One of the age-old debates in the hip-hop community is who the greatest rapper of all time is. And while it is not really possible to come up with a concrete answer, it is still a fun topic to debate.
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RZA Says GZA is The Best Rapper of All Time
When it comes to the topics of the GOAT rapper the most common names you might hear are Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, or perhaps Eminem. But famed rap artist RZA had a different approach when asked. He believes the greatest emcee of all time is fellow Wu-Tang Clan member, GZA.
“For MC-ing, my favorite, best MC is the GZA. I don’t think any MC could beat the GZA. I think what GZA has written for hip-hop, no other MC can compare,” RZA said.
“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, Rae, Ghost — these are all from GZA, the enlightener.”
Rap Star Wants Wu-Tang in Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
RZA is one of the famed members of the iconic hip-hop group, the Wu-Tang Clan. The group has been behind several classic hits such as Cash Rules Everything Around Me (C.R.E.A.M), Protect Ya Neck, and Bring da Ruckus. Their impact on the music community has proven to span generations.
Because of their impact, RZA believes that the group should be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
“Rock & roll has a certain spirit; it was the spirit of the Sixties and Seventies youth,” RZA told Rolling Stone in 2019.
“Hip-hop is the Eighties, Nineties, up to now, the youth. It’s called hip-hop, but it’s in the same spirit as rock & roll at the end of the day. Lyrical, stories, music, unorthodox, dissonant sometimes, energetic, all the things that rock is and was, hip-hop embodies.”
He also noted that although songs such as “Bring Da Ruckus” were made with the hip-hop genre in mind, it still has a Rock & Roll feel to it.
“Listening to a song like ‘Bring da Ruckus,’ I thought I was making hip-hop, but shit, it has a m***********g rock & roll groove like a m**********r. I don’t know how the f**k I did that. I go back and listen to some of the Beatles progressions and some of [Led] Zeppelin’s progressions and movements, like, okay, I was on some s**t, though.”
