Y'all must be 60 or something. PAC IS WORLDWIDE. Nobody knows who Rakum is in Angola, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan...his impact is greater. Pac is the G.O.A.T.
@toddragland152 Oh, okay. You administer who's real? How many of "The God M.C." songs do they still play across the U.S. radio stations. You must be East Coast. Well, M.C. New York is better known. And if you're talking skill overall, lyrics, rhyme schemes, cadence, production, there's another N.Y. rapper that's better in Aesop Rock. This senior citizen said "If Eminem was Black, he'd be considered as great as Muhammed Ali." He still pushes skin color whilst Hip-Hop and rap is for everybody. That was its purpose. Or did you forget in your old age.
Rakim literally change the game! I just remember when we first heard it as 9 years old. We didn't really understand it, but knew it was different. We picked up a dictionary and started reading what certain words meant. Rakim "birthed" my favorite MC, NAS!
Man! You said it. Rakim, then cam Nas for me. Later, Lupe. All three of these dude’s lyrics and cadences always got me. Rakim and Lupe had their moments of being on top, but their impact… life changing!
Rakim, Nas, KRS-1, Biggie, Mos Def, Jay-Z, Common, Black Thought, Guru, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane. I will say though G Rap is probably more rapper than lyricist as maybe Kane is.
Rakim was and is still my favorite rapper. Smooth, masculine and a true lyricist. .sorry not sorry. His old and new still makes my head nod and foot tap Rakim true gold..never a sell out
He's the questioned GOAT. What's frustrating is the new generation of Hip Hoppers don't even know who he is. Ask your average Drill artist who Rakim is and I'm willing to bet they won't know. If you are reading this and you don't know who he is, I highly encourage you to check out all of his material. He literally changed the game. When you hear him talking about fitting as many syllables as he can into one verse... And the inspiration behind that was the jazz music he grew up with. It's just awesome. Truly the greatest of all time!!! Thank you for making this video!!!
We're talking about a new generation of rappers mostly born in the late 90's early 2000's. What do they know? Rakim is old enough to be these kids' father.
“Drill Artist” its always Drill, anything wrong with todays rap scene “true hip hoppers” like you always point in that direction…. How many Drill Artist wouldn’t know who OutKast is? Maybe they wouldn’t know who Rakim is because he hasn’t been relevant since the mid 90’s. With so many GREAT LYRICAL GENIUSES how is Rakim the GOAT ? You’re frustrated because they don’t know who Rakim is ? If they did know tell me what difference it would make ? It wouldn’t change the society and times that created them and the genre that they represent would it ?
i remember being in high school in the early 2000s, when he was on aftermath, hearing all the buzz about him being the goat, so i started listening to all his shit....15 years after his debut i still thought he was the goat. almost 40 years later, cant really change my mind. he perfected the formula all the greats that followed would use to some degree. i hope young cats are studying the era to understand just how dope he was.
If you were a rapper worth listening too in any era after Eric B. is President and the Paid in Full LP dropped, you paid homage to Rakim. From 2pac to Eminem. Even Method Man referenced Rakim on that N 2 Gether Now song with Limp Bizkit. Truly the God MC.
Rakim's "Move the Crowd" was so good, it was the first hip hop song I menorized. Kept rewinding the tape recorder until I could recite all of it, at 10 or 11 years old. That song is a masterpiece.
Not only was he ahead lyrically but his words & phrases people hung onto, to a point where it lives 20+ years later..Not only is Rakim nice he invented, thats a difference & a BIG one, no rapper does that anymore.. He came up with (Flow, Frienemy, dead presidents, Bout to Jet, Caught’m out there, drop the mic, He was the first rapper with aliases 007, the R, Soul controller, 18th letter ect. ) The Goat Period!! Everyone followed.
Dude be sampling himself from album to album. A hook on one album became a track on the next. Dopest shit ever. Calm, cool, collected and intelligent lyrics.
Great job! This is coming from a black guy who was a teenager at Rakim's height. I love seeing people born after an artist prime, look back and do the research. In respect for your request for comments on things that you missed, it was mostly black cultural things that were important to young black men specifically: The Jewelry(In the 80's, American inner cities were more dangerous, so wearing thousands of dollars of jewelry outside in public meant that you were considered an untouchable), Dapper Dan Style, Authentic Hardcore Swagger, 5 percent Nation/Knowledge of Self, The backing of Puerto Rican Drug Kingpin Supreme Magnetic and his brother Rap from Fort Green, Brooklyn (The Street Cred). Google yourself, there are several internet conversations about the dangerous people Eric B. and Rakim chose to be pictured with on the back of their first two album covers. Street cred made Rakim be respected as one of the hardest rappers out....... while only having 2 or 3 cuss words on the first two albums.....COMBINED! Keep in mind, this was the height of "N.W.A." and "the 2 Live Crew" where almost every other sentence had a cuss word in it.
“ I take 7 MC’s put ‘em in a line , and add 7 more brothers who think they can rhyme but it’ll take 7 more before I go for mine , now that’s 21 MC’s are up ate the same time !!! “ Greatest rap line ever written by the Greatest MC of ALL TIME !!!!
Back in the late 80s, early 90s Eric B and Rakim were changing hip-hop. They were so far ahead of the game and they were all I listened to. Then came De La and Tribe but for awhile it was all Eric B and Rakim and nothing compared.
