By Omar Burgess
It's hard enough to keep up with the nine original members of the Wu-Tang Clan and their Gambino aliases. But what happens when, after finally getting a beat on those 18 characters, the clansmen start entering chambers that you didn't even know existed? Think of it as W.E.B. DuBois' famous quote about "two warring ideas in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder," with a Shaolin twist.
Take RZA, for instance. He was perfectly happy, chilling in his multi-million dollar home when the call came. Technically, the actual phone call to record another Bobby Digital album probably came from someone at Koch Records. But, the more you hear him talk about his varied interests, the more likely it is that some inner call to rhyme came from Robert Diggs, The Abbot or even Bobby Digital himself. Even with all of his accolades and the money that comes with them, RZA still sounds like he's in search of his true calling. Even if he doesn't reconcile all of the different aspects of his personality which battle within him on his Digi Snax album, it's going to be entertaining to listen to him try.
HipHopDX: Back in 1999, you said the Bobby Digital persona created too much of a contradiction inside you. Did you change your mind, or is this side of you like a werewolf during a full moon that needs to be let out every couple years?
RZA: [Laughs] You could say that in one way. This one came about from two different methods actually. First, the people over at Koch came to me and were like, “Hey Bobby, how about another record?” I was in the middle of my Hollywood excursions and shit, and I kind of put that to the side for a minute. And then, after the 8 Diagrams [click to read] situation and how that turned out, I kind of had a little emcee vengeance in me. I figured I would just bung, bung it out like this and get that energy out through this medium.
DX: Now that the dust has settled, how do you feel about the good and the bad that went down with 8 Diagrams?
R: As far as the good of it, I think it’s a good album. I mean, I still rock it to this day. It’s been in my CD player for, what, almost seven months now? I still know it by heart. I think it’s a good album. That’s the good of it. If you like Wu-Tang and you’ve got the other records, it’s another one to put in that vein.
The bad of it is that we prematurely shot ourselves in the foot. I mean, that’s my opinion, and everybody’s got their own. But, I think we spoke against ourselves. It’s like if you’re in the ring, you gotta box, man. You can’t complain about your glove being untied; you can’t complain about nothing—you gotta just start swinging. I feel like we sabotaged ourselves, in all reality. We did two tours and didn’t perform the music. The Raekwon incident [click to read] was big, nahmean? That was over a couple hundred thousand views, and it made Miss Info’s website actually worth money now. People don’t realize what they do when they do things like that. I wouldn’t be surprised if in a year she had her own TV show. But, everyone’s got their own opinions, yo. I put a lot of hard work into that record and I appreciate how it sounds. I’ve got a lot of fans and friends who appreciate it as well.
DX: True. It seems that the overall sound has changed, and that’s not just limited to 8 Diagrams. Is it age, studying music theory or the live instruments that makes it seem mellower?
R: Nah, it’s just music. If you take all my music and take all my shit and really check it without a biased thought in your mind, you won’t see too much change. I don’t think there’s too much change, besides clarity due to the equipment being used. If we’re talking about 8 Diagrams, name a song, and I’ll give you another one that you loved as much.
DX: Off 8 Diagrams?
R: Yeah, name a song.
DX: “Weak Spot.”
R: Okay, “Weak Spot,” that’s classic Wu shit. From the drums, the Kung-fu samples, the weird noises, the emcees to the drops—that’s classic Wu-Tang material. That’s obvious Wu-Tang, name another one.
DX: What about “Heart Gently Weeps?”
R: Okay, take “Heart Gently Weeps” and compare it to “Can It All Be So Simple.” Take “Babies” off the Iron Flag album, ‘cause “Heart Gently Weeps” is a live band. Go to [Ghostface Killah's] Bulletproof Wallets and get “Maxine,” because that’s a live band too. You can even go back to Ol’ Dirty’s [Return to the 36 Chambers] album and compare it to [“Drunk Game" (Sweet Sugar Pie)"] Those elements have always been in my music in one way or another.
DX: Good point. Since we’re comparing old and new, can you talk about reworking “Drama” from the Words from the Genius album?
R: Yeah, I like that idea and I’m proud of that one. I’m such a fan, because GZA is my big cousin and he taught me and schooled me about a lot of stuff in life growing up. I’m proud to be able to cover a Hip Hop song like that and totally make a new song out of it. Continued on page 2 »
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