a labyrinth of all that is bizarre and filthy in the world- so if you are of a sensitive disposition, this documentary is probably not for you.
The docu follows an interview with Ol’ Dirty and his affiliates talking about the man himself and what makes the ODB tick, or as he puts it “What really kicks ’Ol Dirty’s ass”. The whole Q&A session is interspersed with candid footage from ODB’s day to day life, which provides genuine comic relief throughout.
It serves to illustrate in some small way ODB’s irreverent wit and skewed perspective which engendered his music as well as his celebrity. He once conducted an interview on the streets of Brooklyn with no shoes on without batting an eye-lid, like that was the thing to do.
Some of his antics and opinions will have you laughing for their sheer outrageousness, or cringing – either way it is essential viewing.
The rapper is at his absurd, unadulterated best talking openly about his women, or “bitches” as he affectionately calls them, his love of a woman’s foot aroma and his unshakeable belief that the FBI had blacklisted him for being a menace to society.
He also talks evocatively on how he developed his unique lyrical style with Wu Tang Clan, incorporating influences as disparate as The Beatles into his work. The maverick even gives an impromptu rendition of his old favourite Love Me Do.
Critics of his work and lifestyle believe he was a nothing more than drug-addled rap star, who fudged the fine line between genius and madness to such an extent it become unclear whether he was genuinely mentally disturbed. To these opponents, his irrational flow, his crazed stream of consciousness was the white noise of a mad man.
Yet others believe the contrary, that Ol’ Dirty Bastard was a leading light during Hip Hop’s most creative and ground breaking period, redefining the art of rap and capturing the zeitgeist of a whole generation. Make your own mind up and watch part one of Dirty Minded on the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTnvREggpdY
Words by Martin Higgins, at www.mhfreelance.co.uk