The RZA recently shared that he would take GZA over any MC in a rap battle.
Appearing on the latest episode of the Drink Champs podcast, Prince Rakeem was asked to choose between GZA and Nas, a close colleague and friend. Without hesitation, he picked The Genius.
“For MC-ing, my favorite, best MC is the GZA,” RZA said. “I don’t think no MC could beat the GZA. I think what GZA has written for Hip-Hop, no other MC can compare.”
The RZA went on to include Rakim as one of the greatest ever, but no one can touch his fellow Wu-Tang Clan member.
“Even if you go look at Rakim, who is one of the greatest, to most people, one of the greatest. Nas is one of the greatest. If you go look at what GZA offered to hip hop, look at what he spawned.”
“He spawned me, Meth (Method Man), Rae (Raekwon), Ghost (Ghostface Killah) — these are all from GZA, the enlightener,” he continued.
According to RZA, what the GZA has brought to hip-hop will last forever, and no one has yet to surpass it.
“What the Wu offered lyrically is what no one has mastered yet,” Bobby Digital boasted.
In 1991, GZA released his debut, Words from the Genius, on Cold Chillin Records. He would depart from the after soon afterwards. In 1995, he released his sophomore album, Liquid Swords, which was hailed as an instant classic.
Along with being a part of the Wu projects, GZA has released several more acclaimed albums and LPs.