Rakim is the greatest rapper of all time for one reason, his rhyme scheme. Most rappers at the time had a rhythm you could follow in timing, but Rakim made it flow at different speeds. But he really only had one great record "Follow the Leader". It was so huge at the time that blew everything out of water. The only people that could be thought of with this technique was Heavy D and Rick The Ruler. (Slick Rick) Really, each man is a king in his own right. To experience it in the streets was something else. We often had rap battles and the people who would win would be the one talking the most shit and sounding tough, but Rakim was just so smooth that it could not be matched no matter how tough the others sounded. We always wanted another hit out of him to match Follow The Leader, but like a masterpiece it stood the test of time. It's like a diamond in the rough. Rakim will always be my favorite, because you can't help dancing to it till today! The fact that you weren't around and are so far from the time and place only proves the impact of the song. It's left it crater in the foundation of rap, and it's the biggest crater till today!
Hi, even a year from 60(Bboy from Boston) I am still amazed by the bar Rakim rapped about the 21MC's in 'My Melody 'that alone should convince everyone he is the Greatest from his style and delivery. Thanks -Smith
I have a lot to say on this being an old hip hop head who grew up from the very beginning of hip hop. In Harlem at the YMCA on 135th back in the day they did dance parties and sometimes freestyle rap battles if enough people signed up. The parties were always had neighborhood hip hop heads, DJs ( like myself ) and aspiring young rap artists. So one Friday the DJ played a record no one had ever heard before. In NYC usually Djs could get early releases on Fridays.. Well We are all on the floor dancing and chilling.. and this record comes on. " Yo Clap your hands to what he is doing" And the opening line breaks.. "I came in the door, I said it before I never let the mic magnetize me no more But it's bitin' me, fightin' me, invitin' me to rhyme I can't hold it back, I'm lookin' for the line" now why was this huge.. because never in my young life did I see a WHOLE party STOP dancing to LISTEN to what was being said. I mean literally every hip hop head in that place STOPPED in their tracks to absorb what we were hearing for the first time. Literally for the first time we were hearing : Word play I mean grasp that we all understood that a microphone works by having a small magnet inside it, So he is making a wordplay on the fact that the Mic is a magnetic instrument, Understanding that the mic is attracting him to rhyme, but at the same time in a way has him Magnetized. or HELD in its grip. Grasping that its inviting him to rhyme so he is looking for the opening line for his rhyme scheme and also understanding there is the nervous tense moment when you are starting to rap or freestyle where you are trying to hit that opening line deftly with precision. Looking for the RIGHT verse. Lyric or Beat to drop in on. Multi-Syllable rhymes,internal rhyme schemes I made it easy to dance to this But can you detect what's comin' next from the flex of the wrist? Say indeed then I'll proceed 'cause my man made a mix If he bleed he won't need no band-aid to fix On one line Rakim actually crossed the bar line, and did it VERY cleverly when he said " The rhyme cant be kept in/Side" This had NEVER been done before. No one had every heard this. From that moment on EVERYONE that I knew that rhymed changed how they wrote. Rakim SINGLE-HANDEDLY pushed the genre forward This is why Rakim ill ALWAYS be on my MT Rushmore of rap. While there have been many great artists from the past until now. Rakim is the foundation that many are standing on. I would say that he was the first true Lyricist in Hip Hop. My favorite Rakim lyric is on " put Your hand together: where he literally breaks down the genesis of DJ and MCing Don't understand, here's an example And why MC's and DJ's sample 'Cause we don't have a band, it's just my voice and his hands That's what hip-hop was, it still stands The records we use are from mom's and pop's collection Find a break from a dope selection And go to the store, then buy one more So my DJ can mix cause that's what his hands are for Years later, hip-hop got contracts The chance to put actual facts on wax G.O.A.T
Peace To The Gods! Absolutely 💯; and I like your post. Yes RAKIM is #1 however he really got his style from KMD. Kool Moe Dee one year earlier in 1985; on “Turn It Up” was the very first emcee to use internal RYHME on that record. KMD likely passed the baton to RAKIM and he ran away with it.
I still listen to the true old school now & then. Kurtis, Sugar Hill, Whodini etc but that’s the before Rakim. Everything after had a bar so high it couldn’t measure up for years but it all had its place.
Loved them both, but eehhh! Love Cube, love Treach, but they had their own lanes(kinda). Lyrical, but just not on that Rakim level. It sales, and impact, love their work, man.
I'm GenX. I was definitely not into HIP HOP until I heard 1) Follow The Leader and 2) Takes a Nation of Millions. Up until then, it seems as if rap was just "party" music (Run DMC, Fat Boys, etc.) I was a nerd, so I wasn't into parties, but Rakim and Chuck D introduced an intellectualism that I gravitated to. In a few years, the Native Tongues movement would explode combining bangin beats with Afrocentric intelligent philosophical thoughts- Jungle Bros., Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul- the GOLDEN AGE had arrived!
