Elzhi

Overview

Breaking his way into the world of hip hop in the mid nineties with weekly MC battles at the legendary Hip-Hop Shop in Detroit, Elzhi has gone from strength to strength building a solid rep as one of the genre's most lyrical MCs.

In the late nineties, collaborations with Detroit music producer Wajeed resulted in Elzhi creating pivotal career tracks including Concrete Eyes and Days and Nights. These underground hits caught the eye of Slum Village member T3 who introduced him to Jay Dee – a connection that paved the way for his national debut on Jay Dee's album Welcome to Detroit. The success of his feature on this album created a snow ball effect for Elzhi, catapulting him into the wider realm of hip hop and eventually seeing him sign on with Slum Village in 2001.

Last year Elzhi officially announced his departure from Slum Village and has since worked as a solo artist. His most recent mix tape, Elmatic is a tribute to Nas with a faultless track listing that underscores his versatile delivery and clever wordplay.

This Thursday night gig is sure to be a highlight for Fu Bar and with just over a month til its closure, it only seems fitting to get along and see one of the hip hop world's most lyrically celebrated artists perform solo for the first time in Auckland.