The rapper RZA believes “no other MC can compare” to
RZA is one of hip-hop’s great producers, so his opinion on who can be considered a truly exceptional MC counts for more than most. But, of all the rappers out there, the one who he thinks did it best happens to belong to his group.
“For MC-ing,” he said on the Drink Champs podcast in 2025, “my favourite, best MC is the GZA.”
The accusations of bias here are obvious, given that, not only are RZA and GZA key members of the Wu-Tang Clan, but they’re also cousins. It might seem like RZA is merely being loyal to his family member here, but, on the other hand, GZA really does have a claim to being considered one of the best rappers of all time. Nobody else did it like he did.
“I don’t think no MC could beat the GZA,” RZA insisted. “I think what GZA has written for hip-hop, no other MC can compare.”
RZA mentioned Rakim and Nas as examples of other rappers who can be considered among the best. But, from his point of view, nobody else quite did what the GZA managed to do. “If you go look at what GZA offered to hip-hop, look at what he spawned,” he said. “He spawned me, Meth, Rae, Ghost—these are all from GZA, the enlightener.”
GZA’s influence on the Wu-Tang Clan alone is arguably enough to credit him as one of the best. As the oldest member of the group, and arguably the cleverest, is considered to be the Wu’s spiritual head, if not its actual leader, which is the RZA. It’s not for nothing that GZA is also known as the Genius.
GZA’s lyrics are unlike those of any other rapper. He is known to possess one of the widest vocabularies in hip-hop, drawing on ideas from science and philosophy. He is also an avid chess player, which has also frequently found its way into his music. His verses are, by and large, very different to those of most hip-hop artists.
GZA has spoken about the process behind his rapping, and, from his perspective, patience is key. The way he writes is “real slow.”
“I don’t say slow in the sense that it necessarily took me a long time to finish what I’m writing,” he remarked to WaxPoetics in 2014. “I mean, Raekwon and Ghostface can step in and record a song in about 45 minutes. I, on the other hand, would often go back and finish rhymes that I started. I would say I pieced things together [more] slowly then. Songs generally take me two to three days to write.”