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Rakim is one of the most influential artists ever, but that didnt stop me from somehow losing my first and only interview with the god of rap. After some moving and some searching, the 30-minute chat has been unearthed. The Long Island native was supremely informative and surprisingly candid during the conversation. Rakim speaks on everything from the Dr. Dre debacle to ghost producing his biggest hits to the roots of a competition with Big Daddy Kane. Years old, this recently re-discovered interview is as green as pine tree.

Part 1

AllHipHop.com: You and Dr. Dre. I know this may be a dead horse and everything, but this is the first time that weve talked so I have to ask. It could be argued that you and Dre are the best rapper and the best producer of all time.

Rakim: Exactly. Thanks.

AllHipHop.com: What went wrong that we couldnt get collaborative album out?

Rakim: I think the best way to explain it is Ive thought about it. Me and Dre been in the game for a while and we both had our own M.O. Dre had his trademark and if it aint broke dont fix it. And I had my way of doing my things. I was kind of stuck on my direction that I wanted to take, but I guess Dre had a different direction. So, it was hard getting on the same page. Things didnt work out, but I respect Dre as an artist and I aint burning no bridges. Its like two different people trying to do two different things like night and day.

AllHipHop.com: I saw you live one time, in Philly at Club Gotham many years ago. You were rockin and stage diving. You actually jumped on meright in the neck. I was just hype though. It was crazy.

Rakim: I got things that I love to do and the crowd kind of loves that s**t too, where you go out there with the crowd. You let them know youre just like them and want to party. I dont do too much moving around, but I like to get right, you know what I mean?

AllHipHop.com: There were some rumors that you did a lot of early production for Eric B and Rakim, when you all were a group. How true is that?

Rakim: Yeah, I did most of the production.

AllHipHop.com: Will you be doing any more going forward?

Rakim: No doubt. I been in the crates. Im going to produce a couple joints on this album and once I set up my label, Im going to produce a couple for my artists as well. Im back on my craft and presenting Hip-Hop the way I think it should be heard.

AllHipHop.com: What was the biggest record that you produced that we would know?

Rakim: You could say Juice, you could say Eric B Is President. My man Eric put the bassline on though. Follow The Leader. Dont Sweat The Technique. My Melody, but Marley [Marl] did it at his crib. That was early. It was my idea. I could keep going man, [I produced] damn near everything. I Aint No Joke. Move The Crowd.” Musical Massacre. The Punisher. Lyrics of Fury.

AllHipHop.com: [stunned] You did Lyrics of Fury? (This is a personal favorite of the writer.)

Rakim: No doubt.

AllHipHop.com: Between that and Kool G Raps Men At Work, those might be my favorite lyrical works of art of all time.

Rakim: I love that crazy s**t man. I love G Rap for that s**t too. That was like a whole little movement man.

AllHipHop.com: Speaking of that, lets segue to Big Daddy Kane a little bit. There were always rumors that you and Kane had an intense rivalry. Is there any truth to that?

Rakim: No, what happened was, the media started gassing me and Kane. They said, Ra, I think Kane is going at you and vice versa. I do what I do, man, and I aint got no shame with it. So, when I heard little things being said, I kinda fell for it. But that was early in my career. On Let the Rhythm Hit Em, I had put a couple bars in there for Kane.

Big Daddy Kane Vs Rakim: The battle that never was.

AllHipHop.com: You mean the lyric Word to Daddy, Indeed?

Rakim: That was a slang word in the hood so that wasnt really for Kane. I had four or eight bars that were for Kane that I took out. Thats why people thought there was a record for Kane that never came out. I just took the bars out. What had happened is Eric Bs brother used to hang out with Kane and G Rap and Erics brother let Kane hear the song. And they called me up and Kane got on the phone and was like, Ra, you know, it aint no beef. People be gassing me up and asking me if you saying this and seeing if Im saying this to you. I aint got no beef with you I felt like he was sincere with it and I took the eight bars out.

AllHipHop.com: Right, right.

Rakim: A lot of people ask me if we had beef, but that day, when he said that I thought no more of it. Sometimes you can feel a little tension, but I aint got no problem. I aint got no problem with Kane. Saw him the other night, gave him a hug. Thats my dude.

