Killah Priest is a tangential associate of the Wu-Tang Clan. The Brooklyn n… Read Full Bio ↴Killah Priest is a tangential associate of the Wu-Tang Clan. The Brooklyn native made his first recorded appearances on records by such Wu side projects and solo albums as the Gravediggaz, Ol' Dirty Bastard's Return to the 36 Chambers, and, most importantly, Genius/GZA's seminal Liquid Swords. His contributions became legendary and paved the way for the release of his acclaimed debut album, Heavy Mental, in the spring of 1998.

Born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant and Brownsville, Killah Priest became infatuated with hip-hop as a child, listening to old-school and new school acts like Eric B. & Rakim alike. He also was influenced by local rappers, like GZA and Onyx's Suave, who would often play local parties. Killah Priest began working on his rhyming and eventually earned a considerable reputation in Brooklyn , but instead of pursuing his musical career further, he took a sabbatical in order to educate himself, primarily about religion and history.

Killah Priest returned to rapping in 1995, appearing on several Wu projects. All of his cameos were noteworthy, but his role on Liquid Swords earned special attention. By the end of 1996, he formed his own side project, the Sunz of Man. In 1997, GZA suggested to Geffen that they sign Killah Priest, and the label took his advice.

Killah worked on the album with True Master and 4th Disciple, two producers associated with the Clan. The resulting album, Heavy Mental, was dense with religious imagery and filled with evocative sounds. It received excellent reviews upon its March 1998 release and was a respectable commercial success, debuting at number 24 on the pop charts.

Killah Priest issued his second album, View from Masada, in the spring of 2000, further bolstering his status as one of the most compelling solo artists in the Wu-Tang stable. After that he has released more projects such as Priesthood and Black August.

Wubian Nation
Killah Priest Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yo, I move like a UFO ship, a smooth prince
The eloquent stance, intelligent man, while shooting
Rhyme from the Byzantine face, with seven holes
Knew I'd be in, Israelite faith, my weapon blows
Fire pearl, fugitive chased from higher world
Priest move through FBI states with white girls
There's no dies or pain, sedate the culture like the Europeans
Two hundred grams of my distant land, build sculptures

Of the high proximity, and fitted me pale
Paradox lost alone in this wasteland, he wears an ice cross
Lamping with the gold white Porsche, lights off
When he talks, breathe so cold you see white floss
You can see the sidewalk, you can se the white chalk
American tragedy, man who killed Malcolm
Ice pick, confessions of a Mafia hitman, and crime families
Brother minister, the brother's keepers
A sick grin, they cleared out the mall with street sweepers
Try to front, tell, in the hood, will bury ya
Priest sniff out beats like dogs sniff out bodies in wooded areas
Investigation, journalists on child murders
Jihad sip with serial killers, KKK and the hot burners
Every eye lurking, slay the beast when my iron emerges
Killah Priest throw fires at serpents

Prince of Persia, five fifties, most of us sly and shifty
Can't take the cake when you die, why evict me?
Diamond cut needles on the twelves, my niggas blow off the sales, come back derailed
I speak with the strength of powder sour, black reefer and flowers
Build me a palace in Egypt, I own McDonald's
Cranberry grenades, hood parade
Make sure my peoples safe, send the US the cure for AIDS
Everybody know my portfolio, Gucci sneakers on
Looking real, yo, this is my polio
Bro man with the gold lamb, gold glam
Show his hand off, I got the Scorpio in sand
Brand new rebels, rolled up, keeping it pulled up
Snatch your kilt, sipping African milk

My levels, is more higher then them devils
Check me in another ghetto, the circle

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Killah Priest's song "Wubian Nation" are complex and full of imagery, making interpretation a challenge. The opening lines suggest that the rapper, Killah Priest, moves like a UFO ship and is a smooth prince. He is an intelligent man who shoots lyrics from a Byzantine face with seven holes. He is also a member of the Israelite faith, and his weapon blows. He is a fire pearl, a fugitive chased from the higher world, and he moves through FBI states with white girls. Later, the lyrics reference Malcolm X's death, Mafia hitmen, and the KKK.

