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at a glance...
Hometown: Staten Island, NY
Began: late 80s
Related Artists :
Wu Tang Clan (RZA, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Method Man, Masta Killa), Sunz of Man
Notes:
With nine members, all of whom brandish varied styles and skills, the Wu-Tang Clan is a phenomenon like no other in music. The Clan revolutionized the industry with monstrous soundscapes, insatiable imagination, sheer lyrical talent and a business sense that forced the major labels to play the game the Wu way. While the RZA serves as the de-facto leader of the group, producing nearly every Wu-Tang venture and overseeing much of their business operations, the GZA is an educator and mentor to all members of the group. A Staten Island native who was struck with the poetry buzz in his early teens, the Genius was a hip hop nomad of sorts in the late '80s, travelling to NYC's various boroughs to scope the styles coming out of each. Those experiences, along with knowledge gained from the release of 1991's Words From the Genius, a solid but ill-fated album that suffered from dodgy marketing tactics, provided the GZA with unquestioned intellect and wisdom. As Method Man states on the group's debut, Enter the 36 Chambers, "He's the backbone of the whole click. We form like Voltron and the GZA happens to be at the head." 1995's Liquid Swords was the fourth Wu-Tang solo effort.
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Genius/GZA
Liquid Swords
UNI/Geffen, Released 1995
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As hip hop barrels its way into middle America, newcomers to the genre might be initially confused by terms like "tight" and "sharp" often used to refer to talented MCs. Liquid Swords provides clarity to any quandary about what it means to be lyrically sharp. The Genius, the most skilled rapper of all of the Wu-Tang members and as gifted a lyricist as there is, wastes no words, syllables or inflections in his attempt drop his own science. On "Living in the World Today," GZA declares: "I'm swingin swords strictly based on keyboards/unbalanced/like elephants and ants on seesaws/I throw raps that attack like the Japs at Pearl Harbor."
The beats are vintage RZA, as the producer is given more autonomy on this album than on any other Wu-Tang solo project. Lush and dark with dense layers of strings, the production is spare enough to allow ample room for the GZA's flawless verses. The beat on the guest-packed "4th Chamber" is downright scary, but head nod-inducing nonetheless.
The GZA's enemy here is clear: hip hop's major labels and rappers without talent. On "Labels," his grating diatribe against record companies, the rapper manages to mention nearly every major hip hop label in the span of a two-minute verse. In this way, Liquid Swords defines the Wu-Tang method -- lyrics as the ultimate weaponry in the battle for survival -- using the vocabulary of drug deals, mafia jargon and kung fu battles as metaphor for tests of rhyme skills. What the GZA adds is an uncommon poetic tone, exploring the harsh realities of urban violence with detailed narratives and an array of imagery. "Shadowboxin'," the album's duet with Method Man, is the pinnacle of hip hop collaborations, partnering the inimitable flow and infinite pseudonyms of Mr. Meth and the airtight, authoritative delivery of the Genius.
If you like Liquid Swords, check out:
GZA Beneath the Surface
Killah Priest Heavy Mental
Sunz of Man The Last Shall Be First
Wu-Tang Clan Enter the 36 Chambers
-- Jim Welte
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