''Words from the Genius'' is the debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by the American rapper

GZA ''Gary Eldridge Grice'' (born August 22, 1966), better known by his stage names GZA ( ) and The Genius, is an American rapper and songwriter. A founding member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, GZA is the group's "spiritual head", being both ...

, under his previous stage name "The Genius". The album never charted, and GZA went on to co-found the

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...

in 1992 after the album's failure.

Album background

It was released on February 19, 1991. It is significant as one of the few albums released by a

member before the founding of the group in late 1992 and one of only two pre- Wu-Tang clan releases any of the members recorded with a major label (the other is '' Ooh, I Love You, Rakeem'' EP by Prince Rakeem ( RZA).

Album re-release

It was re-released in 1994, with the song "Come Do Me" replaced by "Pass the Bone." Both versions are now out of print. In 2006, an expanded version was released by Traffic Entertainment Group, the owner of the bulk of the Cold Chillin' Records catalog. "I was signed to Cold Chillin' 'bout five years ago," GZA recalled in 1995. "They put out an album but didn't promote it. They tried to put it out again last year after everything happened with the Clan, put a '94 date on it, but still didn't put any money behind it, so it didn't sell twice. I'm still proud of it, though. The beats ain't all that but, lyrically, shit was bangin'. So it wasn't all peaches and cream, but I was determined to break through. 'A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits.'"'' Select'', January 1996

Track listing

References

1991 debut albums GZA albums Albums produced by Easy Mo Bee Albums produced by RZA Cold Chillin' Records albums {{1990s-hiphop-album-stub