What Is U-God's Net Worth?
U-God is an American rapper, writer, and producer who has a net worth of $1.5 million. U-God is best known for being a member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan. Wu-Tang Clan formed in 1992 and has released the studio albums "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)" (1993), "Wu-Tang Forever"(1997), "The W" (2000), "Iron Flag" (2001), "8 Diagrams" (2007), "A Better Tomorrow" (2014), and "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" (2015), and three of those albums were certified Platinum or higher. Their singles "C.R.E.A.M.," "Triumph," and "Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)" were top 10 hits on the "Billboard" Hot Rap Songs chart. They have sold more than 40 million albums worldwide. The group was featured in the 1999 video game "Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style," and they produced and appeared in the 2019 Showtime docuseries "Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men." Wu Wear stores were opened in the '90s, and the line was sold at Macy's, d.e.m.o., and Rich's. Nike released a Wu-Tang Clan themed sneaker in 1999.
U-God has also released the solo albums "Golden Arms Redemption" (1999), "Mr. Xcitement" (2005), "Dopium"(2009), "The Keynote Speaker" (2013), and "Venom" (2018). He has collaborated with artists such as Cypress Hill, Masta Killa, Cappadonna, Blondie, Mobb Deep. He played himself in the 2003 film "Scary Movie 3," and he produced the 2004 documentary "U-God – Rise of a Fallen Soldier." In 2018, U-God published the memoir "Raw: My Journey Into The Wu-Tang."
Early Life
U-God was born Lamont Jody Hawkins on November 10, 1970, in New York City. During his youth, he moved from Brooklyn to Staten Island with his mother. U-God never met his father, and he eventually found out that his mother became pregnant with him after being raped. When he was 5 years old, U-God heard the Minnie Riperton song "Loving You" on the radio, and when he followed the sound outside, he saw a woman threatening to jump off the roof of a nearby building. U-God wrote in his memoir, "I remember staring up at her till my neck was stiff. The sound of her hitting the concrete steps would resonate with me forever." Before deciding to pursue a career in the music industry, he considered a career as an embalmer.
U-God met some of his future Wu-Tang Clan bandmates, including Method Man, Raekwon, and Inspectah Deck during his youth, and before they began performing together, he was mentored by rapper Cappadonna. After befriending Ghostface Killah and RZA, U-God started rapping under the name Golden Arms, which was inspired by the 1979 Kung-Fu film "Kid with the Golden Arm." His stage name U-God is a shortened version of "Universal God Allah," his Five-Percent Nation righteous name. U-God began dealing drugs as a teenager, and in 1992, he went to prison after getting into a confrontation with another drug dealer. He was in prison when Wu-Tang Clan was working on their first album, 1993's "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)," so his presence on the album was limited, but he did appear on the tracks "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" and "Protect Ya Neck."
Wu-Tang Clan
"Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)" reached #41 on the "Billboard" 200 chart and #8 on the "Billboard" Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and it was certified 3× Platinum in the U.S., Platinum in Australia and the U.K., and Gold in Denmark. The group followed "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)" with 1997's "Wu-Tang Forever," which reached #1 on the "Billboard" 200 chart, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, Canadian Albums chart, New Zealand Albums chart, and UK Albums chart. The album was certified 4× Platinum in the U.S., 2× Platinum in Canada, and Gold in the U.K. The single "Triumph" reached #6 on the Hot Rap Songs chart and went Platinum in the U.S. In 1999, U-God released his debut solo album, "Golden Arms Redemption," and it peaked at #58 on the "Billboard" 200 chart and #15 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The single "Bizarre" reached #7 on the "Billboard" Hot Rap Songs chart.
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In 2000, Wu-Tang Clan released the album "The W," which reached #5 on the "Billboard" 200 chart and #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and went Platinum in the U.S. and Gold in Canada, Germany, and the U.K. The single "Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)" reached #6 on the UK Singles chart and #9 on the Hot Rap Songs chart, and "Gravel Pit" was a top 10 hit in several countries. Their fourth album, 2001's "Iron Flag," reached #6 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and was certified Platinum in the U.S. The single "Uzi (Pinky Ring)" reached #16 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.
In 2004, U-God released the album "UGodz-Illa Presents: The Hillside Scramblers," followed by "Mr. Xcitement" in 2005. Three years after the death of Wu-Tang Clan member Ol' Dirty Bastard, the group released the 2007 album "8 Diagrams," which reached #9 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The single "The Heart Gently Weeps" was ranked #50 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of "The 100 Best Songs of 2007."
U-God released the solo albums "Dopium" (2009) and "The Keynote Speaker" (2013), and they reached #93 and #57, respectively, on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. "The Keynote Speaker" also reached #40 Top Rap Albums chart.
In 2014, Wu-Tang Clan released the album "A Better Tomorrow, and it reached #3 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The seventh Wu-Tang Clan album, "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin," was released in 2015, and the only copy was sold to Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli for $2 million. After Shkreli was convicted of securities fraud in 2018, his assets were seized by a federal court, and "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin" was sold to NFT collectors PleasrDAO by the US Department of Justice for $4 million in 2021.
In 2018, U-God released the album "Venom" as well as a memoir titled "Raw: My Journey Into The Wu-Tang."
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Royalties Lawsuit
In December 2016, U-God sued the entire Wu-Tang Clan, alleging that in the previous six years he hadn't seen a dime in royalties from the group's 12 studio albums, for which he says he's contributed to around 170 tracks overall. But the lawsuit reportedly gives special attention group leader RZA and RZA's brother Mitchell Diggs, who are accused of using RZA's clout as founder of the group to cut U-God off from the money he says he's contractually entitled to. He also says his contract with the group entitles him to two payments per year for his share of the profits from the sale of various pieces of Wu-Tang merchandise, which he's also been stiffed on according to the lawsuit. Finally, U-God says that the Wu-Tang Clan's infamous "secret album" Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, was also sold without him seeing any of the proceeds.
Personal Life
In 1994, U-God's two-year-old son, Dontae, was hit by a stray bullet while his babysitter carried him to a party. Dontae suffered permanent damage to his hands and kidney. According to "Inside Edition," Dontae "was nearly paralyzed in the harrowing incident and spent four months in the hospital learning how to walk and use his hand again." In his memoir, U-God wrote of the ordeal, "When I first saw Dontae in that ER, they had my baby boy cut wide open, operating on him. I was just f***ed up mentally." Dantae grew up to become a hip-hop artist known as iNTeLL, fronting 2nd Generation Wu, a group made up of sons of the founding members of Wu-Tang Clan.
Award Nominations
In 1998, Wu-Tang Clan earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album for "Wu-Tang Forever." They have received two American Music Award nominations, Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist (1998) and Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Band/Duo/Group (2008). In 2019, the group earned an International Documentary Association nomination for Best Music Documentary for "Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men."
