Gravediggaz' 1994 and 1997 Albums

Quote
"Roping up the devils, have them hanging from my testicles";
"Nowhere To Run"; 6 Feet Deep, Gravediggaz, 1997 reissue of a 1994 album, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

"Devils get baked. . . . devils are all defeated. . . . breaking devils down. . . . Allah sees equality";
"Blood Brothers"; 6 Feet Deep, Gravediggaz, 1997 reissue of a 1994 album, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

"I love black women and I hate fucking crackers. . . . I destroyed a whole city like Sodom and Gomorrah or Babylon. . . . devils choke from the gunsmoke. . . . I'm swelling devils' melons for my man Farad Muhammad. . . send your asses to Kings County; solo pro-morgue supplier";
"Graveyard Chamber"; 6 Feet Deep, Gravediggaz, 1997 reissue of a 1994 album, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

"I'm calling on the meek and the poor to fight back and never forfeit the day you have to go to war. . . . I'm hanging devils' heads on a evergreen bush";
"Dangerous Mindz"; Gravediggaz, The Pick The Sickle and The Shovel, 1997, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

Article
      The four primary rappers of Gravediggaz are Rzarector (aka The RZA from Wu-Tang Clan), Frukwan (aka Gatekeeper), Poetic (aka Grym Reaper), and Prince Paul. Their lyrics give gory descriptions of killing rivals or whites or of themselves suffering, and some terms used in the descriptions are as follows: blood, bloodstream, blood brothers, skulls, bones, graves, graveyard, burial ground, crosses, caskets, crypts, tombs, entombment, mortuaries, digging in dirt, digging in brains, darkness, dark force, sorcery, holy water, holy tabernacle, and minister.

      RZA introduces their 1994 debut album saying that the rappers are "blood thirsty" for "the same ones who bust up the poor," and he declares war, assuring listeners that they should feel safe since he will dig up graves and "disinfect" the bones from "the poisonous bones of swine." ("Constant Elevation.") RZA says that his raps are a "devilish poem" written in a "fanatical" tone." He likes to smoke marijuana, he says. He claims with his music to be "roping up the devils [and to] have them hanging from [his] testicles." Grym Reaper says that other rappers have styles "flatter than a white girl's butt." ("Nowhere to Run.") The rappers say that they will "resurrect the mental dead." They tell listeners that listeners picked cotton in the past, and that listeners hate "knotty hairstyles." Listeners are told to drink cups of blood. ("2 Cups of Blood.") Grym Reaper says that he hustles rap music, not cocaine or guns. "Snakes," he says, are "decapitated and castrated." The following phrases are said about whites: "devils get baked. . . . devils are all defeated by the blood brothers. . . . breaking devils down like Steve Austin." At the track's end, they speak of Allah, saying that "Allah sees equality." ("Blood Brothers.") The rappers imagine six "devils" committing suicide in the Gravediggaz' graveyard. ("1-800-Suicide.") Guest rapper Scientific Shabazz describes himself as one who dwells "in an Islamic temple" while he mentally fights "a holy war." RZA speaks about "400 years of blood, sweat, and tears," and he says that he is having nightmares about the "brutal murder of [his] father." He imagines being crucified. Killah Priest is a guest rapper on the track. ("Diary of a Madman.")

      Sometimes rappers refer to whites with the phrase "Caucus Mountains" or "Caucus." Gatekeeper seems to be doing so when he makes claims about his influence as follows: "leaving Caucus blissed, half-hypnotized with my mark on their wrist." ("Mommy What's a Gravedigga.") Grymreaper challenges listeners who are "scared to go to war." Guest rapper Dreddy Kruger calls himself the "Bushwick dutchmaster rapper" who loves "black women" but who hates "fucking crackers." RZA says that with his words he has "destroyed a whole city like Sodom and Gomorrah or Babylon." Scientific Shabazz comes back on to say that he earns his salary by "blowing snakes heads off." "Devils choke off the gunsmoke," he says. He says that he is shooting whites in the head for Farad Muhammad, and that he is setting whites on fire, sending them back to Kings County via the morgue. (Kings County is a predominantly white county on Long Island.) Gatekeeper and Killah Priest follow up with gory death threats of their own. ("Graveyard Chamber.") People living in "the ghetto" are "lost" and are "trapped in a cage." The rappers relay three stories. One is about a woman who is stabbed because she did not want to have sex. Another is about a crack dealer who avoids the police. The last one is about a girl whose father molests her at night. RZA imagines himself killing the father with an axe. ("Death Trap.")

