Paid in full

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Paid in full
Studio album by Eric B. & Rakim

Publication
(s)

July 7, 1987

Label (s) Zakia / 4th & Broadway

Format (s)

CD, LP

Genre (s)

East coast hip hop

Title (number)

10

running time

45 min 8 s

production

Eric B. & Rakim , Marley Marl

chronology
- Paid in full Follow the Leader
(1988)

Paid in Full is the debut album by Eric B. & Rakim . It was released in 1987 under Zakia / 4th & Broadway Records and is considered the definitive album of East Coast hip-hop . All Music Guide's Steve Huey called it "one of the most influential rap albums of all time". MTV listed it at # 1 in the "Best Hip-Hop Albums of All Time." In 2003, Rolling Stone music magazine placed the album at number 227 on its list of the 500 best albums of all time .

Rakim was responsible for the raps and DJ Eric B. for the beats and productions. The album does not include any guest appearances by other singers or rappers. Queensbridge legend Marley Marl co-produced two tracks and was the only outside person to work on the album. The singles are Eric B Is President (1986), I Ain't No Joke (1987), I Know You Got Soul (1987) and Move The Crowd (1987). Paid in Full reached # 58 on the American Albums Chart. When the record deal for the album came off in 1987, Rakim became the first MC in history to receive a sum of over a million US dollars, hence the title Paid In Full .

Music genre

With Paid in Full Eric B. & Rakim revolutionized the style of East Coast hip-hop. The music is inspired by jazz and soul . Many classic samples were used (as practically everyone did at the time) from James Brown , The Jackson Five, and Earth, Wind and Fire, among others . For example, Eric B. Is President used Funky President by James Brown and over ten other songs. Unlike most hip-hop acts of the day - such as Run-DMC , KRS-One and Public Enemy - Rakim didn't shout energetically into the microphone, but rhymed in a relaxed voice. The special thing about Paid in Full is that the music was street-oriented (but without guns and drugs being the focus) and was therefore well received by ordinary people. Rakim also managed to keep his texts intelligent by conveying the values ​​and views of the Nation of Gods and Earths in his texts ( the teaching of Supreme Mathematics ). He gave the atmosphere of the album important properties like the "Street Swagger" (street sound) and the "Street Knowledge" (knowledge). He manages to move the masses, as Rakim tells in Move The Crowd . The texts mostly deal with everyday life in New York City . Complex metaphors, puns and well-known quotations from classical literature such as William Shakespeare appear.

influence

Paid In Full has inspired many careers. Rappers like Jay-Z , Nas , 50 Cent , Busta Rhymes , Mike Shinoda and Jermaine Dupri cited Rakim as the main inspiration during their childhood.

Track list

# title Duration Songwriter Producer (s) Performer
1 I ain't no joke 3:56 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim Rakim
2 Eric B. Is on the Cut 3:54 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim (Instrumental)
3 My Melody 6:50 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Marley Marl Rakim
4th I know you got soul 4:47 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin,
Bobby Byrd,
James Brown,
Charles Bobbitt
Eric B. & Rakim Rakim
5 Move the crowd 3:50 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin,
Steve Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim Rakim
6th Paid in full 3:46 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim Rakim
7th As the Rhyme Goes On 4:04 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim Rakim
8th Chinese arithmetic 4:12 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim (Instrumental)
9 Eric B. Is President 6:17 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim,
Marley Marl
Rakim
10 Extended beat 3:49 Eric Barrier,
William Griffin
Eric B. & Rakim (Instrumental)

illustration

The cover shows the hip-hop duo Eric B. & Rakim standing with money, gold chains and Gucci suits . Green banknotes, the “Dead Presidents” (American slang), are shown in the background. The cover image of Paid in Full played a key role in the later bling cult in the hip-hop scene during the 1990s.

background

The song I Know You Got Soul appeared in the computer game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on the virtual radio station Playback FM .

Individual evidence

  1. https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000193005
  2. http://www.mtv.com/bands/h/hip_hop_week/2005/greatest_albums_0505/index11.jhtml
  3. Rakim's biography at laut.de.
  4. MTV.de