Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin Bought by Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli

Photo by Jonathan Weiner

Last month, reports emerged that Wu-Tang Clan‘s one-of-a-kind album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, had been sold for “millions.” Now, Bloomberg has revealed the buyer’s identity: Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli. Shkreli is the former hedge fund manager (and Collect Records associate) who made headlines this year for increasing the price of Daraprim—a drug used to treat AIDS and cancer patients—from $13.50 to $750. He reportedly paid $2 million for the album.

In a statement emailed to Bloomberg Businessweek, RZA wrote, “The sale of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was agreed upon in May, well before Martin Skhreli’s [sic] business practices came to light. We decided to give a significant portion of the proceeds to charity.”

Shkreli says he’s yet to hear the record: “I could be convinced to listen to it earlier if Taylor Swift wants to hear it or something like that. But for now, I think I’m going to kind of save it for a rainy day.”

Read the full story at Bloomberg.

Update (12/9, 10:38 a.m. EST): Shkreli has put out a call on Twitter asking people to help him pick his next “private album”. “If there is a curious gap in your favorite artist’s discography, well, now you know why,” he added. Additionally, the CEO constructed an Excel document of potential purchases (Kanye, Prince, David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift) during a livestream, which you can watch below (at the 39:59 mark).

Poll suggestions: which artist should I now approach to buy my next private album from?

— Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) December 9, 2015

If there is a curious gap in your favorite artist’s discography, well, now you know why.

— Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) December 9, 2015

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