On Thursday (July 6), RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan broke his silence on the unique honor bestowed upon him — the eponymous christening of Rihanna and A$AP Rocky’s firstborn child.
In an intimate sit-down with CNN, the hip hop legend revealed his sentiments about his moniker being passed on to the progeny of the Barbadian songstress and the Harlem-bred rapper. “[It’s a] a great honor to know that there’s another generation that’s not even of my own household that feels the strength and the inspiration of that name,” he stated.
“RZA is only a name, it’s a title,” he told the cable network. “So it’s an honor, and I salute her and A$AP and their family. All the blessings in the world from me.”
The naming gossip first made headlines in May when rumors of baby RZA’s epithet surfaced after The Daily Mail allegedly obtained a copy of the infant’s birth certificate. It unveiled his full name as RZA Athelston Mayers with his birth recorded as taking place on May 13 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
When the junior RZA had his first birthday, Rocky took to Instagram to acknowledge the milestone and, for the first time, confirm his son’s identity publicly. He wrote a fitting tribute, “WU-TANG [IS] 4 [THE CHILDREN]. HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY TO MY 1st BORN. RZA.”
Naming children after renowned hip hop figures seems to run in A$AP Rocky’s family. The rapper confessed in 2012 that he was titled after the legendary artist Rakim.
Meanwhile, Rihanna recently announced stepping down from her position as CEO of Savage X Fenty. “It’s been beautiful to see our vision for Savage X Fenty impact the industry at such an incredible magnitude over the last five years. This is just the beginning for us, and we’re going to continue to expand in ways that always connect with the consumer,” she told Vogue.