NEXT: Rakim Part 2: Nas, The 80s & Private Life

Eric B & Rakim – “Microphone Fiend”

Eric B. & Rakim – Juice (Know The Ledge)

Eric B & Rakim – Let The Rhythm Hit’em (live)

Hip-Hop Rumors: Soulja Boy Ends Careers! Mad Monkeys II! What? Charles Hamilton!? Stripper Friends!

By: Grouchy Greg Watkins (@GrouchyGreg)Category: RumorsApril 30, 2009

DISCLAIMER:

All content within this section is pure rumor and generally have no factual info outside of what the streets have whispered in our ear. Read on.

FOR THOSE THAT SAW….

Rick Ross recently referred to Eminem as a MONKEY AND A HONKIE. I just have to throw my hands up. If he can call a Black man a monkey…honkie isn’t forbidden! Eminem…where are you!?

THE DAILY TWO SENSE

Somebody told me that I had better get on my job. Why? TMZ.com published some pictures of a dude that looked a lot like Tupac and offered some caption about Tupac being alive. Somebody has to save dummies from themselves and I am that person. I filter out foolishness and edit for idiots. I love Pac, but that brother is no longer walking among us. If he was, he would be arrested for faking his own death thats illegal, you know. (Nobody should talk this personally its probably not directed to you.)

Here is the picture if you are inquisitive.

How is Pac more alive than a lot of people on Earth now? SMH.

THE RUMORS!

Before I get to the rumors, I just wanted to say that I am close to staying in the house. I thought the Swine Flu was mostly a thing in major cities. But check this out:

A major concert featuring Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy was canceled by officials at The University of Delaware today (April 29) due to an outbreak of the highly contagious Swine Flu.

Click here for the full story.

CHARLES HAMILTON SAID WHAT?

Forgive meI can be dense from time to time. But, somebody hit me with this urgent message that Charles Hamilton updated his Facebook status with the following message:

“Two humble blue lines may have changed my life. Forever. Stay tuned (s### is wack/dope… lol)”

All you street savvy people tell me what that actually means.

D-BLOCK IS POPPIN!!!!

D Block Behind The Scenes Video Shoot: AllHipHop was on the set with D-Block for their song “Get This Paper”

SOULJA BOY ENDS CAREERS?

As far as I can see, the only career Souja has hopes of ending is his ownunless hes sending a jab towards Bow Wow. In that casehmmmmmmm

A MAN? NO WAY!

I dont know where these things get started, but somebody tried to say this chick is a man. Shes named Caviar and her voice is bugged to me, but she looks good. She was on Ray-Js showbut lost.

ILLSEEDS QUICKIES

I heard 50 Cent is going to be working on or with a movie called Officer Down.

Girls, if you want to be immortalized on cameraclick here for Chicago Larrythe greatest photographer of all time!

Shout out to A+ and all of the St. Maarten HipHop Community! I heard Rick Ross rocked it out there! Rumor has it promoters tried to put Ross in a Holiday Inn and ended up paying for an $8000 per day villa.

Well50 Cent is taking too long. Perhaps this is some strategy. I know hes got some books on the way, but sheesh!

Click here for a wedding failsomebody kill the best man!

I dont know about Kanye, but Lil Wayne did not make Times most influential list. Yall got hoodwinked!

Quincy STILL hasnt heard from Al B. Sure even though he wrote a heartfelt letter asking. Wellthats a mile-wide rift.

SMH. Bow Wow experienced a twitter fail when he accidentally gave out his personal e-mail and phone to all of his 15,000 of his followers. I heard they called immediately.

EPIC WIN OF THE DAY

SUPER HERO IN CINCINNATI! I am quitting rumors to become a superhero. I want to fight crime. My specialty will be to fight rappers thats dont live by the rules of the game. Anyway, this dude named The Shadow Hare is a real superhero in the Nati. The Shadow Hare is now roaming the streets in an effort to really fight crime through legal means. He uses like handcuffs, tasers and pepper spray. Sounds like Jay-Zs friend TyTy. LMAO! My bad. He stopped a homeless man from beating a woman, feeds the homeless and helped track down a racist with his Cali cohorts. Thats righthes got friends. The Shadow Hare is down with the “Allegiance of Heroes!” These people are located all over the nation and they all fight crime. Theres Aclyptico in Pennsylvania, Wall Creeper in Colorado, Master Legend in Florida, Mr. Extreme in California and others. Hopefully, they know how to run as well, because we dont want to see them getting hurt.

