RZA: The Wu-Tang icon is officially cracking into the classical genre with his 'A Ballet Through Mud' album
Your favorite rap icons are switching up on everyone these days. Whether it’s Andre 3000 delivering a full-fledged flute-type album or Wu-Tang Clan leader RZA showing out with a new A Ballet Through Mud studio effort, I’m here for the expansion of musical awesomeness.
Your favorite rap icons are switching up on everyone these days. Whether it’s Andre 3000 delivering a full-fledged flute-type album or Wu-Tang Clan leader RZA showing out with a new A Ballet Through Mud classical studio effort, I’m here for the expansion of musical awesomeness.
RZA has you diversifying your musical tastes with a new classical album
Classic or classical, I’m here to see what Bobby Digital is bringing to The Culture next month. With a knack for always putting his signature touch into anything he does, the stakes are high for this new conceptual project.
Famed artist RZA and Platoon today announced the official release of “A Ballet Through Mud,” an original composition and orchestration created by RZA. Originally performed by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, “A Ballet Through Mud” is a poignant coming-of-age story that delves into the complexities of love, the bonds of friendship, and personal growth.
RZA found this project during the pandemic, when during lockdown he came across old lyrical notebooks he’d filled as a teen. Inspired by his early musings, RZA explored what would become his first classical album, then ballet, bringing it to life onstage in 2023.
Featuring characters named for Greek musical scales, the piece echoes RZA’s journey from
Staten Island project housing to refined concert halls – weaving in tales of love, loss, exploration, Buddhist monks, and a journey “through mud.”
"I have been composing my whole life, although I didn't know initially that was what I was
doing. The inspiration for ‘A Ballet Through Mud’ comes from my earliest creative output as a
teenager, but its themes are universal—love, exploration, and adventure,” said RZA. “I hope
people use it to score their own lives, to transform a drive to the grocery store or sharing a meal with loved ones into something magical, to be inspired and let their imaginations take them into a different chamber, if only for a moment."
An emotional tale, the composition beautifully transports the listener across time and space
without losing the energy and power RZA has become known for in his music – whether it’s
Wu-Tang or the soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2. Profoundly
influenced by his philosophical journey toward Chan Buddhism, “Ballet Through Mud” oscillates between idealism and orchestration while remaining grounded enough to be enjoyed by a wide audience.
The tracklist is as follows:
1. Aeolian Beauty
2. Clear Sky After Storm
3. Ballet Through Mud
5. Divine Intervention
6. Freedom of Movement
7. Soft Footsteps
8. Goodnight
9. The Night Dances When You Least Expect It
10. Moving Meditation
11. The Lotus Arrives
Composed and produced by RZA, “A Ballet Through Mud” was performed by the Colorado
Symphony Orchestra and was conducted by Christopher Dragon. Pietro Rossi mixed and
mastered the work, with the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus providing the Dolby Atmos
Mix. Additional orchestration by Ming-Hsueh Lin, Scott O’Neil, Tan Onwimon, and Joseph
Colmenero. Musical direction was done by RZA and Joseph Colmenero. Project coordinators on the project were Joseph Comenero and Tareef Michael. Yusha-Marie Sorzano served as choreographer in the original performance.
This is the first partnership between RZA and Platoon. “A Ballet Through Mud” will be available to stream officially on August 30 via Platoon.
About Platoon
The multi-award-winning and GRAMMY® nominated label Platoon was founded by music industry legend and CEO Denzyl Feigelson in 2016. The boutique artist services company identifies groundbreaking talent from around the world while providing invaluable and innovative tools and services to build their careers and reach new fans. Platoon landed its first success shortly after their inception when they signed the then-unknown Billie Eilish, laying the groundwork for her ascent to global stardom alongside other household names such as Mr. Eazi and Victoria Monét. Current signings include Saint Harison, Gustavo Dudamel, LA Philharmonic, Skream, James Fauntleroy, Khalid, and more. Platoon’s team expands across the globe with offices in London, New York, and Los Angeles, as well as a “Creative Lab” in Cape Town. Their visionary spaces in London, Los Angeles, and Africa boast recording studios and also provide inspiring ecosystems for artists to openly collaborate, have access to educational classes, and find guidance across music and marketing.
