RZA

Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name Rza (stylized RZA), is an American music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, rapper, actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in hip hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost all of Wu-Tang Clan's albums as well as many Wu-Tang solo and affiliate projects. He has also released solo albums under the alter-ego Bobby Digital, along with executive producing credits for side projects. In addition to the Wu-Tang Clan and his solo releases, RZA was also a founding member of the horrorcore Hip Hop group Gravediggaz where he used the name The RZArector. Furthermore, he has acted in several movies, including Coffee and Cigarettes,American Gangster, Gospel Hill, Life Is Hot in Cracktown, Ghost Dog, Funny People, Derailed, Due Date and Repo Men. He also appears in the Showtime TV series Californication. His directorial debut is for the film he co-wrote and in which he plays the title role,The Man with the Iron Fists, also starring Russell Crowe. On November 1, 2012, he introduced the movie at a preview screening in the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens, the evening before theUniversal picture opened nationwide. RZA was ranked #2 on About.com's list of the Top 50 Hip-Hop Producers, while The Source placed him on its list of the 20 greatest producers in the magazine's twenty-year history. He also made the "Elite 8" in the search for The Greatest Hip-Hop Producer of All Time by Vibe. --- RZA was born in Brownsville, Brooklyn. He lived in North Carolina with his uncle from age three to seven, who encouraged him to read and study. RZA was introduced to hip hop music at the age of nine, and by eleven, was competing in rap battles. He relocated to Steubenville, Ohio in 1990, to live with his mother. He spent weekends in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where his father ran a convenience store in the city's Hill District. RZA got involved with petty crime and drug-dealing, and was charged with attempted murder while in Steubenville. He was acquitted of the charge, giving him what he stated was a "second chance". He is named after Robert Kennedy and John Fitzgerald Kennedy. His mother greatly admired the Kennedys, the RZA has called his given name an "honorable" name, given the legacy of both brothers Robert and John. As each of the group's members embarked on solo careers, RZA continued to produce nearly everything Wu-Tang released during the period 1994–1996, producing in both the hip-hop producer sense (composing and arranging the instrumental tracks) and in the wider music producer sense (overseeing and directing the creative process as well as devising song concepts and structure in addition to being responsible for a recording's final sound). RZA's rule over the Clan at this time is described in 2004's Wu-Tang Manual book as "a dictatorship". Yet he still released a hit single of his own, in the form of Wu-Wear: The Garment Renaissance. The song was featured on the High School High soundtrack, and was released to coincide with the Wu-Tang clothing brand. It peaked at #60 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #6 on the Hot Rap Singles chart. --- Originally, he was offered the role of "Brown" in The Departed (2006), but turned it down because of scheduling conflicts. He performed cameo roles in Funny People, Due Date, Gospel Hill, Ghost Dog, and Life Is Hot in Cracktown. He was also said to be attached to friend Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill project in one way or another, featuring as a solo artist on the soundtrack to Kill Bill: Volume 1 and selecting some other songs for the soundtrack. In 2010, RZA appeared in the science fiction action film Repo Men.