Production

Rza keeps it razor sharp. When people talk about Rap and Hip-Hop, Theyusually talk about the 50 cents, and Eminems, and Ja Rule’s and what not.This is because they are what the mass of people hear, and more importantly see most of. People forget that the reason these artists are where they are today is, beside having massive marketing campaigns put on by their record labels, they got lucky and rapped over a sick beat.

There are there are thousands of seriously legit rappers on street corners all over the 5 boroughs of New York, the slums of Detroit, and the boardwalks of So Cal. The problem is, none of these Artists with true talent are ever going to make it anywhere without that breakout head-bumpin' beat. This is wear the Producer comes in. The Producer is the man/or woman (big shout out to Alicia Keys), who creates the music for the rapper to rhyme over. This "beat" is what catches the ears of the public. Once a listener hears the music and they start bobbing their head to it that means they recognize the "break-beat loop" of the track. At this point the artist begins voicing the lyric. Again, I will repeat till I’m blue in the face: it’s only possible to blow up when you got that fat beat.

Now back to the point...Rza. I have often wondered, who is the best? Who can create the illest beats with any sound they hear? Who has the genius to put multiple songs together, and create music? Most Hip-Hop heads will quickly make a case for artists like Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson, Pete Rock, or Marley Marl. While a case can be made for each producer's greatness, the arguement over who is the best begins and ends with The Rza.

The Rza was born Robert Diggs in Brownsville, Brooklyn, NYC on July 5, 1969. Growing up the Rza had a knack for business and an ear for music. He and one of his future Clan members had newspaper schemes in which they would find ways to make more money than the average seller. When and if he ever had spare cash, he would buy vinyl records where ever he could get them. He indisciminately enjoyed all types of genres. From classical jazz to Disney albums, he’d pick it up. This is what started his obsession with beat creation.

As a youth, Robert, his friend and cousin Gary Grice (the Gza) would sneak into New York's seedy movie theatres. These theaters is were the two began their obsession with the culture of Kung Fu; which ultimately influenced them enough to label their rap-group The Wu-Tang Clan.

It is clear to hear when one listens to Wu's debut album, Enter The Wu Tang, that the album is almost completely produced by the Rza. His production style found him regarded as a pioneer, in the same air of Grandmaster Flash and DJ Premier. He refers to his sound as "dirty and grimy", producing a sound so full of raw emotion that its nearly impossible to not bang your head to.

I started listening to Wu-Tang and Rza's beats almost a decade after its peek on the charts. I’m thankful for this because I could absorb the genius of the music without a sense of chasing the latest "it" group in on the hip-hop landscape. I could never be able to simply follow the orders fed to me by the major record labels. That being said, I think its high time to start bouncing your head to the Rza, because you will no doubt claim, “hey I’ve heard this on a (insert name of current hip-hop star)", only to learn that the Rza and his Wu Tang-Clan did it a ten years earlier.