Eric B. & Rakim

During rap's celebrated golden era of the late 1980s, Eric B. & Rakim earned near-universal acclaim as hip-hop's leading DJ and MC combination even though they never scored a crossover smash on their own. Their partnership clicked at an elite level, while each member also pushed the boundaries of his individual craft to new heights. As a DJ and producer, Eric B. exerted massive influence through his love of robust James Brown samples, which ignited an ongoing rush to mine the Godfather of Soul's catalog that still resonates. Rakim, meanwhile, continues to top fan surveys as the greatest MC ever; he shaped his lyrics with poetic precision, weaving in layered metaphors and intricate internal rhymes, and he toyed with rhythms like a jazz improviser, cementing his standing as the most effortlessly smooth rapper to hold a microphone. His crisp diction and relaxed delivery proved impossible to quantify in terms of impact on later artists. Collectively, their superior command of the mic and decks raised the bar for everyone who came after, and their role in elevating hip-hop's artistic status has been cited by acts ranging from Gang Starr to the Wu-Tang Clan to Eminem. Although portions of their sound can feel somewhat outdated now, their clear contribution to ushering the genre into its contemporary phase remains unmistakable.

Eric Barrier entered the world in 1965 in Elmhurst, Queens, while his future collaborator, William Griffin, Jr., arrived in 1968 in the New York suburbs of Wyandanch, Long Island. At 16, Griffin embraced Islam and took the name Rakim Allah. Barrier started on trumpet and guitar but pivoted to turntables in high school, eventually securing work as the mobile DJ for radio station WBLS. There he connected with Rakim, and the pair formalized their alliance in 1985. Their opening single, "Eric B. Is President" (a tribute to Barrier's turntable skills) paired with "My Melody," appeared on the small Harlem indie Zakia. The release became a neighborhood phenomenon throughout the summer of 1986, leading to a deal with the bigger 4th & Broadway imprint. The equally seismic follow-ups "I Ain't No Joke" and "I Know You Got Soul" incorporated loops from James Brown and his associate Bobby Byrd, and their deep funk began reshaping hip-hop's sonic direction. Rakim's utterance of "pump up the volume" on the second track was itself sampled, supplying the core for M/A/R/R/S' hit of identical title.

In 1987, 4th & Broadway released the duo's debut album, Paid in Full; buoyed by strong underground momentum, it reached the Top Ten on the R&B LP charts, a feat matched by every later project. British duo Coldcut's remix of the title track turned it into a genuine U.K. success. That visibility helped establish "Paid in Full"'s drum pattern as one of the most frequently borrowed beats after James Brown's "Funky Drummer," underpinning Milli Vanilli's "Girl You Know It's True" and numerous other, more credible chart entries. Following Paid in Full, Eric B. & Rakim moved to MCA's Uni subsidiary and strengthened their stature with the landmark 1988 album Follow the Leader. Its title track joined their existing roster of classics, and Jody Watley enlisted them for her 1989 single "Friends," which marked their sole entry into the pop Top Ten.

The 1990 sequel Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em registered as somewhat less inventive, yet the slightly jazz-inflected 1992 release Don't Sweat the Technique delivered greater consistency while reinforcing their reputation. In the end, that project closed their joint chapter. Their MCA contract was nearing expiration, and they had floated the idea of separate solo efforts, but friction over the partnership's direction proved fatal. Legal complications after the split blocked both from launching solo careers promptly. The lone early track was Rakim's "Heat It Up," featured on the 1993 film Gunmen soundtrack. Eric B. finally issued his self-titled solo debut on his own 95th Street imprint in 1995. Rakim signed with Universal and returned with two well-received albums, 1997's The 18th Letter and 1999's The Master.