Catalog is a strength for him.WIth that said at the end of the day that's the way it gotta be, catalogue is what counts,and Rakim just doesn't add up to be goat
Not many can match those first three albums.
#HotTake...how Rakim a GOAT but go damn near two decades with NOBODY checking for him??
- Thread starter T.he I.nformant
- Start date
Not many can match those first three albums.
You can never prove this. I can never disprove it.
All we know for a fact is that Ra did what he did. And we gotta salute him for it.
Examples?
This right here sums it up perfectly.
Another thing you have to consider is the age of fans. Think about it like this, a fully grown 21 year old man missed ALL of Rakim's heyday. They can go back and listen to it but they were not around for the environment hip hop had created and how much Ra meant to it. So it might be hard for them to relate and consider him the GOAT.
Inspect Her Deck
Skins of all colours come together as brothers
Rakim is a GOAT because he has 3 classic albums and only 1 out of his 7 albums can be considered average, and even that album is underrated (Seventh Seal). The rest range from dope to exceptional.
Plus he changed the game lyrically.
I don't think he's THE GOAT but definitely a contender for sure. I just wish he released more often, and especially in the mid-90's, but by the time he returned he was a little out of touch.
Plus he changed the game lyrically.
I don't think he's THE GOAT but definitely a contender for sure. I just wish he released more often, and especially in the mid-90's, but by the time he returned he was a little out of touch.
You know how I know this is true? I didn't really get put on to Rakim until 97. I was 11-12 when Don't Sweat The Technique and Juice dropped and I loved those songs, but I didn't cop the album. Then I get the two disc 18th Letter with the Greatest Hits and it was like
because I'd heard half of these lines already from other rappers 
I don't know man, Rakim just sounds so goldy to me over Primo and PR beats. I've never once thought that he sounded stiff or anything remotely related to that. For me, Rakim's delivery/flow whatever you want to call it, is one of his strongest elements
I agree in some ways but I think the 'godliness' is why Nas superseded him. Nas said that, on Illmatic, he wanted to sound vulnerable and bulletproof all at the same time. and he actually pulled it off. So one hand, you listen to Nas and you're like: "whoa. godly" But on the other hand, you think "Human. has a story. like me."
Rakim is a 2D rapper in a hip hop world that went 3D.
Song and album definitely had a strong buzz.
Inspect Her Deck
Skins of all colours come together as brothers
@mobbinfms The Punisher might honestly be the best song ever made lol...that was off the DSTT album iirc
I meant godly just in that he was killing those beats. I agree that he did have this mystique about him and didn't talk much about his own experiences.
Rakim Allah
Superstar
Nah Ra is a 4D EMCEE in a Hip Hop world that went 3D and then went 1D(today).
bigbadbossup2012
Biggest baddest boss
Wouldn't it been easier to just name the 5 note worthy songs per album? Can you?
U just quoted 4....
....Dude....I'm from Harlem.....if this was 93 and u were around the cats around my way and u said what u are saying right now ....u would get dismissed and shytted on. Thats how I'm looking at u right now.