GZA's 'Genius Of Science' TED Talk

Science is no longer just for point dexters and nerds. Wu Tang’s very own GZA makes it seem cooler than a polar bear’s toe nail.

I was bad at science and, no, I don’t mean Breaking Bad, either. That bad, I was actually entering the GCSE exam needing 12 marks out of 100 for an A grade – due to to some heavily assisted coursework (thanks, sis) – but ended up with only a B. I just couldn’t feel it, you know? But, if I could have watched this 10 minute lecture from GZA, I might have knuckled down a bit, yo.

This TED talk is quite interesting, plus it’s by GZA, so you know it’s gonna be good. Clever stuff about, like, how our earliest forms of learning are based on the premise of rhyme and rhythm (go on, sing the alphabet) and how this transcends into further education, in all walks of life, and, ultimately – seen as all learning is based on the same premises as rap – hip hop can be used as a vehicle for learning as we get older. Word. So what if it’s aimed at teens? His points are still interesting and he, along with Christopher Emdin of Teachers College, have been engaging disenchanted youths across North America and getting them into science – along with, it would seem, at least one bloke writing for Proper in the North West of England.

After some Rap Genius contest winners perform, you can also see GZA sharing some lines, a cappella, from his new album entitled Dark Matter. You should watch him performing this a cappella explanation of The Big Bang Theory, during a lecture at the University of Toronto, which is due to appear on Dark Matter when it’s released this Spring.