Zion I was an American hip hop project founded by MC and producer Baba Zumbi (real name Stephen Gaines) in Oakland, California. K-Genius and

Amp Live Amp Live is an American alternative hip hop producer and DJ from California. He was one half of the duo Zion I, but left the group in 2015 amicably. He has remixed works by Radiohead, Tokyo Police Club and Jamie Lidell. Life and career Born a ...

were also project members.

Career

Originally formed as a group, Zion I released the debut studio album, ''

Mind over Matter "Mind over matter" is a phrase that has been used in several contexts, such as mind-centric spiritual doctrines, parapsychology, and philosophy. Merriam Webster Dictionary defines mind as "the element or complex of elements in an individual t ...

'', in 2000. It was nominated for "Independent Album of the Year" by ''

The Source ''The Source'' is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or . It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Jonathan Shecter. David Mays was the ma ...

''. '' Deep Water Slang V2.0'' was released in 2003. In 2005, Zion I released ''

True & Livin' ''True & Livin'' is a studio album by Zion I. It was released by Live Up Records in 2005. Critical reception Kabir Hamid of '' Chicago Reader'' described the album as "soulful hip-hop that favors acoustic sounds over electronics, thoughtfulness o ...

''. It featured guest appearances from Gift of Gab,

Talib Kweli Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with ...

, and

Aesop Rock Ian Matthias Bavitz (born June 5, 1976), better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer from Long Island, New York. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emer ...

. ''

Heroes in the City of Dope ''Heroes in the City of Dope'' is the first collaborative studio album by Zion I and The Grouch. It was released on Om Records on October 10, 2006. It peaked at number 29 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 34 on the I ...

'', the first collaborative album with The Grouch, was released in 2006. In 2009, Zion I released '' The Takeover''. In 2010, Zion I released ''

Atomic Clock An atomic clock is a clock that measures time by monitoring the resonant frequency of atoms. It is based on atoms having different energy levels. Electron states in an atom are associated with different energy levels, and in transitions betwee ...

''. ''

Heroes in the Healing of the Nation ''Heroes in the Healing of the Nation'' is the second collaborative studio album by Zion I and The Grouch. It was released by Z & G Music on March 22, 2011. It is the follow-up to their 2006 collaborative album, '' Heroes in the City of Dope''. It ...

'', the second collaborative studio album with The Grouch, was released in 2011. In 2012, Zion I released ''

Shadowboxing Shadowboxing is a combat sport exercise in which a person throws punches at the air as though there is an opponent. Practised primarily in boxing, it is used mainly to prepare the muscles before the person training engages in stronger physical ...

'', which was included on ''

SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards ...

''s "10 Best Bay Area Hip-Hop Records of 2012" list. In 2015, Amp Live left the group, and Zion I became Baba Zumbi's one-man project. In 2016, Zion I released ''The Labyrinth'', their first studio album not to include Amp Live. On August 13, 2021, Zumbi died at the age of 49 of unknown causes after being hospitalized with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. On August 20, 2021, the Gaines family announced that they hired attorneys to investigate what they believed was a suspicious death at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center.

Members

* Baba Zumbi – rapper (1996–2021) * K-Genius – DJ (2000–2002) *

– producer, DJ (1996–2015)

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (2000) * '' Deep Water Slang V2.0'' (2003) * ''

'' (2005) * '' Break a Dawn'' (2006) * ''

'' (2006) * '' The Takeover'' (2009) * ''

'' (2010) * ''

'' (2011) * ''

'' (2012) * ''The Labyrinth'' (2016) *''Stay Woke'' (2016) (with Mikos Da Gawd) * ''The Tonite Show with Zion I'' (2018) * ''Ritual Mystik'' (2018)

Compilation albums

* ''Curb Servin': The Mixtape Sessions'' (2003) * '' Politicks: Collabs & B-Sides'' (2004) * ''Family Business'' (2004) *''The Alpha:1996-2006'' (2006) *''Science of Breath'' (2006) * ''Street Legends'' (2007) * ''The Search & The Seizure'' (2008) * ''Bringers of the Dawn'' (2009) * ''Zion I Sampler'' (2010) * ''Live at KEXP Vol. 5'' (2009) * ''Hella Fresh Fest'' (2013) * ''The Rapture: Live from Oaklandia'' (2015) * ''Street Legends Volume 2'' (2017)

EPs

* ''Enter the Woods'' (1997) * ''New Dimensions'' (1998) * ''Starship'' (1998) * ''Chapter 4'' (1999) * ''The Vapors'' (2013) * ''The Masters of Ceremony'' (2014) * ''Libations'' (2014) * ''The Sun Moon and Stars'' (2015) * ''Wake Up'' (2017)