Line by Line Meaning

Yo, I move like a UFO ship, a smooth prince
I move gracefully like a UFO ship, like a prince

The eloquent stance, intelligent man, while shooting Rhyme from the Byzantine face, with seven holes
I'm smart and poised while rapping, spitting bars from my clever mind

Knew I'd be in, Israelite faith, my weapon blows
I knew I'd become part of the Israelite faith and use my weapon (skill) to blow others away with my music

Fire pearl, fugitive chased from higher world
Like a fiery pearl, I am hunted by those in higher realms

Priest move through FBI states with white girls
I travel through states surveilled by the FBI with white women

There's no dies or pain, sedate the culture like the Europeans
There's no flowers or beauty to our culture, it's been numbed like European colonization

Two hundred grams of my distant land, build sculptures
I have 200 grams of my origin, which I use to create art

Of the high proximity, and fitted me pale
My art is of high quality and suits me perfectly

Paradox lost alone in this wasteland, he wears an ice cross
I'm conflicted and lost in this barren land, I wear a cross made of ice

Lamping with the gold white Porsche, lights off
I drive a gold Porsche with white trimming and the lights off

When he talks, breathe so cold you see white floss
My breath is so cold when I talk, it creates a trail of white mist

You can see the sidewalk, you can se the white chalk
I leave a trail like someone dragging chalk, like a crime scene

American tragedy, man who killed Malcolm
The death of Malcolm X was an American tragedy

Ice pick, confessions of a Mafia hitman, and crime families
Mafia hitmen and crime families confess their crimes with ice picks

Brother minister, the brother's keepers
We are all entrusted to protect each other, like brothers

A sick grin, they cleared out the mall with street sweepers
The criminals were so menacingly happy, they lured innocent shoppers out and had the street sweepers come and clean the area

Try to front, tell, in the hood, will bury ya
If you try and act tough or snitch in the hood, the people will kill you

Priest sniff out beats like dogs sniff out bodies in wooded areas
Like dogs can sense decaying bodies in woods, I can sense good beats for my music

Investigation, journalists on child murders
Journalists investigate child murders

Jihad sip with serial killers, KKK and the hot burners
I have tea with serial killers, the KKK, and guns that are hot (used to kill)

Every eye lurking, slay the beast when my iron emerges
I'm always being watched, I kill when I pull out my gun

Killah Priest throw fires at serpents
I attack corrupt people like throwing fire at snakes

Prince of Persia, five fifties, most of us sly and shifty
I'm the Prince of Persia, with five 550 cars, and most of us are sneaky

Can't take the cake when you die, why evict me?
When I die, I can't take my wealth with me, so why do people try to steal it from me now?

Diamond cut needles on the twelves, my niggas blow off the sales, come back derailed
My friends are great DJs, they boost sales but come back all messed up

I speak with the strength of powder sour, black reefer and flowers
I talk with intensity, like powder cocaine, marijuana, and flowers

Build me a palace in Egypt, I own McDonald's
I am rich enough to build a palace in Egypt and I also own McDonald's

Cranberry grenades, hood parade
I throw grenades that are as red as cranberries, during parades in the hood

Make sure my peoples safe, send the US the cure for AIDS
I want to ensure the safety of my people and send a cure for AIDS to the United States

Everybody know my portfolio, Gucci sneakers on
Everyone knows about my experiences and I wear expensive Gucci shoes

Looking real, yo, this is my polio
I feel great and confident, this is my 'disease' of success

Bro man with the gold lamb, gold glam
My friend drives a gold Lamborghini, super glamorous

Show his hand off, I got the Scorpio in sand
My friend shows off his hand like at a poker game, while I have my gun (a Scorpio brand) buried in the sand

Brand new rebels, rolled up, keeping it pulled up
We are a new generation of rebels, rolling up to our destination with no stops

Snatch your kilt, sipping African milk
We take what we want, while enjoying African milk

My levels, is more higher then them devils
I surpass the devil's abilities, on a higher level of power

Check me in another ghetto, the circle
You can find me in any other ghetto, the community is always connected

Contributed by Annabelle F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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