Click here for the video! OMG classsssic!

SIGNS THE WORLD IS COMING TO AN END

I got this letter yesterday about the real end of the world and felt it was worth sharing.

what up illseed …since ur voice speaks to many i felt you were capable of doing what i cant by warning people of the days to come leading to 2012 when the illuminati will begin a population reduction process. they are already affecting us by putting fluoride in our drinking water, and it happens to be the main element in rat poison! you have to research this and get the word out to people and tell them to storage food and water for the horrific weather we’re about to experience that they wont tell you about until its too late and everyone is panicking scrabbling to get food for their families. it will be chaotic, and martial law will be declared. 2012 is the year that all of the planets will allign and planet “x” will be in our solar system which will break the earths magnetic field and leave us vulnerable to the suns most harmful rays. we all need to come together and build a underground bunker to survive!!! the government wont save us ..that will be up to us. you should google “2012 survival guide” and go to yowusa.com i could write for hours about this but you have to see for yourself. peace

THE MONKEYS ARE STILL MAD!

(It looks like my Monkey Mafia Parody is picking up steam! I got another letter from a monkey and here is what he said.)

**This goes out to the CEO of Maybach Muzik Group Aka Rick Ross Aka Bawse Aka I started the disrespectful Monkee name calling Fad.. This is our second press release we have attempted to settle this amicably by sending you our first warning but it appears you do not take heed .in your recent interviews you still refer to 50 cent and G-Unit as monkees!… we primates have taken serious offense to the manner in how you continue to disrespect our name with reckless abandon like ÿeah dats wats up..” 50 cent is a f**kin Monkeee”..Huh? Hell F**kin No….Be warned! this will not be settled by legal action we are not doing interviews on Oprah or Larry King we WILL! take this to the streets ! ..In other to prevent repercussions and consequences from us we ask for two thing .One.. Refrain from calling us G-Unit and calling G-Unit us Gorillas and Monkeys are not the same its like calling a Korean , Vietnamese.. Second and above all… Acknowledge our Gangsta. Unless these terms are met we @ T.O.A.S.T will recreate a scene from “Planet of the Apes”on your next promotional tour will show you the real meaning of “Banana Clips” and what it means to “Go Ape”..like we said we are not sure if you are aware or you even watch the news , these days monkeys can do reconsstructive face surgery,.. No Anesthetic!. Most of us do carry that toast.. never slippin! ” we tote dat Gemstar around here it aint nothin..youve seen what one of our Goons did ontop of the Empire State building .. Ross you dont want it with us real talk…cuz they aint nothing more ruthless and foul than a bunch of p##### off Monkeys running around with Burners .. we Kill At Will like Ice Cube…Word!

Monkey Mafia Aka *The Organization Of Always Strapped Tree Dwellers *T.O.A.S.T

CUTE LITTLE JAY-Z

Somebody sent me a video of this little kid rapping to Jays verse on Swagger Like Us.

THE TRACK TEAM HAS A LOT OF FUN!

The team that runs together truly has fun together.

RICK ROSS IN NYC THE OTHER SIDE

Like I said, I play fair. I got this letter as a counterpoint to a letter I published yesterday about an in-store with Rick Ross in NYC.

Illseed! What up homie! I read the rumors religiously, but today I read something that forced me to send you this email. I read the tid bit from the cat that supposedly works at the Best Buy Rick Ross did the in store at here in NYC. Now I did my research to find these pics…I found them! Let me start off by telling you I was at the event not as a hater but as a supporter. Most of those pics were from early in the afternoon when the street team was setting up for the event. The one pic that had about 10 people on line is real, but it was taken at 5pm. The event wasn’t supposed to start till 7pm. Most of the people started showing around 6:30 and after. I would say he had a good 50 – 60 people out there waiting to get their CD signed by the time he showed up which was around 7:30 or so. When I got out from the signing there were still people on line. I just had to let that be known. NYC used to have REAL, AUTHENTIC opinions in Hip Hop. Now it seems like the young heads are a bunch of dick riders, riding the dick of whoever they’re told to ride!! So if today they’re supposed to hate on Ross then they will. Tomorrow it will be someone new. Nah mean?