Rakim is so underrated. Eric b and rakim seemed to me like a bridge from the 80s to the90s and he is so lyrically gifted. Also RIP to Big L one of the best lyrical storytellers ever. If he hadn't gotten killed there was no limit to what he could have created
Rakim AND Ultramagnetic influenced my taste....both deserve more credit. Edit: Great bite sized documentary on a legend and you actually captured the essence of what makes Rakim great in a condensed doc. Breezing by your channel I can see that you are tapping into artist and stories ignored largely and you do your research with well placed delivery. Your success would be beneficial to the masses. You earned my sub. Thx for this great video of 1 of my heroes. (I'm 55)
Don't forget about Microphone Fiend. That was an anthem. Plus The "take 7 MC's and put in a line.... " from My Melody was one of the most clever rhyme constructs in rap history. IT was another Anthem. Really on the first 2 albums, every verse was a standalone zinger. Also don't forget about Mahogany. When you talk about him bringing complexity and jazz to a rap style, this was a masterpiece. The R to the A to the K-I-M. If I wasn't, then why would I say I AM... and if turn it around, it still comes out R.. I wrote the Rhymes that Broke the Bulls Back. If that don't tear em up, I carry a full pack! With wisdom, with means wise words being spoken. Too many at one time, and watch the mic start smoking! I remember seeing him in concert, and he come out from inside of a Gold Pyramid sitting in a throne and the mic started smoking! Yep. The Greatest.
After listening to numerous Eric B. interviews it seems as if his definition of “producer” is not as a hands on pushing the buttons and working the equipment. It’s like he takes the television/film “producer” approach. He pays for everything to be done the way he wants it. From Eric B’s perspective, Marley got paid for his work and that’s it. The word “producer” means different things across media.
Rakim comes from my era. The creation of the B-BOY, BREAK DANCING AND HIP-HOP. BRINGS ME BACK TO MY YOUTH WHEN RAP POSITIVE OR FUN RAKIM IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE PIONEERS AND ONE OF THE BEST TO EVER DO IT. PEACE GOD
"January 28, 1968 Born into this world, William Griffin The Great Chapter 1, Wyandanch, Long Island Scientific rhyming invented a new style when He met with Eric Barrier from East Elmhurst The melody they created was the first Burst on the scene 1986, with clap to this '87 dropped a classic disc"- Nas
Yeah, but Rakim came first. Rakim blazed the trail. Black Thought just followed the wake. This is no disrespect to Black Thought, who I think is massively underrated.
I just saw Ra perform in Saint Louis at the Paint Louis hip hop festival this past Saturday. The Roots show I saw way back in my college days (Pussy Galore era) would probably be the only other time I saw an MC with comparable crowd-moving abilities. Seeing Rakim live, how smooth he is, the flawless performance and ill interaction with the DJ; it truly put his greatness into perspective. I would say until you've seen him rock live, you may not be able to fully appreciate his mastery of the art of hip hop.
RAKIM isn't questioned as the greatest HE IS. I humbly bow to realization outside of preference. If you have studied Hip Hop at the beginning, the progression of the Art of MCing, style, originality, innovativeness,including cadence, delivery, pitch, dual meanings, translation, couplets,syllable compound complexity - RAKIM birthed technical flow along with all the previous mentions - before the art form became an universal genre being monopolized and compromised artistically by hierarchy between greed and unethical motives.
If you don’t understand 5% Nation Of ISLAM lessons you miss so much of the multilayered meaning of his rhymes. Besides that he changed hiphop in many different ways. Plus he was protected and surrounded by some of the most deadly street criminals in NYC you never heard any stories about someone robbed RAKIM or did anything to him,there’s a reason for that.
I almost didn't watch this video but I'm so glad I did! I am a couple of years older than Rakim and loved him back in the 80's! I am planning to watch this video a few times. Back then I never had the thought in my mind of who was the greatest rapper. There were so many different rappers and I just gravitated towards who I resonated with. I found it utterly fascinating that Rakim observed some rappers as barking! I have now seen that Rakim was successful because he was Authentic in his style! He was himself and that is one of our main missions here on Earth. I found Rakim on NPR's Tiny Desk and saved it! It's one of my favorites and his is by far the best rapper on Tiny Desk.!
There is no question. This man for decades was called:"Your Favorite Rapper's Favorite Rapper". This man is the first God MC, by acclaim. Other rappers called him THE GOD MC back when everyone else was at best vying to be MD's, Doctor's Princes and Kings. Let that sink in.
I remember as a 7/8 Grader! Growing up in Grand Rapids Michigan. I told one of my good friends,Yo this brother right here us the truth! We're both 51 Now!!! Living 2 different states,and he reminded me,remember when you turned me on to Rakim!! Yes Sir he's still the Truth!!! The Truth
Was on Straight Path in Wyandanch two days ago. Always think about how in the Fk the greatest MC as well as a bunch of other amazing hip hop artists came from the same 5 sq mile area.
It’s like this generation knows nothing about good music, good R&B music. They only know Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, and Ice Spice. Ask him who the Temptations were and if they know Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway Earth, Wind & Fire, Delfonics, Ohio players, and Etta James, to name a few they don’t have a clue and couldn’t even tell you!🤷🏽♀️
RAKIM will Always & Forever be my favorite M.C. Just think if these creatives never had labels interfere. If they were doing it independently. Kept all their masters. I believe we would've gotten so much more! HIP HOP FOREVER! DONT STOP, WON'T STOP, CANT STOP
“Follow the Leader” contains some of the greatest rapping thats ever been put down on a beat. It’s a masterpiece and a testament to just how advanced and unique Rakim truly was. From the flow, the lyrics, multis, and internal rhyme schemes. NOOOOBODY was rhyming like that at the time.
