Thirty years ago, nine young Black men from the oft-trivialized borough of Staten Island bum-rushed the gates of popular culture with a track that made hip-hop history. Wu-Tang Clan’s “C.R.E.A.M.” (Cash Rules Everything Around Me) emerged as a haunting dispatch from the underbelly of the so-called American dream. Raekwon and Inspectah Deck illustrated vivid portraits of scarcity, violence, and survival; Method Man’s refrain gave it an unforgettable edge: “C.R.E.A.M./ Get the money/ Dollar, dollar bill y’all.”
But it was never just about the money, was it? It was about what it took to stay alive in a country where your worth is measured by what you have, or don’t.