The Blackbyrds - Rock Creek Park - Eric B. & Rakim - The R (Petko Turner Edit) Slow Disco Free DL

Eric B. & Rakim - The R No Rap Edit By Petko Turner American
hip hop duo from Long Island, New York, composed of DJ Eric B.
(Eric Barrier) and MC Rakim (William Michael Griffin, Jr.). Formed
in 1986, the group stopped in 1993. Eric Barrier was born and
raised in the Elmhurst section of Queens, New York. He played
trumpet and drums throughout high school, and later switched to
experimenting with turntables prior to graduation. The newly dubbed
"Eric B." soon began DJing for radio station WBLS in New York City,
including WBLS' promotional events around the city. Barrier wound
up meeting Alvin Toney, a promoter based in Queens. Eric B. had
been looking for rappers and Toney recommended he use Freddie
Foxxx, a Long Island MC. Toney took Eric B. to Foxxx's home, but
Foxxx was not there, so Toney suggested another option: William
Griffin, a.k.a. Rakim. Griffin had begun writing rhymes as a
teenager in Wyandanch and had taken the name "Rakim" as a result of
his conversion to The Nation of Gods and Earths. Eric B. borrowed
records from Rakim's brother, Stevie Blass Griffin (who worked at a
plant pressing bootleg albums) and began cutting them in the
basement for Rakim, who was down there drinking a beer and
relaxing. Said Eric B., "I took Fonda Rae's "Over Like A Fat Rat"
and said 'This is the bass line I'm going to use for this record.'
Rakim spit the beer all over the wall and thought it was the
funniest shit in the world. I told Rakim, just like you laughing
now you going to be laughing all the way to the bank and be a
millionaire one day because of this record." Eric B. & Rakim
decided to record together and came under the tutelage of Marley
Marl. Stories vary over who actually produced their first single,
1986s "Eric B. Is President" (often cited as "Eric B For President"
because of a mistake made when licensing the recording). Built on
the Fonda Rea bass line sample, Eric B. later told AllHipHop, "I
took the records to Marley Marl's house in Queensbridge and paid
Marley Marl to be the engineer. Marley got paid. That's why he's
not a producer; that's why he is not getting publishing. I brought
the music. I just couldn't work the equipment because that's not
what I did..." Download for free on The Artist Union