Singles

* "Inner Light" (1998) * "Critical" b/w "Venus" (1999) * "Revolution (B-Boy Anthem)" (2000) * "Boom Bip" b/w "Le Le Le" (2001) * "Cheeba Cheeba" b/w "Kharma" (2002) * "The Drill" b/w "Flow" (2003) * "Salt in the Game" b/w "Break Rap" (2005) * "Bird's Eye View" b/w "Luv" (2005) * "Temperature" b/w "The Bay" (2005) * "Act Right" b/w "Target Practice" (2006) * "One" b/w "Trippin" (2006) * "Hit 'Em" (2006) * "Lift Me Up" (2007) * "Count It Down (Nomak Remix)" (2007) * "Juicy Juice" (2008) * "We Don't Wife 'Em" (2016) * "Saving Souls" (2016) * "Peace" (2017) *"End Times" (2020) *"2 Eyes" (2021) *"Stay Focused" (2021)

Guest appearances

* Linkin Park - "Plc.4 Mie Haed" from '' Reanimation'' (2002) * The Planets - "Can't Stop" from ''The Opening'' (2002) * Triple Threat - "Hit 'Em Off" from ''Many Styles'' (2003) *

Goapele Goapele Mohlabane (; born July 11, 1977), is an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter. Her name means ''to move forward'' in Setswana, a Southern African language. Early life Goapele's South African father Douglas Mohlabane was an exiled po ...

- "The Daze" from ''

Even Closer ''Even Closer'' is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Goapele. It is essentially an expanded version of her self-released debut album, '' Closer'' (2001). Originally released in 2002, it was re-released in 2004. Critical recept ...

'' (2004) * Relic - "Trust Yourself" from ''Note to Self'' (2004) * Rico Pabón - "Pa 'Fuera" from ''Louder Than Fiction'' (2006) * Ty - "Oh!" from '' Closer'' (2006) * DJ Deckstream - "Spread Love" from ''Soundtracks'' (2007) * Omina - "Keep Move'n" from ''Bust'' (2007) *

Crown City Rockers Crown City Rockers is a five-member hip hop band from Oakland, California, by way of Boston, Massachusetts and Pasadena. Formerly known as Mission, the name under which they released their first album, they play old school hip hop music wit ...

- "B-Boy (Remix)" (2007) *

Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...

- "For Ya Mind" from ''Guru's Jazzmatazz: Back to the Future'' (2008) *

Ise Lyfe Ise Lyfe (pronounced "Ice Life"), born Isaac Patrick-Francis Brown, is a spoken word and hip-hop artist as well as an educator, community organizer, and activist in his native Oakland, California. He won the 2001 National Poetry Slam Competition a ...

- "Thigh Bone" from ''Prince Cometh'' (2008) * CLP - "Rockin' Wiz Us" from ''Supercontinental'' (2008) *

The Jacka Dominick Newton (August 12, 1977 – February 2, 2015), better known by his stage name The Jacka, was an American rapper from Pittsburg, California. The Jacka began his career as part of the rap group Mob Figaz. He was killed in a shooting in ...

- "Dream" from ''

Tear Gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ...

'' (2009) * Jern Eye - "Get Right" from ''Vision'' (2009) * Webcam Hi-Fi - "Promised Land" from ''Livity Is My Temple'' (2009) *

Bicasso Living Legends is an American hip hop supergroup consisting of indie hip hop artists from California. Beginning in the mid 1990s, the crew garnered a following by recording, promoting and performing their music independently through Legendary ...

- "Party Metroid" from ''Rebel Musiq'' (2009) * Pro the Leader & Dopestyle - "Back Wit a Vengence" from ''Hip Hop Depression'' (2010) * Rebelution - "Safe and Sound Remix" from ''Remix EP'' (2011) * Minnesota - "Float" from ''Altered States LP'' (2012) *

Latyrx Latyrx is an American alternative hip hop duo consisting of Lateef the Truthspeaker and Lyrics Born. The roots of their partnership lay in the formation of the Solesides collective at the University of California, Davis. History The crew's chart ...

- "It's Time" from '' The Second Album'' (2013) *

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...

- "Built to Survive" from '' Akeda (2014) *

Bassnectar Lorin Gabriel Ashton, better known under his stage name Bassnectar (born February 16, 1978), is an American DJ and record producer. Biography Ashton grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended Bellarmine College Preparatory. He initiall ...

- "Lost in the Crowd" from ''

Noise vs. Beauty ''Noise vs. Beauty'' is the eighth studio album by American DJ and record producer Bassnectar Lorin Gabriel Ashton, better known under his stage name Bassnectar (born February 16, 1978), is an American DJ and record producer. Biography Ashto ...

'' (2014) * Unified Highway - "Same Thing Coming" from ''Unified Highway'' (2016) *

- "The Antidote" from ''All Colors'' (2020)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1996 establishments in California 2021 disestablishments in California Hip hop groups from California Rappers from Oakland, California Musical groups from Oakland, California African-American musical groups Alternative hip hop groups