WATCH: Wu-Tang Rapper GZA Delivers TED Talk About Science Education

The Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA, a.k.a “The Genius,” a.k.a. Gary Grice just gave a TEDxTeen Talk as the latest viral address in his campaign “to provide a model for students to communicate the information learned from their science teachers.”

As Wu-Tang’s dozen or so active members are busy finishing the iconically absurdist rap group’s 20th anniversary reunion album, it just so happens that GZA is also leading Science Genius, an “urban science initiative” that he cofounded with Rap Genius and Christopher Emdin of Columbia University’s Teachers College. The project weaves lyricism and artistic conception into the science curricula of 10 public New York City high school classrooms.

While many musical artists are known to promote public funding of arts education, GZA and his bandmates have long been obsessed with the many mind-blowing phenomena of the universe. “Why is the sky blue? Why is the grass green?” he asks. “Why is metal a conductor of electricity, and wood is not; but you’re more likely to be struck by lightning when standing under a tree?”

“These are questions that require science to answer.”