      Other guest rappers and vocalists on the album are listed as Biz Markie, MC Serch, Kurious, Don McKenzie, Gerald Whaley, Amier, Tracey Witherspoon, Derrick Lovelace, Eddie Berkeley, Djinji Brown, Vernon Reid, Hell Razah, Scott "The Moleman" Harding, Wildman Steve, Raquelle Stroud, Ted "The Judge" Gannon, Skiz, Mr. Sime, James Jackson, The Fugitives, Goldielocks, Donyell O'Thomas, Chino "Q", Masta Ace, Robert Robinson, Graig G., Stephanie Jackson, Michael Preston, Dave Warner, Brother Rich, Ethan Ryman, Time "Bimos" Wright, King Ice, Mike G., I-Roc, and Joyce. Some of the artists and media whom Gravediggaz sends out thanks to in the liner notes are as follows: Wu-Tang Clan, De La Soul, Stetsasonic, Geto Boys, Madd Flava, Chino & Joyce, Souls of Mischief, Cutthroats, Zulu Nation, Doug E. Fresh, New Kingdom, Coldcrush Brothers, Camoflage, Storm Troopaz, Tracey from Babylon, Kane, C Justice, Universal Truth, Understanding, "to all the radia DJ's who supported us," and "to all the rap magazines who support us." They also send out "peace to the Gods and Earths."

      In 1997, Wu-Tang Clan helped out the Gravediggaz on an album, The RZA having written and produced tracks for it. The RZA, Killah Priest, Method Man, rappers from Sunz of Man, and 9th Prince from Killarmy, all rapped on the Gravediggaz' album. The four primary rappers of Gravediggaz are Rzarector (aka The RZA from Wu-Tang Clan), Frukwan (aka Gatekeeper), Poetic (aka Grym Reaper), and Prince Paul.

      The rappers say that they are "calling on the meek and the poor to fight back and [to] never forfeit the day [they] have to go to war." The rappers speak of "the lost civilization" and of having photographs of one of them "etched inside of pyramids," and they say that they "laugh at this Revelation." They are as "ancient as amen." Biblical and Egyptian terms are used such as Christ, Bible, Phoenix, pagan, Hell, and Sodom and Gomorrah. Listeners are said to be "trapped in the black drama." Gravediggaz say the following: "war like the grandson of Kush; I'm hanging devils' heads on a evergreen bush." They describe the "tracks [as] black." Gravediggaz say that the Killa Bees "spread rapid like diseases." Killa Bees is a group of rappers, including some Wu-Tang Clan rappers. Those who oppose them are called "oppositional forces" and traitors. Their music, they say, is "like the Second Coming of Jesus of Nazareth." Their music "raise the dead crowd up like Lazarus." They call themselves "descendants of Allah." ("Dangerous Mindz.")

      Grym Reaper says that he hates people who he calls "snakes," and threatens to shoot "rounds in they face." He says that he is "always conscience [that he] was born supreme." He says that he is "wanted by the Beast in the 'hellified' streets." ("Da Bomb.") The rappers say that they use their "third" eyes to understand "the ghetto" and "the warfare" there. They use their influence, they say, to cause more destruction than done by Adam and Eve. They describe themselves as "geared down for warfare," and some Islamic phrases are given such as "Allahu akbar" which means "Allah is great." ("Unexplained.") There are many blacks who are "mentally dead people. . . . living in a mental grave." The meaning of the group's name becomes clear, and the following shows how it corresponds to Nation of Islam doctrine about waking up blacks: "I'm out to resurrect the mental dead by digging up they graves." "Niggaz is caught up in the midst of 6[66]," they say, and "the black god exists." The rappers attempt to mesmerize with phrases like the following: "let me teach you a lesson; the pre-existence of the mathematical biochemical equations." They talk of sending "enemies to Hell." They talk of a homeless man who was "a black immigrant from the land of Sudan," who had the "nappiest head," who had knowledge of Astronomy, but who did not know how to achieve "freedom, justice, equality, food, clothing, and shelter." ("Twelve Jewelz.")

