(AllHipHop News) God MC Rakim is currently hopping from city to city on his “Paid In Full ” tour.
The tour marks the 30th anniversary of his breakout track “Eric B. For President,” a track which was birthed in the home studio of Queensbridge production legend Marley Marl.
In an interview with The Chicago Sun Times, Rakim gave a little peek into the creative process behind the track.
“Marley Marl and MC Shan kept trying to get me to stand up and put more energy into it. If I stand it’s gonna sound the same way, ’cause that’s what I’m trying to do, Rakim revealed. “It took a little tug o’war for them to just leave me alone and finish the song. But after it came out they was like, ʻYo Rakim, man, we see what you was doing; it’s dope.ʼ”
Paid In Full is an album that is held in very high praise in Hip-Hop history.
Thanks to groundbreaking releases with partner Eric B., Rakim is credited as being very influential on MCs such as Kool G. Rap and Nas.
Rakim was still attending high school as a senior at New York’s Wyandanch Memorial High when he first heard “Eric B For President” blaring through the streets.
“I see a car with somebody in the passenger seat, window down, and I hear ʻEric B. Is President. I walk up to the car and I’m like, ‘Yo, is that a tape?’ – around my neighborhood, a lotta my friends used to steal my demo tapes. He’s like, ‘Nah, that’s the radio.’ And from that second on, I don’t think I touched the ground. I think I floated all the way home.”
Shirts commemorating the 30th anniversary of “Eric B. For President” can be purchased here.