When assessing The God do not look at record sales as an indicator of anything. He transcends record sales. Let the Rhythm Hit Em is a classic album and should be more closely analyzed. There are numerous songs of significance on that album. Rakim is the best rapper, not just because of his flow or style but because his music was laden with messages. It takes a discerning and intelligent ear to receive those messages, which is why he is underappreciated. As a 12-13 year old I memorized all of Paid in Full when it came out and then a year later I did the same with Follow the Leader. I revisted those albums a few years later in highschool and then again in university in the late 90s. I heard and learned new aspects of those rhymes each time I did those subsequent deep dives. I only fully appreciated the messages when I was in university as I still had "oh wow he just said that" moments, even though I knew the lyrics completely for almost a decade. Rakim is so significany that my son was born in 2012 and in building his solid music foundation, Rakim is one of the rappers he had to learn. By the time he was 6 years old, he could recite the songs Follow the Leader and Paid in Full without a mistake. He revisits Rakim throughout his life and he keeps learning new aspects. Rakim revolutionized rapping, making his sound timeless. That's why it's almost 40 years after Paid in Full was released and it is still a masterpiece.
The GOAT. He was saying "I will tare you apart but spare your heart. Program it to the speed of the rhyme prepare to start." when fools were still rhyming Cat and Hat.
Rakim’s lyrical flow, showcasing his intellect (not ignorant bang bang, bootie shaking crappy lyrics) in ‘Guess Who’s Back’ is pure genius. Indeed “… no one can seem to blow your mind as far as this To find, you'll need philosophers and anthropologists Astrologists, professors from your smartest colleges With knowledge of scholarships, when Ra be droppin' this Some of the things that I know will be in your next bible When I die, go bury me and my notebook in Cairo With the great God from Egypt, manifest, was writin' rhymes Align with the stars, I come back to bless the mic”
Peace and abundant divine blissings!! #Excellent #presentation #content and #transmission Thank you so very much for this one!!! #RAKIM ALLAH is my #number 1 all-time!!!! Done!!!❤❤❤❤
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Rakim is 100% the greatest rapper of all time, hands down.
How?
If someone has to ask “How” they’ll never understand.
Definitely is the greatest
And ppl say drake ? Jay z ? Like,F in what ?? Lo
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
How old are you?
From a old head who witnessed the birth of Hip-hop, it's Rakim then everyone else. 💯
as and old head, you should know better. even rakim says Kool Moe Dee was the blueprint. and he absolutely was and IS.
@@BKRADIOARCHIVES-xt1fpMoe Dee help create the tire ,,Rhakim made the tire better .
Y'all must be 60 or something. PAC IS WORLDWIDE. Nobody knows who Rakum is in Angola, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan...his impact is greater. Pac is the G.O.A.T.
@knutt81 only the real ones know. Pac is cool but he is the R's son.
@toddragland152 Oh, okay. You administer who's real? How many of "The God M.C." songs do they still play across the U.S. radio stations. You must be East Coast. Well, M.C. New York is better known. And if you're talking skill overall, lyrics, rhyme schemes, cadence, production, there's another N.Y. rapper that's better in Aesop Rock. This senior citizen said "If Eminem was Black, he'd be considered as great as Muhammed Ali." He still pushes skin color whilst Hip-Hop and rap is for everybody. That was its purpose. Or did you forget in your old age.
The title alone is the reason why I gave this a thumbs up.
His rapping on "Follow The Leader" is intensely superb
Let the rhythm hit'm, and lyrics of fury impeccable! The saga begins..... Cornerstone MC
The best hip hop song ever created.
@@i_am_non_a Forreal
All Facts! 💯
@@i_am_non_a I agree 💯.
Rakim literally change the game! I just remember when we first heard it as 9 years old. We didn't really understand it, but knew it was different. We picked up a dictionary and started reading what certain words meant. Rakim "birthed" my favorite MC, NAS!
I agree
I bought the record once and the CD twice over the years. Nowadays I play it for young people, that think they know something.
Man! You said it. Rakim, then cam Nas for me. Later, Lupe. All three of these dude’s lyrics and cadences always got me. Rakim and Lupe had their moments of being on top, but their impact… life changing!
Rakim, Nas, KRS-1, Biggie, Mos Def, Jay-Z, Common, Black Thought, Guru, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane. I will say though G Rap is probably more rapper than lyricist as maybe Kane is.
Rakim was and is still my favorite rapper. Smooth, masculine and a true lyricist. .sorry not sorry.
His old and new still makes my head nod and foot tap
Rakim true gold..never a sell out
He's the questioned GOAT. What's frustrating is the new generation of Hip Hoppers don't even know who he is. Ask your average Drill artist who Rakim is and I'm willing to bet they won't know. If you are reading this and you don't know who he is, I highly encourage you to check out all of his material. He literally changed the game. When you hear him talking about fitting as many syllables as he can into one verse... And the inspiration behind that was the jazz music he grew up with. It's just awesome. Truly the greatest of all time!!! Thank you for making this video!!!
They have watched the Spiderman film...they know who he is👍🏾
We're talking about a new generation of rappers mostly born in the late 90's early 2000's. What do they know? Rakim is old enough to be these kids' father.
Please let these kids know he was still in H.S. and this is the late 80's
Absolutely!
“Drill Artist” its always Drill, anything wrong with todays rap scene “true hip hoppers” like you always point in that direction….
How many Drill Artist wouldn’t know who OutKast is? Maybe they wouldn’t know who Rakim is because he hasn’t been relevant since the mid 90’s.
With so many GREAT LYRICAL GENIUSES how is Rakim the GOAT ? You’re frustrated because they don’t know who Rakim is ? If they did know tell me what difference it would make ?