      Gravediggaz tell their version of "The Three Little Pigs." The "white" pig with "pink skin" symbolizes "terror and wealth [and] hogging shit up for self." "A pig named Swine, a brown-skinned pig," was convinced by the "white" pig that "brown-skinned" pigs were "one of a kind." However, a pig whose "skin was black" saved the day, cleaning up the ways of the "brown-skinned" pig. People who eat pork are "now cursed." North America is called "Babylon." Gravediggaz give a tale about "the rich man" who benefited from "the poor man [who] was working like a slave" because he was paid "minimum wage." ("Fairytalez.") The rappers speak about not taking "the mark of the Beast," about "another black mold in a hole," about "being chased by the devil," and about "the black-on-black crime saga." Black women are called "black queen[s]." ("Never Gonna Come Back.") They speak of chopping off "the heads of these snakes," of "breaking from bondage and white garments," of having eyes "as black as onyx," and of being "gods." They speak of their influence as follows: "I cut like the Wu-Tang sword hitting the brain." A positive reference to marijuana use is given as follows: "the marijuana got my karma glowing." ("Pit of Snakes.")

      Grym Reaper calls himself a "militant-minded brilliant rhyme-whiz." He says that he has assembled a diary about the "misery of centuries," and he says that it is difficult living "godly," and not straying, because he lives in a poor and violent area. He seems to not like the idea, from his point of view, that "free enterprise and lies is idolized." Gravediggaz pool together blacks no matter their religion when they group into "the lost tribe" any black who holds "deep inside . . . Allah, God, or Jehovah." White participation in society is referred to as Babylon, and the rappers say that "Babylon is never penalized for being 'offsides'." The consequence is death for blacks, and the rappers "wonder how long before the herd dies." Rzarector calls the first blacks in America "black settlers." He goes over slavery, saying that it began in 1555, when blacks were piled up in ships for "a 9000 mile ride." Even though blacks were stripped of their language, they survived "the anguish of slavery," says Rzarector. He refers to Nation of Islam doctrine about blacks being the first on earth. It is "the devils," he says, who "cursed God and reversed God and turned him into dog." Blacks had no relief until "the prophet of W. D. Farad" came. It is because black slaves were spread throughout the Americas, by whites, that they hate each other. Yet, now, the "black gods" have awakened. "Black gods" kill each other on the streets because "the devils tricked" blacks, telling them that God is "in the sky." Gatekeeper says that he is "god," that he controls the planets in the Solar System, and that blacks designed the pyramids. He says that the "deaf, dumb, and blind [are] stupid hypocritical," and he calls them also the "dumb 85." He says that he is in 5 Percent Nation. He speaks of North America and of making a threat at his "enemy." ("The Night the Earth Cried.")

      If it were not for the "courage of a chosen few" rappers, people in the "ghettos" would remain "dumb, deaf, and blind." Grym Reaper says that Gravediggaz are attacking enemies while being "camouflaged," and that they are launching an "offensive." In "the ghetto trenches," there is poverty and a "tremendous" stench, and people there defend their property with shotguns. Blacks act "like dumb animals" when they carjack "each other" at stop lights. Grym Reaper denounces blacks who are "proud to be blood 'spillers' of ebony pillars" as "cold-blooded race killers." The word "devils" refers to whites primarily, and when it includes blacks, rappers spell it out for listeners. The following quote shows Grym Reaper labeling blacks who kill blacks as "devils": "black devils are worse than those of the cursed seed [whites]." He puts himself in camp with Saddam Hussein as follows: "I'm hated by the beast like the feds hate Saddam Hussein." Gatekeeper says that Gravediggaz' music "spread like a fungus [and] ran the devil from among us." To avoid having their minds tainted, blacks must be "warned of the wicked, the devil's technician." A chorus of rappers call anyone of themselves a "12 Tribe saluter," and guest rapper Omen follows up with talk about "marching with an army of extra-terrestrial beings." "Gods use mental pistols and Ezekiel's wheel," he says, in order to fight "Yacub [who] play with steel." "The apocalypse," he says, will convert "this metropolis [in]to an acropolis." He calls society Babylon, and he says that he is fighting for "the black mind and spirit." He is in "a holy war with the beast with the seven heads." "Traitors face elimination," warns guest-rapper Shabazz the Disciple. ("Elimination Process.")

