Ol’ Dirty Bastard stood out in every sense through his delivery, his humor, his energy, and his complete disregard for convention. A founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan, he carved out a space where raw emotion, off-kilter flow, and magnetic personality collided.
While mainstream fans still quote “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” or remember him rushing the stage at the Grammys, the full picture of ODB lives deeper in the catalog. His solo career, collaborative features, and posthumous releases are filled with songs that capture his creativity in moments that often went overlooked.
From film soundtracks to obscure freestyles and crew compilations, these tracks offer insight into an artist who was always in motion. Whether rhyming through legal restrictions, floating over RZA production, or teaming up with Harlem’s mixtape scene, Dirt McGirt’s presence was undeniable. These 15 deep cuts showcase the parts of his legacy that didn’t always chart, but still hit just as hard.
1. Harlem World
Tucked into the bonus section of Return to the 36 Chambers, “Harlem World” was an unfiltered torrent of ODB’s wildest impulses. Producer Big Dore laced a woozy loop built from Barrington Levy’s “Here I Come,” while Dirty ranted about old Harlem fits, C.H.U.D. monsters, and classmates with dirty socks. “You repeat your rhymes all the time like a f**kin’ parrot,” he spit, dissing fake emcees in a way only he could. It’s chaotic, hilarious, and deeply original — part stand-up routine, part sermon, part fever dream. A hidden gem for those willing to embrace the madness.
2. Show & Prove (with Big Daddy Kane, JAY-Z, Sauce Money, Scoob Lover, and Shyheim)
ODB closed out this stacked posse cut with a verse that’s pure chaos and charisma. Rapping alongside then-rising stars like JAY-Z and Shyheim, he hijacked DJ Premier’s classic boom-bap beat with nonsensical brilliance: “Sometimes I be like, ‘Well godd**n, what’s the recipe?’ I don’t know, I ask my momma!” It’s a moment that captures his appeal — half battle emcee, half cosmic jester. The record itself is a fascinating time capsule, with Kane handpicking new talent. Dirty’s final bars sealed the deal: offbeat, unpredictable, and unforgettable. Wu-Tang killa bees truly swarmed on this one.
3. Toxic (with Mark Ronson and Tiggers)
Mark Ronson’s horn-heavy cover of Britney Spears’ “Toxic” is already unexpected, but ODB’s posthumous verse made it unforgettable. He steamrolled the beat with the same manic energy he brought to everything. Recorded before his death and later remixed into Ronson’s Version album, Dirty jumped from Disney jokes to courtroom paranoia with reckless abandon. “I want a girl to help me take my medication, so I don’t end up at the police station.” It’s messy, absurd, and totally Ol’ Dirty.
4. All In Together Now
Named after the early crew ODB formed with RZA and GZA pre-Wu-Tang, this N**ga Please deep cut was a raw stream of socio-political outbursts and absurdity over a funky Charles Wright sample. Produced by True Master, it balanced satire and sincerity: “White people getting hot in here… Aliens getting hot in here.” In true Dirt fashion, he tackled race, capitalism, and schoolyard unity with tongue-in-cheek fury. ODB is part preacher, part provocateur here — ranting, laughing, enlightening, and confusing all at once. It’s one of his most conceptually layered solo moments.
5. Nuttin’ But Flavor (with Funkmaster Flex, Charlie Brown, and Biz Markie)
ODB’s verse on this Funkmaster Flex posse cut was like a freestyle tornado: Unpredictable, hilarious, and straight from the gut. “Doing me is like a fisherman without water,” he rapped, flipping metaphors with no regard for logic or restraint. The beat, laced with scratches and stabs of piano keys throughout, gave Dirty all the room he needed to wild out. Between absurdist bars and Inspector Clouseau name-drops, he reaffirmed his love for rap as chaos incarnate. Surrounded by legends like Charlie Brown and Biz Markie, ODB still managed to be the loudest voice in the room — and the most unforgettable.
6. Ol’ Dirty’s Back (with 12 O’Clock)
Originally featured on the Tales from the Hood soundtrack, “Ol’ Dirty’s Back” is a grimy duet between ODB and his Brooklyn Zu comrade 12 O’Clock. Dirty’s verse blurs autobiography and absurdity, rapping about street life, inherited wealth, and dinosaur-riding cavemen in one dizzying stretch. The track shifts between personal mythology and Five Percenter thought, all over a murky boom-bap beat from Popa Chief. Even with a guest verse, it’s unmistakably poetic, paranoid, and prophetic all at once.
7. Who Rock This? (with Mystikal)
“Who Rock This?” united Wu-Tang and No Limit on the I Got the Hook-Up! soundtrack. ODB and Mystikal traded verses over a beat courtesy of RZA and Craig B, each MC delivering their wildest flows. Dirty sounded like he’s short-circuiting in real time: “Forget about that, that’s just experiment, damn, a n**ga blew a fuse off the things I invent.” Their chemistry was raw, unhinged, and loud enough to rattle club walls. It’s a deep cut that proved regional borders meant nothing when two rap madmen linked up.
