Biography: Rza
* Born: July 05, 1969, Brooklyn, NY Period: `90s, 2000s
Biography:
The Wu-Tang Clan`s chief producer, the RZA (aka the Abbott, Prince Rakeem, the Rzarector, Bobby Steels, and Bobby Digital) was born Robert Diggs. He first surfaced during the early `90s as a member of the rap unit All in Together Now, a group that also featured fellow Wu-Tang members the Genius (aka GZA) and Ol` Dirty Bastard. Following All in Together Now`s dissolution, he signed to Tommy Boy under the name Prince Rakeem, issuing the 1991 EP Ooh We Love You Rakeem before joining the Wu-Tang; the group`s 1993 debut, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), was one of the most influential hip-hop records of the era, with RZA`s lean, menacing production work much imitated throughout the rap community in the years to follow. In addition to remaining a member of the loose-knit Wu-Tang family and producing many of the group members` solo efforts, RZA also joined the Gravediggaz, helming their 1995 debut 6 Feet Deep; his first full-length solo LP, RZA as Bobby Digital in Stereo, followed in 1998. In 1999, RZA Hits, a compilation of some of the Wu-Tang family`s best-known tracks, from both group and solo projects, was released under RZA`s name. Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, his soundtrack for the Jim Jarmusch film -- in which he made a cameo, beginning a series of small acting roles -- was released in 2000. One year later, he released his second Bobby Digital record, Digital Bullet. A mix album, The World According to RZA, followed in 2003, as did his third official solo album, The Birth of a Prince. He continued to field soundtrack work, including Quentin Tarantino`s two-volume Kill Bill films and the Japanese animation series Afro Samurai, as documented on 2007`s Afro Samurai and 2009`s Afro Samurai: The Resurrection.
