Zion I | |
|---|---|
 Amp Live (left) and Baba Zumbi (right). | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Alternative hip hop[1] |
| Years active | 1996–2021 |
| Labels |
|
| Past members |
|
| Website | www |
Zion I was an American hip hop project founded by MC and producer Baba Zumbi (real name Stephen Gaines) in Oakland, California.[2] K-Genius and Amp Live were also project members.[3]
Originally formed as a group, Zion I released the debut studio album, Mind over Matter, in 2000.[4] It was nominated for "Independent Album of the Year" by The Source.[5] Deep Water Slang V2.0 was released in 2003.[6]
In 2005, Zion I released True & Livin'.[5] It featured guest appearances from Gift of Gab, Talib Kweli, and Aesop Rock.[7]
Heroes in the City of Dope, the first collaborative album with The Grouch, was released in 2006.[8] In 2009, Zion I released The Takeover.[9]
In 2010, Zion I released Atomic Clock.[10] Heroes in the Healing of the Nation, the second collaborative studio album with The Grouch, was released in 2011.[11] In 2012, Zion I released Shadowboxing, which was included on SF Weekly's "10 Best Bay Area Hip-Hop Records of 2012" list.[12]
In 2015, Amp Live left the group, and Zion I became Baba Zumbi's one-man project.[2]
In 2016, Zion I released The Labyrinth, their first studio album not to include Amp Live.[13]
On August 12, 2021, Gaines checked himself into the Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for a mental health examination.[14] He had reportedly also contracted COVID-19 roughly three weeks prior.[14] On August 13, 2021, he died of initially unknown causes at the age of 49.[15][16][17] On August 20, 2021, the Gaines family announced that they hired attorneys to investigate what they believed was a suspicious death.[18]
In May 2022, the Alameda County Coroner’s Bureau finalized a report detailing Gaines's death.[14] According to officers and hospital staff, Gaines experienced a panic attack which involved him chasing hospital staff for fifteen minutes and putting a security officer in a "choke hold." The report stated that Gaines died after being held down by three hospital security guards and handcuffed by officers from the Berkeley Police Department while unconscious.[19] Gaines reportedly died from "physiologic stress of altercation and restraint during a psychotic episode" as the cause of death with COVID-19 and cardiomegaly as contributing factors. While the coroner report ruled the death a homicide, the Alameda Country District Attorney’s office declined to pursue criminal charges.