It wouldn’t change the society and times that created them and the genre that they represent would it ?
that Drake dig was epic. Rakim is top 5 dead or alive.
THats how out of touch you are..the Rakim drake was talking about was Asap Rocky...his mamma named him after Rakim
@@JeffreyCobb-y3e Dense much... His dig at 0:10 in the video... his dig on drake... 🤦
@JeffreyCobb-y3e ASAP rocky is trash his parents named him after rakim but he don't even know who rakim is like that
Disappointment?
Are you serious?
“Let the rhythm hit ‘em” was a MASTERPIECE.
I said commercially
I don't recall being disappointed by anything Rakim did!
@@soundofhistory_Peace! The album went Gold and received 5 Mics back when the Source magazine was still credible!
Respectfully, Rakim is #1 because he's been the standard bearer for every rapper who succeeded him.
Kane and Rakim were my favorite MCs
Growing up in the late '80s Ra is the greatest Emcee of all time he inspired the greats Biggie Jay Nas and anyone that was around back in the day.
i remember being in high school in the early 2000s, when he was on aftermath, hearing all the buzz about him being the goat, so i started listening to all his shit....15 years after his debut i still thought he was the goat. almost 40 years later, cant really change my mind. he perfected the formula all the greats that followed would use to some degree. i hope young cats are studying the era to understand just how dope he was.
Paid In Full is a classic. Period. As far as Follow the Leader….Microphone Fiend is a weekly listen for me.
Let the Rhythm Hit'Em was fire
it's my favorite album from the duo.
Listen those Men are Legends. The " R". Big Daddy Kane Kool G Rap. Master Ace.
No Competition, that's All ❤
Competition is none, I remain at the top like the sun!
It that gem that doesn’t get enough love
If you were a rapper worth listening too in any era after Eric B. is President and the Paid in Full LP dropped, you paid homage to Rakim. From 2pac to Eminem. Even Method Man referenced Rakim on that N 2 Gether Now song with Limp Bizkit. Truly the God MC.
Rakim's "Move the Crowd" was so good, it was the first hip hop song I menorized. Kept rewinding the tape recorder until I could recite all of it, at 10 or 11 years old. That song is a masterpiece.
Not only was he ahead lyrically but his words & phrases people hung onto, to a point where it lives 20+ years later..Not only is Rakim nice he invented, thats a difference & a BIG one, no rapper does that anymore.. He came up with (Flow, Frienemy, dead presidents, Bout to Jet, Caught’m out there, drop the mic, He was the first rapper with aliases 007, the R, Soul controller, 18th letter ect. ) The Goat Period!! Everyone followed.
Drugem(To figuratively drag someone)
Dude be sampling himself from album to album. A hook on one album became a track on the next. Dopest shit ever. Calm, cool, collected and intelligent lyrics.
Great job! This is coming from a black guy who was a teenager at Rakim's height. I love seeing people born after an artist prime, look back and do the research. In respect for your request for comments on things that you missed, it was mostly black cultural things that were important to young black men specifically: The Jewelry(In the 80's, American inner cities were more dangerous, so wearing thousands of dollars of jewelry outside in public meant that you were considered an untouchable), Dapper Dan Style, Authentic Hardcore Swagger, 5 percent Nation/Knowledge of Self, The backing of Puerto Rican Drug Kingpin Supreme Magnetic and his brother Rap from Fort Green, Brooklyn (The Street Cred). Google yourself, there are several internet conversations about the dangerous people Eric B. and Rakim chose to be pictured with on the back of their first two album covers. Street cred made Rakim be respected as one of the hardest rappers out....... while only having 2 or 3 cuss words on the first two albums.....COMBINED! Keep in mind, this was the height of "N.W.A." and "the 2 Live Crew" where almost every other sentence had a cuss word in it.
Greatest ever to do it
Every rapper should credit their flow and delivery to Rakim. He made my HS years and always in my top 3
@@davemorris4118 🤣🤣🤣
Rakim is your favorite rapper, rapper.
Rakim was a legend in his own time. Every rapper respected and feared him. His mystique made him unparalleled.
“ I take 7 MC’s put ‘em in a line , and add 7 more brothers who think they can rhyme but it’ll take 7 more before I go for mine , now that’s 21 MC’s are up ate the same time !!! “
Greatest rap line ever written by the Greatest MC of ALL TIME !!!!
Dated elementary rhymes. Elevate yourself, my brother. You're better than that.
This needed to be said, good call
Rakim is the Jimi Hendrix of Hip-Hop. They change the landscape of their genres .
Back in the late 80s, early 90s Eric B and Rakim were changing hip-hop. They were so far ahead of the game and they were all I listened to. Then came De La and Tribe but for awhile it was all Eric B and Rakim and nothing compared.
Rakim is the greatest rapper of all time for one reason, his rhyme scheme. Most rappers at the time had a rhythm you could follow in timing, but Rakim made it flow at different speeds. But he really only had one great record "Follow the Leader". It was so huge at the time that blew everything out of water.
The only people that could be thought of with this technique was Heavy D and Rick The Ruler. (Slick Rick) Really, each man is a king in his own right.
To experience it in the streets was something else. We often had rap battles and the people who would win would be the one talking the most shit and sounding tough, but Rakim was just so smooth that it could not be matched no matter how tough the others sounded. We always wanted another hit out of him to match Follow The Leader, but like a masterpiece it stood the test of time. It's like a diamond in the rough.
