RZA Biography: In His Own Words – Exclusive Video, News, Photos, Age

Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA, is a famed American rapper, filmmaker, actor, and record producer. He became widely recognized for his role as a de facto leader of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which he co-founded in 1991, having produced the greatest number of albums of any other member in the group.

RZA BIOGRAPHY: AGE, EARLY LIFE, FAMILY, EDUCATION

RZA was born on July 5, 1969 (RZA’s age: 53) in Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York. He was named after former president John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert, two people whom RZA’s mother had greatly admired. RZA has went on to call his birth name an “honorable” one, especially given the legacy of these two celebrated figures.

Early on in his childhood, RZA was encouraged to read and study. He encountered hip-hop music when he was just nine years old, and was already competing in rap battles at age eleven.

In a 2018 interview in Atlanta, Georgia, RZA spoke about his early teenage years.

“We [were] going through what a lot of young black men were going through,” RZA recalled. “Those years, even though I had knowledge of self, I still was living as a member of my environment, of my community. Therefore, participating in everything that we did: drink, smoke, teenage sex, and drug dealing. That’s what was happening. That’s what we did.”

In 1991, RZA reportedly shot a man in the leg in a moment of self-defense. He hardly speaks publicly on the event, but had this to say in his interview:

“But I still injured that young man, and I regret that. I’m a man of peace. I don’t want to injure nobody, but let me get to the point. We went to trial and I won. The jury said not-guilty. And when I walked out, my mother looked me in my eye and said, ‘This is your second chance. Don’t blow it.’”

RZA BIOGRAPHY: RAP CAREER

Initially, RZA began his career as a producer and a rapper under the name Prince Rakeem. RZA began his hip-hop career in the late 1980s and early 1990s as a member of a group that had later become recognized as the All In Together Now crew. They released a single called “Ooh I love you Rakeem” in 1991.

After RZA was acquitted of his charge of attempted murder, everything changed. He’d decided to put the name Prince Rakeem to the side, while transforming into someone new and giving himself a second chance. That’s when the name RZA was born. That’s when RZA chose to walk down the path of virtue and righteousness and never look back.

“I had about ten thousand dollars to my name. The idea to take that ten thousand dollar to do something negative with it, or do something positive with it,” RZA said in a conservation at SXSW in 2023. “And I decided to go positive. I took it to my lawyer. I said I want to form a corporation and I want to start my own record label. That ten thousand dollars,” RZA proclaimed. “Went on to generate a billions dollars, or more than a billions dollars. Because from that idea we were able to make the Wu-Tang Clan.” 

“So many people,” RZA admitted. “Are eating off of this idea, off of this ten thousand dollars. And then when I look back and see these young actors who are artists who now get the chance to also build their families and start their careers off an idea that started in 1991, 92, yeah I feel pretty cool about that.”

RZA went on to begin his acting career in the late 1990s. His first notable acting role came in 1999 when he appeared in Jim Jarmusch’s film Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai. He’s also gone in to appear in numerous other films, such as Nobody, The Man with the Iron Fists, Poker Face, American Gangster, and Problemista.

In an exclusive interview with uInterview, RZA reflected upon his unique role in the hit film Problemista.

“At the end of the day, we all got a lot of problems. You got to try to solve them. You know what I mean? And don’t be that mouse going through that maze and not figuring your way out.”

RZA BIOGRAPHY: PERSONAL LIFE

RZA currently resides in Millstone Township, New Jersey with his wife, Talani Rabb.

RZA is a vegan and has spent time his time promoting the vegan lifestyle as well as compassion for animals on behalf of PETA, which is currently the largest animal rights organization in the world.

One of RZA’s hobbies includes watching various martial arts films, as he is considered an “encyclopedia of martial arts films” as a result of his extensive knowledge of the genre. Another one of his well-known hobbies is chess, as he was named champion of the Hip-Hop Chess Federation just several years back.