RZA was born on May 13, 2022 but the name had been kept secret, even as Rihanna posted the baby on her Instagram and he joined his parents in the British Vogue shoot. (In that piece, the writer notes that Rihanna, Rocky, their loved ones, and PR teams all simply called the child “Baby.”) During the interview, Rihanna spoke about the “head-fuck” of giving birth, saying, “Essentially, from one person I became two. You walk into the hospital as a couple and leave as a family of three. It’s nuts. And oh, my gosh, those first days are insane. You don’t sleep. At all. Not even if you wanted to. We came home, cold turkey, had no one. It was just us as parents and our baby.”
At 35 and 34, respectively, Rihanna and Rocky are a little younger than the average Wu-Tang fan, but the hugely influential New York rap group has continued to have a presence in hip hop through the enduring success of 1993’s Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), and the many successful solo projects by RZA, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, and Method Man, among others. Both native New Yorkers, Rocky and Raekwon have worked together a few times, with the latter told DJBooth that he had a strong friendship and tremendous amount of respect for Rocky, even acknowledging ASAP Mob as “Wu-Tang Clan: the new generation.”
Interestingly, Raekwon is probably the most common Wu-Tang inspired name out there, including NFL players Raekwon Davis and Raekwon McMillan, butut RZA is often credited as the architect of the group, having produced the majority of their most iconic tracks, inarguably earning his place in the ever-debated Mount Rushmore of producers. He’s had a successful solo career as well, with projects like Bobby Digital in Stereo. Like Rocky and Rihanna, he’s also worked as an actor, appearing in a number of high-profile films over the last two decades including American Gangster, Nobody, and his feature directorial debut, The Man With the Iron Fists.
Rihanna notably revealed a second pregnancy during her terrific Super Bowl halftime performance, meaning that the couple will have had two children in the span of two years when their next child is born. Check back for updates on GZA Fenty-Mayers (or the unisex friendly Bobby Digital, perhaps?) as they come.