Rakim will always be my favorite, because you can't help dancing to it till today! The fact that you weren't around and are so far from the time and place only proves the impact of the song. It's left it crater in the foundation of rap, and it's the biggest crater till today!
Lyrics of Fury. Done.🔥🔥🔥
Hi, even a year from 60(Bboy from Boston) I am still amazed by the bar Rakim rapped about the 21MC's in 'My Melody 'that alone should convince everyone he is the Greatest from his style and delivery. Thanks -Smith
Me too 21MC's ate up at the same time
I have a lot to say on this being an old hip hop head who grew up from the very beginning of hip hop. In Harlem at the YMCA on 135th back in the day they did dance parties and sometimes freestyle rap battles if enough people signed up. The parties were always had neighborhood hip hop heads, DJs ( like myself ) and aspiring young rap artists. So one Friday the DJ played a record no one had ever heard before. In NYC usually Djs could get early releases on Fridays.. Well We are all on the floor dancing and chilling.. and this record comes on. " Yo Clap your hands to what he is doing"
And the opening line breaks..
"I came in the door, I said it before
I never let the mic magnetize me no more
But it's bitin' me, fightin' me, invitin' me to rhyme
I can't hold it back, I'm lookin' for the line"
now why was this huge.. because never in my young life did I see a WHOLE party STOP dancing to LISTEN to what was being said. I mean literally every hip hop head in that place STOPPED in their tracks to absorb what we were hearing for the first time.
Literally for the first time we were hearing :
Word play
I mean grasp that we all understood that a microphone works by having a small magnet inside it, So he is making a wordplay on the fact that the Mic is a magnetic instrument, Understanding that the mic is attracting him to rhyme, but at the same time in a way has him Magnetized. or HELD in its grip. Grasping that its inviting him to rhyme so he is looking for the opening line for his rhyme scheme and also understanding there is the nervous tense moment when you are starting to rap or freestyle where you are trying to hit that opening line deftly with precision. Looking for the RIGHT verse. Lyric or Beat to drop in on.
Multi-Syllable rhymes,internal rhyme schemes
I made it easy to dance to this
But can you detect what's comin' next from the flex of the wrist?
Say indeed then I'll proceed 'cause my man made a mix
If he bleed he won't need no band-aid to fix
On one line Rakim actually crossed the bar line, and did it VERY cleverly when he said " The rhyme cant be kept in/Side"
This had NEVER been done before. No one had every heard this. From that moment on EVERYONE that I knew that rhymed changed how they wrote. Rakim SINGLE-HANDEDLY pushed the genre forward
This is why Rakim ill ALWAYS be on my MT Rushmore of rap. While there have been many great artists from the past until now. Rakim is the foundation that many are standing on. I would say that he was the first true Lyricist in Hip Hop.
My favorite Rakim lyric is on " put Your hand together: where he literally breaks down the genesis of DJ and MCing
Don't understand, here's an example
And why MC's and DJ's sample
'Cause we don't have a band, it's just my voice and his hands
That's what hip-hop was, it still stands
The records we use are from mom's and pop's collection
Find a break from a dope selection
And go to the store, then buy one more
So my DJ can mix cause that's what his hands are for
Years later, hip-hop got contracts
The chance to put actual facts on wax
G.O.A.T
Well said and articulated your word play and the picture you just painted was just as impressive as Rakim rhyme scheme!😮
Peace To The Gods! Absolutely 💯; and I like your post. Yes RAKIM is #1 however he really got his style from KMD. Kool Moe Dee one year earlier in 1985; on “Turn It Up” was the very first emcee to use internal RYHME on that record. KMD likely passed the baton to RAKIM and he ran away with it.
I still listen to the true old school now & then. Kurtis, Sugar Hill, Whodini etc but that’s the before Rakim. Everything after had a bar so high it couldn’t measure up for years but it all had its place.
Ice Cube and Treach should be in the rapping way ahead of their time category too.
Loved them both, but eehhh! Love Cube, love Treach, but they had their own lanes(kinda). Lyrical, but just not on that Rakim level. It sales, and impact, love their work, man.
I'm GenX. I was definitely not into HIP HOP until I heard 1) Follow The Leader and 2) Takes a Nation of Millions. Up until then, it seems as if rap was just "party" music (Run DMC, Fat Boys, etc.) I was a nerd, so I wasn't into parties, but Rakim and Chuck D introduced an intellectualism that I gravitated to. In a few years, the Native Tongues movement would explode combining bangin beats with Afrocentric intelligent philosophical thoughts- Jungle Bros., Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul- the GOLDEN AGE had arrived!
DUDE!
I was playing my Ruth Brown c.d last week!!! And tonight , you drop this video with a R.B fun fact.
My little mouse brian just exploded!
Haha that’s awesome!
