RZA has spoken to NME about Wu-Tang Clan‘s farewell tour, the legacy of the rap icons from here, Martin Shkreli, and the future of fabled album ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’.
The legendary hip-hop collective will begin the UK leg of their ‘The Final Chamber’ tour at The O2 in London tonight (Tuesday March 17), before their run of last shows rolls into the UAE and Australia. After kicking off in North America, all surviving members – RZA, GZA, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, U-God and Masta Killa – have been delivering a blockbuster show of Wu-Tang classics alongside cuts from their respective solo careers.
Celebrating all things Wu at a time when the group are mourning the recent passing of co-founder Oliver ‘Power’ Grant, RZA described 2026 as a “bittersweet” year.
“We got nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, but then we lost a dear, dear brother,” he told NME. “We’re on tour now, going back to see our fans in international spaces. It’s been beautiful. It’s one of those years where it seems like we’ll definitely have the balance, and hopefully after that we can tip the scale to the good.”
With a tribute section during the set to their departed friends and collaborators, RZA said it was a “tough moment” to remember those the group had lost while on stage. “The audience are sympathetic to us and our situation, and a lot of the audience respect Power’s contribution,” he revealed. “There are a lot of people walking around in Wu Wear or some kind of fashion influence that he helped spark. He didn’t have his voice on one single song, but the audience are responding. That’s a beautiful thing. He’s part of the DNA.”
Pulling off a rare feat in getting all surviving Wu-Tang members on the road as a full unit, the rap and screen legend told us that this tour had been five years in the making and part of a “five-year plan” to complete the arc and honour the lasting impact of the group.
“It was just time for us to make sure our footprint is clear,” RZA told NME. “Our footprint had dust coming over it through our inactivity and the way that music was changing. A lot of heroes go unsung, and I refuse for that to happen, to be quite frank with you.
RZA went on to map out how Wu-Tang had shaped rap and pop culture at large, and how it was important to take a moment to take stock and show the world how far they’ve come.
“I know that the Wu injection into the culture is like a lamppost and can help guide somebody further,” he said. “If we don’t come, then a lot of things don’t happen. If we don’t break through, then a bunch of guys don’t break through. When I had the conversation with my brothers, it was about how we cement ourselves. The way to do it would be a documentary, a TV series and a world tour. Then we should be able to decide if we want to go sit at home and play pickleball or golf or whatever, but we had to go on this mission.
“It was a five-year plan, like the first movement of Wu-Tang,” he added, looking back on their 1992 formation through to their game-changing debut album, ‘Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)’, and classic follow-up, ‘Wu-Tang Forever’, securing their place in history. “The only difference is this was my five-year parallel plan. We’ve been on course business-wise, but we couldn’t predict losing soldiers and generals on the path.”
Of course, this isn’t the end. The band’s now legendary ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’ – of which only one copy was made, sold originally at auction to controversial pharma public enemy Martin Shkreli – will eventually be able to be released to the public in the year 2103.
Check out the rest of our interview with RZA below, where the rap legend spoke to us about saying goodbye, shaping the world of hip-hop, his new movie with Quentin Tarantino, their legal battle with Shkreli, and the multi-million dollar ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’ finally seeing the light of day.
NME: Hello RZA. The world is on fire but Wu-Tang are on the road. How does it feel to be touring at a time like this?
RZA: “As an artist, you’ll always be able to have more of an optimistic bright side of life because art is a form of entertainment, it’s a form of inspiration, it’s a form of thought-provoking, to make you move, dance or raise a fist. When you see things happening in your world which may or may not be in alignment, you know that your part is important. At the end of the day, it’s a piece of music, a song or a moment of communal experience at a concert. As artists, our strive should be to bring a spoonful of joy or a spoonful of hope.”
Defiance mixed with a good time has always been part of the Wu-Tang spirit…
“Wu-Tang represents a community in our reality. You’re looking at a lot of alpha males that, at one point, weren’t balanced; we were at odds with each other at certain points. If we’re able to put those differences aside and unify in strength, unify in art, then that magnetises others to listen and join, dance, jump, make their own beats and lyrics. That’s a blessing. That’s our duty.
“Me and the Wu brothers were just talking as things were heating up, and the consensus is our job and our business is what we’re doing. What other people are doing is their business. If we do ours right, then we continue to shine the light and positive energy. Positive energy activates constant elevation. We are here to elevate things.”
You guys haven’t toured on this scale before, and the last time you came close was in the ‘90s. That was long before rap became a stadium-filling force. Do you guys feel the weight of all that’s been accomplished in hip-hop because of Wu-Tang?
“Yes. Of course there are a lot of greats that continued, the pioneers like Run D.M.C. and Whodini. I remember being a kid at Fresh Fest. I was like, ‘Wow’. Then it died down and became synonymous with violence. The promoters didn’t think it would last, to be something stadium and arena-filling. They didn’t think it had the longevity of what our rock brothers were doing. But Wu-Tang are one of those crews that shattered the stereotype and expanded the diversity of the listener.