A$AP Rocky: The A$AP Mob boss showing family matters with Rihanna and their kids is too priceless
New York rap heavyweight A$AP Rocky embracing the daddy duties? Priceless. It’s all about taking the time to show big love to his mini-me, RZA, in celebration of his second birthday.
New York rap heavyweight A$AP Rocky embracing the daddy duties? Priceless. It’s all about taking the time to show big love to his mini-me, RZA, in celebration of his second birthday.
A$AP Rocky celebrates his son RZA’s second born day
Rocky relied on the power of Instagram to shower his mini-me with admiration. Along with RZA, Rakim also shared snapshots and footage of his other mini-me Riot and ride or die Rihanna.
‘HAPPIEST BIRTHDAY 2 MY 1st BORN BABY BOY RZA ❤️’
Wu-Tang Clan's RZA and DJ Scratch talk new music with Ed Lover
New York rap icon RZA and DJ Scratch are far from falling back from the music-making scene. The hip-hop pair chopped it up on Audacy’s 94.7 ‘The Block’ with the legendary Ed Lover to dish on everything from new music to the Big Apple’s rap game.
New York rap icon RZA and DJ Scratch are far from falling back from the music-making scene. The hip-hop pair chopped it up on Audacy’s 94.7 ‘The Block’ with the legendary Ed Lover to dish on everything from new music to the Big Apple’s rap game.
Check out some of the interview highlights and peep the entire chop up session toward the bottom.
[1:06] – DJ Scratch on collaboration with RZA for new album. “RZA had reached out to me in the beginning of the pandemic, back in March 2020 to check on my health and my family, and he was like, ‘I’ve been going through my hard drives, do you still have that Wu-Tang joint? I want to emcee again, but I don’t want to wear both hats. Want to do an album together?’, I’m like, ‘Absolutely.’ I’ve got a whole stash of Wu [songs]…I went and got the heavy pen, the ones that drip the ink, you know what I mean, and carved out some dope lyrics…The foundation of Hip Hop is the DJ and the emcee. I’ve been blessed to do a lot of things in art, but going back to the foundation, I just wanted to do that.”
[4:05] – RZA on why he didn’t want to wear two hats on the new project. “I just wanted to touch the microphone…It just gave me that freedom. Sometimes when you do both, you need eight arms. At this particular phase, I was like, I don’t have to bust my brain like that…My pen just kept flowing…We wanted to take it back to that feeling – People that’s in New York, every Saturday back in the days, channel 5, 3:00 pm the whole hood went in the house and watched ‘Kung Fu Theater’, and when we came outside we were jumping off the benches and fences trying to do those moves – We just wanted to bring back that sonic feeling of Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu…We got our name from a Kung Fu movie.”
[6:56] – Brooklyn and Staten Island, Hip Hop in New York. “The most important thing was, it seemed like when the Wu came through, the whole Roc came through…Hip Hop is New York. Staten Island is one of the last boroughs to get stuck on the map, but now we are on that map forever.”
[9:58] – “With this album, when we started working on it, I was like, let’s keep it at seven. Seven is the god number. Seven is the number of completion. Let’s keep it like that…I’ve got a whole album of unreleased EPMD records.”
[11:42] – RZA on bringing back Wu-Tang: An American Saga on Hulu. “We in the writers room right now, with a great team, putting something crazy together for season three. I can’t wait to share that.”
[14:00] – DJ Scratch on producing the album. “It’s an honor for RZA to allow me to actually produce him. Produce the beats, and produce his vocals as well. I was excited. I was like, who gets to produce a Wu-Tang artist? A full album…This album, hopefully it’s spark our peers to put out new music, because they still got it.”
[16:06] – RZA on inspiring others. “I didn’t go to Hollywood and start scoring films, so I’m the only guy doing it. I wanted people to realize [they] can do it too. Instead of a hip hop movie, or musician movie, I made a musician T.V. show. [There’s] going to be a lot more of those…It’s generational, hip hop is one of the few music that is generational.”