Rakim is so underrated. Eric b and rakim seemed to me like a bridge from the 80s to the90s and he is so lyrically gifted. Also RIP to Big L one of the best lyrical storytellers ever. If he hadn't gotten killed there was no limit to what he could have created
Rakim AND Ultramagnetic influenced my taste....both deserve more credit. Edit: Great bite sized documentary on a legend and you actually captured the essence of what makes Rakim great in a condensed doc. Breezing by your channel I can see that you are tapping into artist and stories ignored largely and you do your research with well placed delivery. Your success would be beneficial to the masses. You earned my sub. Thx for this great video of 1 of my heroes. (I'm 55)
4:41 is that Kid from Kid & Play brah? 🤔
Don't forget about Microphone Fiend. That was an anthem. Plus The "take 7 MC's and put in a line.... " from My Melody was one of the most clever rhyme constructs in rap history. IT was another Anthem. Really on the first 2 albums, every verse was a standalone zinger. Also don't forget about Mahogany. When you talk about him bringing complexity and jazz to a rap style, this was a masterpiece. The R to the A to the K-I-M. If I wasn't, then why would I say I AM... and if turn it around, it still comes out R.. I wrote the Rhymes that Broke the Bulls Back. If that don't tear em up, I carry a full pack! With wisdom, with means wise words being spoken. Too many at one time, and watch the mic start smoking! I remember seeing him in concert, and he come out from inside of a Gold Pyramid sitting in a throne and the mic started smoking! Yep. The Greatest.
I really wish we got Rakim and Kane together at their primes
After listening to numerous Eric B. interviews it seems as if his definition of “producer” is not as a hands on pushing the buttons and working the equipment. It’s like he takes the television/film “producer” approach. He pays for everything to be done the way he wants it. From Eric B’s perspective, Marley got paid for his work and that’s it. The word “producer” means different things across media.
Yup. Rakim really produced those records, but he wanted it to look like Eric B. did, when really he was just the money backing the operation.
"If Drake is your favorite rapper, you're probably a loser" - FD Signifier
or don't know enough Hip Hop history to know better lol
He autographed my follow the leader album after a show in the house of blues in San Diego….. the footage from the show is on my page
Simply the best!!
Let us not forget Krs 1
GOAT 👍🏾
Good vid. The big three for me growing up were always Rakim, MC Lyte, and Left Eye. They were the realist. 😊
No one’s talking about Big Daddy Kane, the greatest imo
Kane was exceptional One of the forerunners. but the greatest? I cant go that far. I dont even think Kane would say he is better that Rakim
Big Daddy Kane was the truth, BUT he ain't got alot of hits.
Rakim, the G.O.A.T
Rakim is the template for every generation after him, including all ya favorites. #1, hands down, and ya favorite rapper agrees. 💯💯💯💯💥
This page looks bad ass! Can’t wait to go through all these vids.
FINALLY! YES!!! The originator of the multi-syllabatic rhyme scheme. The Grand-Daddy of complex rhymes.
Facts
Rakim comes from my era. The creation of the B-BOY, BREAK DANCING AND HIP-HOP. BRINGS ME BACK TO MY YOUTH WHEN RAP POSITIVE OR FUN
RAKIM IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE PIONEERS AND ONE OF THE BEST TO EVER DO IT.
PEACE GOD
"January 28, 1968
Born into this world, William Griffin The Great
Chapter 1, Wyandanch, Long Island
Scientific rhyming invented a new style when
He met with Eric Barrier from East Elmhurst
The melody they created was the first
Burst on the scene 1986, with clap to this
'87 dropped a classic disc"- Nas
I owened all Rakims albums and listen to them today. His book and anything Rakim does i buy He deserves so much more today
Rakim is probably your favorite MC's favorite MC
The God EMCEE ! For mos old HIP-HOP headz. It's before Rakim and after Rakim.
I would love Rakim on one of my instrumentals. 😎 cool video I grew up listening to Rakim.
Eric B. & Rakim in the 80’s
They Rocked you’re Benzie Box and Trunk Subs Like Nobody’s Business 🎧 His Lyrics we’re state of the art 🍷🇵🇹
Bout time somebody told the real truth period
I always thought of Rakim as the GOAT. I still do, but lately I've been comparing his style to another great MC Black Thought
Black Thought is incredible. Kind of a shame most people my age just know him from Jimmy Fallon
Hell yeah. Black Thought is my GOAT, for sure.
Or that Funkflex freestyle
Yeah, but Rakim came first. Rakim blazed the trail. Black Thought just followed the wake. This is no disrespect to Black Thought, who I think is massively underrated.
I just saw Ra perform in Saint Louis at the Paint Louis hip hop festival this past Saturday. The Roots show I saw way back in my college days (Pussy Galore era) would probably be the only other time I saw an MC with comparable crowd-moving abilities. Seeing Rakim live, how smooth he is, the flawless performance and ill interaction with the DJ; it truly put his greatness into perspective. I would say until you've seen him rock live, you may not be able to fully appreciate his mastery of the art of hip hop.
Hands down Rakim The Greatest of All Time along with LL🫡💪🏾💪🏾🔥🔥🔥🔥
Just found your channel. The DOC would be very interesting
RAKIM isn't questioned as the greatest HE IS. I humbly bow to realization outside of preference. If you have studied Hip Hop at the beginning, the progression of the Art of MCing, style, originality, innovativeness,including cadence, delivery, pitch, dual meanings, translation, couplets,syllable compound complexity - RAKIM birthed technical flow along with all the previous mentions - before the art form became an universal genre being monopolized and compromised artistically by hierarchy between greed and unethical motives.
You did excellent
Brah, I was a teenager when I bought Eric B and Rakim first album. I listened to it over and over again. Special times.
Do Slick Rick next.
If you don’t understand 5%
Nation Of ISLAM lessons you miss so much of the multilayered meaning of his rhymes.
Besides that he changed hiphop in many different ways.
Plus he was protected and surrounded by some of the most deadly street criminals in NYC you never heard any stories about someone robbed RAKIM or did anything to him,there’s a reason for that.
