Before the world ever heard the name Elzhi, the young artist was sitting in the back of classrooms thinking of rhymes, spitting verses while his friend Fes banged out beats on lunchroom tables, or was battling rival emcees on the blacktop after school. He sharpened every blade in his arsenal, developing his style to measure up against the competition in Maurice Malone’s Hip Hop Shop, the legendary proving ground for Detroit artists that has produced some of the greatest emcees in the world.