“A lot of people tell me that their first album was Wu-Tang, then they went on to pick up others and they were more into punk rock and metal. Wu-Tang was able to capture that ear and imagination. That audience continued to grow and pollinate into other crews, and genres being able to benefit from that.”
And to be nominated by the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame must just prove that you transcend genre?
“That’s the testament. It ain’t just us living in a scene, it’s our peers. Music is starting to amalgamate in a way, so you can have OutKast, A Tribe Called Quest, Eminem, Dr Dre, alongside The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Even though they were hip-hop, according to the definition of ‘rock ‘n’ roll’, they lived it as well.”
Liam Gallagher has been out there saying he doesn’t care about Oasis being up for the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, but for you it’s more about the recognition that you did matter as much as the other greats?
“Of course. Personally, I care about it because my first house I bought was in Cleveland, and I drove by it so many times. For me, it is an honour. The people that give these awards out are our peers who are part of our industry, along with fans. If you can strike a nerve with some stiff guy in a stiff suit, and your music is powerful enough to penetrate this fucking 9-5er, then accept this accolade.”
Looking way ahead into the future: ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’ can finally become commercially widely available in 2103. That’ll be another historic moment. What kind of relevance do you imagine the album will have then?
“Only time will tell on that on that, but that’s part of the lore of Wu-Tang. There’s so much reality in Wu-Tang, but then you look left and it’s like, ‘Is that mythology as well?’ When reality and mythology mix, imaginations kick in, and then imaginations lead to inspiration.
“It has a life of its own now. Albums and movies are like children. They are creative children. They form in the mind and they become a physical form of something that others can hear or see. It ain’t just in your mind anymore. That child has a life of its own. That’s how I look at it. When the 88 years is up, we’ll see what the world will know. We won’t know unless they make some new drug to keep us all here. The other thing is what about ‘36 Chambers’? What will that mean? Will the foundations still be important? Is there something in ‘36 Chambers’ that we said that has not yet come into fruition but will? Who knows how many other words of lyrics will manifest into some other reality 50 or 100 years later?”
How do you feel about what’s happened to ‘Once Upon A Time In Shaolin’ being owned by the private company and played to people on rotation at parties?
“It’s got a life of its own. I always knew that. The only thing I’ll say about it is that whoever owns it should try and do good with it. The first owner [Martin Shkreli], he took the different route.”
We had the album ‘Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsman’ released for Record Store Day last year, your first full-length album since 2017’s The Saga Continues’. Do you have plans for more new music as part of this five-year plan?
“The music is spontaneous. Every member is always creating something. If I could take a moment to plug something, Quentin Tarantino is presenting my new film. It’s called RZA’s One Spoon Of Chocolate, and that’ll be out at least in the USA in May. I’m excited about sharing that. It’s a very unique piece of art. This is my fourth feature film, so I’m kinda where Quentin was when he did Kill Bill.”
You’ve always been a polymath across the arts. Can we expect some of that multi-disciplinary blockbuster action as part of the live tour?
“Yes. People have been telling me this is the best Wu show they’ve been to. One guy told me he’s seen us 100 times. Damn! OK. He said the shows in Bologna and Amsterdam were the best he’s seen us do.
“I’m producing these shows. I think the cinematic knowledge that I’ve got will help you feel the elevation of these shows, of the Wu-Tang Clan, ourselves and our music. It’s the elevation of the artists that are striving to put these shows on for you.”
Will you be changing up the setlist?
“The setlist is unpredictable. We’ve got a circle. We don’t colour outside of the lines but within that circle, we have fun. There have been multiple changes, a couple of songs you don’t expect to hear, some songs we only played the first two nights and then not again. I heard The Grateful Dead never play the same setlist twice. We have the ability to do that, but that wouldn’t be healthy for us. I’m still high from the show last night. By London, we’re just going to be sharper and sharper.”
Take us to the end of the five-year plan. How do you think you’re going to feel? What are things going to look like in the Wu-Tang camp?
“I think when we complete this cypher, this circle, we can all sit back and decide individually and collectively what else we can do as a group of men together or as individuals, knowing that we’ve touched the world.
“The goal is to know that we’ve been blessed. We’ve benefitted from our art and talent; there’s a reason why, and that’s because of the fans. We’re back out to say thank you, and now that we’ve done that, maybe someone can chase another dream that they had or maybe collectively we can put our brains together and create something that none of us know what it’s going to be. That’s how we came together in the beginning.
“I was talking to the brothers at dinner the other night and I said, ‘It would be interesting if when we’ve finished this, if everybody just came and sat somewhere and just fucking brainstormed’. Where are we at after this many years of life? What formula can we come up with? Let’s see what the universe gives us.”
Is there anything left on RZA’s bucket list?
“Bong bong!”
Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘The Final Chamber’ tour continues through the UK, United Arab Emirates and Australia through to the end of March. Visit here for tickets to UK dates, here for Australia shows, and here for European gigs.