Rakim💯💐
Thanks for paying tribute to Him👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
This was perfect
Rakim reminds me a little of Jimmy Spicer more well known as Super Rhymes, who preceded him and has passed away... R.I.P.
I almost didn't watch this video but I'm so glad I did! I am a couple of years older than Rakim and loved him back in the 80's! I am planning to watch this video a few times. Back then I never had the thought in my mind of who was the greatest rapper. There were so many different rappers and I just gravitated towards who I resonated with. I found it utterly fascinating that Rakim observed some rappers as barking! I have now seen that Rakim was successful because he was Authentic in his style! He was himself and that is one of our main missions here on Earth. I found Rakim on NPR's Tiny Desk and saved it! It's one of my favorites and his is by far the best rapper on Tiny Desk.!
Purchased and Read Rakim’s book. Amazing time. They were ahead of their time. 🐐
“Know the Ledge” off the “Juice” soundtrack is an underrated CLASSIC!!! Dope af
Kool g rap and him in a verses battle
There is no question. This man for decades was called:"Your Favorite Rapper's Favorite Rapper". This man is the first God MC, by acclaim. Other rappers called him THE GOD MC back when everyone else was at best vying to be MD's, Doctor's Princes and Kings.
Let that sink in.
Right On👑👑
I personally know this guy is the best ever but they were others that followed
About time Rakim being recognized as the greatest. Way ahead of his time.
I remember as a 7/8 Grader! Growing up in Grand Rapids Michigan. I told one of my good friends,Yo this brother right here us the truth! We're both 51 Now!!! Living 2 different states,and he reminded me,remember when you turned me on to Rakim!! Yes Sir he's still the Truth!!! The Truth
Was on Straight Path in Wyandanch two days ago. Always think about how in the Fk the greatest MC as well as a bunch of other amazing hip hop artists came from the same 5 sq mile area.
It’s like this generation knows nothing about good music, good R&B music. They only know Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, and Ice Spice. Ask him who the Temptations were and if they know Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway Earth, Wind & Fire, Delfonics, Ohio players, and Etta James, to name a few they don’t have a clue and couldn’t even tell you!🤷🏽♀️
Rakim is the God of Rap he began to finesse the beat in a way that made rap more sophisticated
The god MC, that says it all.
"Don't get caught up in the mix, cuz the media is full of dirty tricks. Only GOD can judge me , now."
I love the channel! You always ask for suggestions of bands to cover. How about the Invisibl Skratch Piklz? Turntablism pioneers and legends.
Title is fact. Everyone follows the leader. 👑
RAKIM will Always & Forever be my favorite M.C. Just think if these creatives never had labels interfere. If they were doing it independently. Kept all their masters. I believe we would've gotten so much more! HIP HOP FOREVER! DONT STOP, WON'T STOP, CANT STOP
Yall know what it is!!! THE GOAT
“Follow the Leader” contains some of the greatest rapping thats ever been put down on a beat. It’s a masterpiece and a testament to just how advanced and unique Rakim truly was. From the flow, the lyrics, multis, and internal rhyme schemes. NOOOOBODY was rhyming like that at the time.
Always the goat in my opinion.
When assessing The God do not look at record sales as an indicator of anything. He transcends record sales. Let the Rhythm Hit Em is a classic album and should be more closely analyzed. There are numerous songs of significance on that album.
Rakim is the best rapper, not just because of his flow or style but because his music was laden with messages. It takes a discerning and intelligent ear to receive those messages, which is why he is underappreciated. As a 12-13 year old I memorized all of Paid in Full when it came out and then a year later I did the same with Follow the Leader. I revisted those albums a few years later in highschool and then again in university in the late 90s. I heard and learned new aspects of those rhymes each time I did those subsequent deep dives. I only fully appreciated the messages when I was in university as I still had "oh wow he just said that" moments, even though I knew the lyrics completely for almost a decade.
Rakim is so significany that my son was born in 2012 and in building his solid music foundation, Rakim is one of the rappers he had to learn. By the time he was 6 years old, he could recite the songs Follow the Leader and Paid in Full without a mistake. He revisits Rakim throughout his life and he keeps learning new aspects. Rakim revolutionized rapping, making his sound timeless. That's why it's almost 40 years after Paid in Full was released and it is still a masterpiece.
He will always be at the top of my list!! The R! The best of the golden era, everyone else is watered down imo
The GOAT. He was saying "I will tare you apart but spare your heart. Program it to the speed of the rhyme prepare to start." when fools were still rhyming Cat and Hat.
Rakim’s lyrical flow, showcasing his intellect (not ignorant bang bang, bootie shaking crappy lyrics) in ‘Guess Who’s Back’ is pure genius.
Indeed
“… no one can seem to blow your mind as far as this
To find, you'll need philosophers and anthropologists
Astrologists, professors from your smartest colleges
With knowledge of scholarships, when Ra be droppin' this
Some of the things that I know will be in your next bible
When I die, go bury me and my notebook in Cairo
With the great God from Egypt, manifest, was writin' rhymes
Align with the stars, I come back to bless the mic”
Peace and abundant divine blissings!!
#Excellent #presentation #content and #transmission
Thank you so very much for this one!!!
#RAKIM ALLAH is my #number 1 all-time!!!!
Done!!!❤❤❤❤
Without Question The GOAT .
Big Daddy Kane did his thing the same time Rakim was bringing the heat. Kane deserves an Honourable mentions.
DOPE! Rakim is Da G.O.A.T.