#HotTake...how Rakim a GOAT but go damn near two decades with NOBODY checking for him??
- Thread starter T.he I.nformant
- Start date
T.he I.nformant
1st Ballot HOF Teller
T.he I.nformant
1st Ballot HOF Teller
You in the minority.
When did this "without Eric B" shyt come about. like he was the force behind that shyt...Seriously, I have never seen anyone credit Eric B for anything but being the plug. He produced little if anything- Rakim, Marley Marl, Large Professor, Paul C, 45 King and others did all that over the years... and I doubt he helped Rakim with his lyrics. Rakim's solo work had nothing to do with Eric B not being around... rap had changed drastically between the last Eric B & Rakim album and Rakim's solo stuff, and Rakim did a decent job at adapting but not a great job. After the 18th Letter, he felt way out the loop with all the newer artists coming around.
Not really sure what the point of the thread is... there's a number of artists in different genres who are GOATs and haven't had a hot record in a long time... AT is all-time, which means ALL-TIME... doesn't mean the timetable you create for them to have a hit.
thank you, lol @ the Eric B defense when his ass doesnt have one credit since 92. only way he popped up in the news is by being a con, which is exactly what he was in the music biz
18th Letter got nothing but 4 mic + reviews when it came out, that shyt was dope. i agree that Seventh Seal was a disaster, hes been pretty dissapointing the past 15 years. it is what it is id like to see him bond with a more modern producer and get one more fire project out
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T.he I.nformant
1st Ballot HOF Teller
I was nodding my head in agreement until I got here. Keep it hip-hop, fam. I want my rappers rapping as long as they alive. Rhyming about achy backs and 8-tracks.
Seriously, though, the point of this thread is discussing hip-hop and the career of one of its greats. Maybe hip-hop is old enough, now, where fans should come to expect that rappers will eventually stop rapping. Guess it's unreasonable to think they'll rhyme forever and always be hot and relevant. I just always wondered why he wasn't bigger after the first five years of his career especially after seeing what Nas and Jay have done. Ra post-'92 has been like MJ on the Wizards. Yeah, he'll give you flashes of that greatness that made him one of the best but the feeling ain't the same. Only difference is MJ had had a long career by then; Ra was only 5 years in. And maybe basketball and rapping is apples and oranges when it comes to longevity but I guess I still expected his flame to burn a little brighter and longer than it did.
I can see what this is now.. Some of you really didn't listen. There is a difference between the work he did with Eric and his solo albums.
No, Eric wasn't just a name on the album he had album cuts on those albums. Straight beats.. No vocals from Ra. The fukk is wrong with you nikkas
His solo albums are as follows:
18th letter
The Master
Seventh Seal
Coli nikkas can try and move goal posts all the want. There is a difference between the Eric B & Rakim projects and Rakim's solo work.
The only difference between the albums he did with Eric and his solo albums is the 5 years it took (and most of that time was due to red tape and Eric's refusal to sign a release) between Don't Sweat the Technique and 18th Letter. Eric's involvement on a creative level didn't affect Rakim. shyt, '18th Letter' had Premier and Pete Rock and Clark Kent- all of whom have longer credentials than Eric B does. Times change, tastes change, sounds change... it ain't like Rakim lost it lyrically, he just never advanced from his prime years. It doesn't matter who it is- anybody who stays in a pattern while the world around them is changing will eventually fade into the background.
But if we gonna act like 'Chinese Arithmetic' and 'Just A Beat' were as relevant as 'I Aint No Joke' and 'Microphone Fiend'... Okaaaay...
OnlyInCalifornia
Southern California/Vegas
That's YOUR bad if you are not checking if he has a show or any new music on your side. Not Rakim's fault. He is already cemented in regardless of people's opinions years later, troll threads, etc.
I have no clue how someone could truly be into Hip Hop and not get hyped up every time it happened to come on...
I have no clue how someone could truly be into Hip Hop and not get hyped up every time it happened to come on...
Groot
Guarding the Galaxy
T.he I.nformant
1st Ballot HOF Teller
Dope, classic song but what's that got to do with this thread, especially when the discussion is about what Ra did (or didn't do) after this song was released
Mike the Executioner
What went on up there? Poppers and weird sex!
He stopped making music on a consistent basis and was unable to adapt to hip-hop's changing landscape like his contemporaries. Then again, his first album back is a classic so that's out of the question.
I don't know why it matters in the end. Rakim is my personal GOAT and he advanced hip hop farther than anyone ever had before. He will always be relevant in my eyes and in today's era where people don't give a shyt about the legends who paved the way, I don't expect the general public to care about him. They just don't get him.
I don't know why it matters in the end. Rakim is my personal GOAT and he advanced hip hop farther than anyone ever had before. He will always be relevant in my eyes and in today's era where people don't give a shyt about the legends who paved the way, I don't expect the general public to care about him. They just don't get him.
