RZA is the de facto leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums for the group and its respective members.
46 Facts About RZA
2.
RZA is a cousin of two other original Wu-Tang Clan members: GZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard.
3.
RZA has released solo albums under the alter-ego Bobby Digital, along with executive producing credits for side projects.
4.
RZA has been heavily involved in filmmaking since the late 90s.
5.
RZA has scored a number of films, most notably Kill Bill: Volume 1 and Kill Bill: Volume 2.
6.
RZA has written and directed in film and television, starting with his directorial debut, The Man with the Iron Fists, in 2012.
7.
RZA has acted in numerous films and TV series, including the films American Gangster and Brick Mansions, and the TV series Gang Related and Californication.
8.
RZA is especially known for his music production, with a style that includes the use of soul samples and sparse beats that has proved highly influential.
9.
RZA was named after the Kennedy brothers Robert and John Fitzgerald, both of whom his mother greatly admired.
10.
RZA relocated to Steubenville, Ohio in 1990, to live with his mother.
11.
RZA spent weekends in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where his father ran a convenience store in the city's Hill District.
12.
RZA was acquitted of the charge, giving him what he has called a "second chance".
13.
RZA released the original Ooh I Love You Rakeem promotion version of the EP, but was forced to remix and rerelease the single when Tommy Boy failed to acquire the rights to the original sample.
14.
RZA operated as Wu-Tang Clan's de facto leader, producing the group's songs and deciding who would get placed on which tracks.
15.
RZA released a hit single of his own, in the form of "Wu-Wear: The Garment Renaissance".
16.
RZA had one single out on Tommy Boy that didn't take off, but he was a dope MC.
17.
The album for the first time featured RZA delegating a small number of beat-making duties to other producers in the Wu-Tang camp, such as his proteges Mathematics, True Master and 4th Disciple who are known as the original Wu-Elements, and Clan member Inspectah Deck.
18.
RZA has stated that the long-delayed The Cure album will be his final solo album, so that he can devote more time to his movie directing career.
19.
RZA worked with Kanye West on the latter's fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, as well as Watch the Throne by Kanye and Jay-Z.
20.
RZA contributed vocals to three songs on John Frusciante's 2012 EP Letur-Lefr and in 2013 he contributed vocals to one song on Kid Cudi's 2013 album Indicud.
21.
RZA appeared on Earl Sweatshirt's album Doris, contributing a verse on the track "Molasses".
22.
RZA collaborated with Ramin Djawadi, with whom he co-scored Blade Trinity and Blake Perlman for the song "Drift" for the Guillermo del Toro film "Pacific Rim".
23.
In June 2020, ice cream company Good Humor approached RZA to create a new jingle for ice cream trucks to play, to replace the tune "Turkey in the Straw", long associated with minstrel shows that often featured racist lyrics.
24.
The connection that RZA had to these labels is unknown.
25.
Similar to the [production] style I use, RZA has been doing that.
26.
RZA is known for having multiple aliases, for different lyrical styles and personalities: Prince Rakeem, The Abbot, Bobby Digital, Bobby Steels, the Scientist, Prince Delight, Prince Dynamite, Ruler Zig-Zag-Zig Allah.
27.
RZA has had cameo appearances in films including Funny People, Due Date, Gospel Hill, Ghost Dog, Life Is Hot in Cracktown and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping.
28.
RZA appeared in Derailed, Coffee and Cigarettes, and American Gangster.
29.
In 2010, RZA appeared in the science fiction action film Repo Men.
30.
In 2014, RZA took on the role of Tremaine Alexander in the film Brick Mansions opposite Paul Walker and David Belle, a remake of District 13.
31.
RZA directed and starred in The Man with the Iron Fists.
32.
In 2013, RZA provided guest voices in the sixth season episode of Robot Chicken.
33.
RZA's first role is an anthropomorphic strawberry who is shot dead in a mob hit, causing his jelly blood to splatter onto a large slice of bread below.
34.
RZA played the role of Samurai Apocalypse in the television series Californication in 9 episodes.
35.
RZA played the supporting role of Shotgun Steve in the romantic action comedy movie Mr Right with Sam Rockwell and Anna Kendrick.
36.
RZA portrayed Dean in 2019 film The Dead Don't Die.
37.
RZA narrates a character, known as Wesley, on the 2019 Netflix original series Day Break in Season 1, episode 5 named "Homecoming Redux or My So Called Stunt Double Life".
38.
RZA portrayed Harry Mansell, brother of the protagonist, in the 2021 action comedy film Nobody with Bob Odenkirk and Connie Nielsen.
39.
RZA directed his first feature film, The Man with the Iron Fists, in 2011, from a script he wrote the previous year.
40.
RZA has embraced various aspects of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Islam, and Christianity, as he describes in his two books, The Wu-Tang Manual and The Tao of Wu.
41.
RZA has described the Quran, The Bible, and the Lotus Sutra as three of his favorite books, stating that each contains enlightenment.
42.
RZA provided the afterword to See You at San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture.
43.
RZA's hobbies include watching martial arts films, and he is considered an "encyclopedia of martial arts films" due to his knowledge of the genre.
44.
RZA met and befriended Shaolin Monk Shi Yan Ming after being introduced by Ol' Dirty Bastard's manager Sophia Chang.
45.
RZA is a Director of Development and champion of the Hip-Hop Chess Federation.
46.
RZA is vegan and has promoted the vegan lifestyle and compassion for animals on behalf of PETA.