8. Zoo Two
“Zoo Two” (a presumed conceptual sequel to “Brooklyn Zoo”) was him at his most lyrically berserk, spitting rapid-fire bars filled with martial arts, sitcoms, and chaotic punchlines. “I rolled up into jet, Black kid the n***a started speakin’ Spanish!” he shouted before comparing himself to the Count of Monte Cristo and John Travolta. Released on The Trials & Tribulations of Russell Jones, the track blended battle rap vibes with comedy and pure absurdity. Dirty jumped between rhyme schemes like a loose wire, barely pausing for breath. It’s a sonic rollercoaster that captured what made him legendary — unfiltered brilliance backed by barely-contained mayhem.
9. Some Girls (Dance With Women) (Remix) (with J.C. Chasez)
Nobody expected an *NSYNC member and Dirt McGirt on the same track, but the remix of “Some Girls” delivered a surreal blend of pop gloss and grime. Over a clubby beat, Dirty dropped one of his raunchiest cameos in the kind of crossover that only makes sense in hindsight — a messy, infectious time capsule of early-2000s risk-taking. Recorded shortly before his death, the track captured him in full party mode, slurring innuendos and defying every expectation of what a guest verse should be (an approach he essentially pioneered on Mariah Carey’s “Fantasy (Remix)”).
10. Skrilla (with RZA)
Over grimy RZA production, “Skrilla” found ODB snarling through paranoid street bars, war-ready punchlines, and surreal boasts. “Quarter mount scope, ain’t aimin’ at no birdie,” he growled, followed by lines about cybertech suits and Spacely Sprockets. The hook is a menacing chant: “When you get that skrilla, n**ga, act familiar.” This mix of street mythology and comic book supervillain energy was urgent and off-kilter, teetering between braggadocio and total breakdown. “Skrilla” might not have charted, but it banged like a mixtape war report straight from the mind of a madman.
11. Break That (with Mathematics, U-God, and Masta Killa)
Over a Melvin Bliss sample, he opened “Break That” like a mutant superhero: “I can fly through the air and stick to the wall.” The track, from Mathematics’ The Problem, was classic Wu-Tang cypher style — no hook necessary beyond Dirty’s hypnotic chant. His verse was raw, leaping from slavery metaphors to outer space flexes with signature reckless abandon. U-God and Masta Killa followed with hard-nosed bars, but it’s ODB’s unfiltered, animated delivery that stole the show. It sounded like a VHS-taped freestyle session in the dojo. Grimy and weirdly beautiful.
12. Sussudio
Only ODB could flip a Phil Collins classic into something this strange and oddly infectious. Released as part of the Urban Renewal tribute album, his version of “Sussudio” was equal parts parody and homage. “I speak Old English, if not, I’d be dirty and stinking,” he rapped over an interpolation of the original’s bubbly groove. With a female hook vocalist holding down the melody, Dirty riffed through funk, filth, and fourth-wall breaks. It's a bizarre tribute that somehow worked — proof that he could crash any genre and make it his own.
13. Thirsty (with Black Keith)
ODB got vampiric on “Thirsty,” a haunting slow-burner from the Blade: Trinity soundtrack. Over RZA’s moody production and Black Keith’s eerie vocals, Dirty played the role of a seductive fiend: “You can't fight the thirst, nor escape the Blade.” The metaphor blurred between alcohol, lust, and bloodlust, making it one of his darkest, most cinematic moments. His verse was brief but vivid, delivered like a late-night whisper from the shadows. Released days after his death, “Thirsty” stood as a bittersweet send-off.
14. How Ya Feelin’
“How Ya Feelin’” felt like a post-rehab diary entry dipped in Hennessy. Produced by Damon Elliott, this cut saw ODB at his most self-referential — joking about legal restrictions while bragging about bubble baths and Dame Dash sending limos. Between bounce-house synths and call-and-response vocals, Dirty toasted to freedom, physical pleasures, and his new label deal with Roc-A-Fella. It was hilarious and oddly wholesome, anchored by his unique blend of absurdity and vulnerability. A rare glimpse at an artist balancing chaos with clarity.
15. Move Back (with Terra Blacks, Lenox Ave Boyz, Cardan, Drag-On, and Jae Millz)
A posse cut drenched in Harlem grit, “Move Back” closed Osirus with wackiness, charisma, and a lineup of spitters including Jae Millz, Drag-On, and Cardan. Produced by Dame Grease, the beat snarled underneath verses that channel early-2000s street bravado. When ODB finally stepped in for the last verse, he was unfiltered as ever — dropping bizarre bars about “platinum shippin’” while still repping Wu-Tang loyalty. It was classic Dirt McGirt. While others flexed with polish, his brilliance is in the rough.