      Hell Razah, from the group Sunz of Man, says that America is going down "like the world of Jericho." Hell Razah, Grym Reaper, and Sunz of Man rapper Killah Priest speak of Armageddon in the following ways: "the world is about to explode"; "the end of the world saga"; "the clock ticks"; a new millennium; "waiting for angels like Rafael"; and "earthquake hits, United States splits." Hell Razah says that he goes into his "dungeon" in order to "summon up the Second Coming." Terms used by rappers to say that God will come to save blacks during Armageddon are given on the track as follows: "aliens with hair like Rastafarians"; "the mother ship above the cliff over Egypt"; "UFO's surround[ing] the globe"; and "levitating space ships." Grym Reaper says that he saw John the Baptist "through the blackness," and he says that "twenty-three elders" wrote and placed Psalms within his "motor neurons," giving him "the approximate date of the Apocalypse." (There is a belief in Rastafarianism that Marcus Garvey viewed himself as a John the Baptist.) Killah Priest calls blacks "the blinded children in Israel." Babylon, he says, will be "destroyed by the nation's aggravations," and at this time, there will be "riots in train stations [and] criminals grabbing cops." He refers to whites as "liars in the Pentagon," and he refers to white participation as "Tower of Evil." He makes the following cryptic reference: "seven-headed dragons out [of] the Roman Empire." Blacks who suffer from "TV-brain damage" are not "the chosen ones," they will die before "the mother ship" lands. Today is the day for "independence and repentance" for fall-away blacks. ("Repentance Day.")

      Because blacks are "poor [and are] working odd jobs for small change," say the rappers, they rap or rob, or girls sell oral sex, or "niggas sell crack, weed, or coc[aine] for the mob." Grym Reaper says his music is "some real Vietnam shit," and that there will be a "quiet storm until the riot shit is on." Because "villains attack the poor, women and children pack heat now." ("Hidden Emotions.") Rzarector imagines fighting against helicopters having "50 millimeter" guns. He pledges to the following: "take these devils off; I witness Tom Brokaw; mentally fry his brain and blow the smoke off." He tells "Bill and Hillary" Clinton to "bow and kiss [his] feet." He says that he was like Jeremiah when he "nearly got killed being stuck in the fire." White are referred to as "Triple 6," and listeners are told to "beware the pale rider." "Devils roll hard" against listeners by trapping their "souls inside of" credit cards. Guest rapper 9th Prince from Killarmy says that the music is "cerebral warfare" designed to influence, and as a result, he claims, gangbangers affiliating as "Bloods [are] calling themselves gods." He says that he dedicates his life to Allah. ("What's Goin On.")

      Other guest artists on the album were New Birth, The Salsoul Orchestra, Barry White, and the Aleem Brothers. Gravediggaz send out thanks to those who support them in their "just cause." In particular, some thanked were "all the God and Earth of the 5% Nation," "Allah and Justice" of 5 Percent Nation, Tupac Shakur, and Biggie Smallz (Notorious B.I.G.). "Blessed be the meek," they write, and they send out the following: "Peace to the poor. Love to the armies behind the prison walls and cell block Earth. . . . Fuck all the infidels, deceivers, race killers, snakes, fakes, [and] oppressors of the all wise true and living God."

Reference
6 Feet Deep, Gravediggaz, 1997 reissue of a 1994 album, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

The Pick The Sickle and The Shovel, Gravediggaz, 1997, Gee Street Records, BMG Distribution, BMG Entertainment, Bertelsmann AG.

Posted at http://home.att.net/~phosphor on June 30, 1999.

Update: info about the 1994 album was posted on August 10, 1999.

The above article is not a complete summary of Gravediggaz connections to violently racist music, and readers may want to research and expose more of it.

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