Remember folks only believe HALF of what you see!!!

Biggup Illseed for letting me get this off my chest!!

The Grey Ghost

JODY BREEZE!

Even Rick Ross shows up in this new video for Too Much.

WHY WAS COREY GUNZ TAKEN OFF A-MILLI?

Does anybody have the answer? At any rate, Lil Wayne praises Gunz HERE!

OK IM GOING IN

F**K 13wham.com and the news station!!!!! These people ran one of the most racist and stereotypical news reports EVER. Now, I simmered for a few days on this and tried to ignore it, because that is what I do. I look past a lot so that I dont have the highest of blood pressures, but this is crazy. See the video and contact them here if you want. And just so you know they admitted they could have gotten people in the burbs on this report and didnt. WACK!!!!! I hope they choke on a chicken bone one day.

ILL PICS

What nice pics of Usher and his son. Its pretty refreshing to see a superstar act so normalto really respect fatherhood.

Tyra had to go to court for something related to a stalkerhere are the pics.

FINALLY, YOU GOTTA PAY TO S**T!

Busta Rhymes gets upset with Germany for making him pay to take a dump.

SUPERSEED!!!!! If that dude can be a super hero – so can I!!!! Superseed is here! Check me at illseed.com. Or just follow me at http://twitter.com/illseed

MR. & MRS KNOWLES, WE LOVE YOU!!!

They keep us talking, but if we stop talking about them then they should worry!-illseedWHO: illseed.comWHAT: RumorsWHERE: AllHipHop.com, MySpace.com/TheIllseedHOW: Send your rumors and ill pics to illseed at [email protected].

Swine Flu Concerns Cause Young Jeezy Concert Cancellation

By: Grouchy Greg Watkins (@GrouchyGreg)Category: NewsApril 29, 2009

A major concert featuring Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy was canceled by officials at The University of Delaware today (April 29) due to an outbreak of the highly contagious Swine Flu.

The concert by Young Jeezy and upcoming rapper Drake was scheduled for 8:00 PM tomorrow at UDs Bob Carpenter Center.

UD President Patrick T. Harker announced that the concert, as well as a speaking engagement with noted journalist Gwen Ifill would be canceled, because 10 students on campus were suspected of having the deadly H5N1 avian influenza.

While the Centers for Disease Control have not yet confirmed any swine flu diagnoses, I have no doubt that these suspected cases are causing a great deal of concern among the entire campus community, University of Delaware President Patrick T. Harker said. The University’s first priority is the health and well-being of our students and employees. Therefore, we are working closely with the Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) to safeguard student, staff, and faculty health.

Swine Influenza is a disease that affects the respiratory system of pigs.

While humans are rarely infected with the strain, this strain appears to be easily transmitted from person to person.

The World Health Organization announced today that the world is on the brink of a pandemic and raised the global threat level to phase 5, the last step before a pandemic.

“The biggest question is this: how severe will the pandemic be, especially now at the start,” WHO Director General Margaret Chan said. “Influenza pandemics must be taken seriously precisely because of their capacity to spread rapidly to every country in the world.

So far, 159 people have died from the disease worldwide, including one death in the United States, which occurred today, when a 23-month old Mexican boy died from the disease while visiting Houston, Texas.

The biggest question, right now, is this: how severe will the pandemic be, especially now at the start?, Chan stated, adding that the organization has reached out to influenza vaccine manufacturers that can contribute to the production of a pandemic vaccine.

In addition to Mexico and the United States, Austria (1), Canada (13), Germany (3), Israel (2), New Zealand (3), Spain (4) and the United Kingdom (5) have reported cases of the influenza.

Students and fans who purchased tickets to see Young Jeezy and Drake can contact the University of Delaware box office for information of refunds.

