This is a documentary about Ol’ Dirty Bastard, a spectacularly talented musician who became an icon of the rap world. You don’t have to love rap to love this film. You just have to be intrigued by that ‘je ne sais qua’ that so few possess, and why so many of those few self-destruct. The story takes a while to get going but it’s worth the wait.
ODB, as he was commonly known, was born Russell Tyrone Jones in New York City. He and his cousins shared a love for rap music and martial arts films. They founded a band called Wu-Tang Clan and their debut album was released in 1993, which was well received. But ‘well received’ didn’t cut it for Jones and he launched his solo career in 1995, at the age of 26. Success was practically guaranteed as, in the words of a fellow band member, there was ‘no father to his style.’ His first album reached platinum status.
Youth, fame and sudden wealth are never a good combination and, once stardom arrived, Jones didn’t take his foot off the pedal. The usual staples of addiction, multiple arrests, adultery and mental illness were ushered in. The media, of course, smelled blood and never left his side. Their constant scrutiny breathed life into endless justice conspiracy theories and highlighted racial divides. It wasn’t pretty.
One of the many casualties of this tale is a charismatic lady called Icelene Jones. She met Russell when she was 16 and never fell out of love. She’s still pained that prison visits to her husband were limited due to her two jobs and three children. She’s filled with anguish that the recordng studios never paid for Ruseell to go to rehab. But what she doesn’t bemoan is that she had to live in the backlash of her husband’s dramas. Some people refuse to get bitter, no matter what you throw at them.
Jones managed to by-pass the cultural phenomenon of the ‘27 Club’ and lived until a day before his 36th birthday. He, of course, went out in true rock tragedy style, confirming yet again what the rest of us already suspected. And that is that no matter how much talent, money and fame we had, we’d still find a way to screw up.
RELEASE
Premieres Saturday, August 26 at 9 pm on A & E Networks
Watch Ol Dirty Bastard: A Tale of 2 Dirties | A&E (aetv.com)
Directed by Jason Pollard and Sam Pollard
Produced by Pulse Films
