Del.icio.usRakim
Fact Sheet
| Birth Name | William Michael Griffin |
| Musical genre: | Rap/Hip Hop |
| Birthday | 28 January 1968 (44) |
| Sign | Aquarius |
| Birthplace | Wyandanch, Long Island, New York, USA |
Eric B. & Rakim
In 1985 he met the Queens-based DJ Eric B, with whom he soon formed a musical partnership. Eric B. and Rakim subsequently became one of the most well-known and influential groups to emerge from hip hop's so-called "golden age" of approximately 1987-1992, with many of their tracks becoming hip hop classics, including "Follow The Leader", "Paid In Full", "Eric B Is President" and "Microphone Fiend." Prior to Rakim's arrival on the scene, hip hop rhyming had still had strong ties to rapping's roots in improvisatory toasting, being in very regular meter and rhyme scheme (Run DMC, Kurtis Blow, etc), with simple lyrics and a steady and heavily prounounced rhythm. Rakim, however, introduced the idea of a rapid, continuous, free-rhythmic flow, based around multisyllabic and internal rhymes; the All Music Guide's Steve Huey wrote in the early 2000s that "Rakim's flow is smooth and liquid, inflected with jazz rhythms and carried off with an effortless cool that makes it sound as though he's not even breaking a sweat. He raised the bar for MC technique higher than it had ever been." Rakim's use of metaphor and elaborate phrasing (in contrast to previous hip hop's relatively simple lyricism) was also heavily influential, with Pitchfork Media critic Jess Harvell writing in 2005 that "Rakim's innovation was applying a patina of intellectual detachment to rap's most sacred cause: talking shit about how you're a better rapper than everyone else. He was the supreme exponent of rapping-about-rapping."Solo career
Eric B. & Rakim broke up in 1992 after releasing four albums. Due to legal wrangling over royalties and his contracts with both his record label and with Eric B, Rakim did not release a solo album for another five years. He returned in 1997 with The 18th Letter, which included collaborations with DJ Premier and Pete Rock; released in two versions, one of which included a Eric B. & Rakim greatest hits disc titled The Book of Life, the album was fairly well-received critically and was certified gold. In 1999, Rakim released The Master, which was considerably less successful than its predecessor, failing to crack the Top 50 on Billboard's album chart and receiving mixed reviews.Rakim was signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment record label in the early 2000s, for work on an album tentatively titled Oh My God. The album underwent numerous changes in artistic direction and personnel and was delayed several times. While working on the album, Rakim made guest appearances on numerous Aftermath projects, including the hit single "Addictive" by Truth Hurts, the Dr. Dre-produced "The Watcher Part 2" by Jay-Z, and Eminem's 8 Mile soundtrack. However Rakim left the label in 2003 and Oh My God was indefinitely shelved, a result of creative differences with Dre.
On April 27, 2004, Rakim was arrested regarding an outstanding paternity matter from 2001. The rapper said he was unaware of the warrant, but he agreed to pay $2,000 in child support for his 14 year old son. He was released the next day but due to the warrant, that night's performance opening for Ghostface of the Wu-Tang Clan at the Roseland Ballroom was canceled.
Rakim claimed to be working on a new album in 2004 but as of 2006, it has not been released. Recent rumors have claimed that he is planning to sign to Talib Kweli's label, fueled by their collaboration on the track "Getting Up Anthem Part 1".