LL Cool J Says Relationship With Sears A ‘Great Success’

By: Grouchy Greg Watkins (@GrouchyGreg)Category: NewsApril 29, 2009

LL Cool J has dismissed reports that his relationship with department store Sears has come to an end in a statement to AllHipHop.com.

My partnership with Sears has been a great success and I look forward to our continued working relationship providing affordable clothing for American families, LL Cool J said.

Earlier, rumors circulated through a number of traditional media outlets that the line had been closed down due to poor sales.

A representative for Sears also dismissed the reports and revealed that there is more to come with the clothing line.

Sears values its partnership with LL Cool J and will continue its commitment to providing the LL Cool J collection to its customers, both in-store and online, added Tom Aiello, division vice president, Sears Holding. The collection is characterized as affordable, iconic apparel for the family and represents an important breakout brand in Sears wide assortment of tees, denim and hoodies.

The Fall line was showcased in February during Fashion Week and various media outlets will get a sneak peak of the rappers holiday collection in one month.

The Sears/LL Cool J partnership started last September when Sears rolled the line out across 450 of its Sears stores.

LL Cool Js line includes juniors, kids and young men’s clothing.

Del the Funky Homosapien Gives Away 14th Album

By: Grouchy Greg Watkins (@GrouchyGreg)Category: NewsApril 29, 2009

Del the Funky Homosapien is doing his part to make sure his fans stay economically sound, with the free release of his 14th album, Funk Man: The Stimulus Package.

The veteran Oakland rappers album was released today (April 29) on Funnyman Entertainment, as an experimental distribution strategy.

Del secured sponsorship deals with Skull Candy, Arnette, Osiris Shoes and Bandcamp.com in order to release The Stimulus Package.

The release comes just one year after the release of Dels album Eleventh Hour.

According to Del, he has shed negativity that has plagued him in the past, which prevented him from releasing a solo album for almost six years.

“Its okay to be who you are, Del said. You can be free. So what if people are taking about you, theyre going to be talking about you anyway and they probably want to be you. They wish they could by funky, let their hair grow out, be like you.”

Del the Funky Homosapien is currently on tour in support of Funk Man: The Stimulus Package.

Tour dates are listed below:

Wed-Apr-29 New York, NY BB Kings Thu-Apr-30 Allentown, PA Crocodile Rock Sun-May-03 Philadelphia, PA First Utilitarian Church Tue-May-05 Ann Arbor, MI Blind Pig Wed-May-06 Columbus, OH Skullys (Late Show) Thu-May-07 Lexington, KY Dame Fri-May-08 Chicago, IL Reggies Sat-May-09 Madison, WI High Noon Mon-May-11 Columbia, MO Blue Note Tue-May-12 Omaha, NE Slowdown Thu-May-14 Boulder, CO Fox Theatre Fri-May-15 Denver, CO Bluebird Sat-May-16 Colorado Springs, CO Black Sheep Mon-May-18 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge

KRS-One Sponsors Atlanta Hip-Hop Appreciation Week

By: Grouchy Greg Watkins (@GrouchyGreg)Category: NewsApril 29, 2009

KRS-Ones Temple of Hip-Hop has announced that this years Hip-Hop Appreciation Week will be held in Atlanta, Georgia.

For 2009, organizers are touting cooperation as the main theme for Hip-Hop culture adherents to utilize in fighting to de-criminalize the images of Hip-Hop that are portrayed by the mainstream media.

Since Hip-Hop has its roots in block parties that required the participation of the entire community, The Temple of Hip-Hop aims to bring that same community awareness and involvement back to the culture.

Now is the time, more than ever, for cooperation in our communities, the organization explained in a statement. The Hip Hop community should work together to organize our people, our knowledge and our resources as we continue to work through the challenges we are facing domestically and globally!

In accordance to this mantra, organizers will be pushing attendees to network with each other, volunteer for non-profit agencies, promote the positivity of Hip-Hop, and start neighborhood watch/community beautification committees.

The Appreciation Week will run from May 15-24 in the Atlanta Metropolitan area, and feature open mics, youth seminars, volunteer walks, parent/child initiatives, and performances from KRS-One, B.o.B., Yella Wolf, and Playboy Tre.

For a full listing of events, click here.