Wu-Tang Clan lyricist GZA took time to address the origins of Hip Hop during a lecture about his Science Genius program at a recent TEDx Teen Talk series.
According to the Brooklyn-born musician, Hip Hop was created to stop violence, specifically gang violence. He later revealed that Hip Hop can still be used to educate the youth and “promote a positive vibe.”
“Rap itself or rhyming is sometimes considered by some as an inferior or lower language because or probably because of the ignorance and the negativity and the violence that’s associated with it,” GZA said. “Hip Hop was started to stop violence, not increase violence. Or not help promote violence. It was started to stop gang violence. When those from the early days, the pioneers came out and played the music and put down all they colors and formed a group and came together. So, back to using Hip Hop as a means of educating the youth is a great thing because we can uplift them to a certain level and promote a positive vibe.”
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The topic of science and music and the parallels between the two was also discussed during GZA’s lecture as he expressed interest in wanting to learn more about the science behind sound.
“Science is a way to improve our quality of life by understanding ourselves more and the things that surround us,” he said. “It’s a way of upliftment. But why music? Because music is a universal language. Music is a world within itself and a language we all understand. Said by Stevie Wonder. Music is a healing force of the world. Understood by every man, woman, and girl. Said by The O’Jays. It is a healing force. Music is universal. Both imaginary and real. I’m more interested in the reality of sound and how sound physically exists in the universe.”
In addition to his discussion on science and music during the TEDx Teen Talk series, GZA has also lectured at Harvard University, Cornell University, New York University and other institutes of higher learning.
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