More and more artists from the classic era of hi-hop are making their way into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with each passing year, and deservedly so. Those ranks could be swelled even further this year if Eric B. & Rakim, architects of killer singles such as “Follow the Leader,” get the call.
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The nomination comes a dozen years after their first one back in 2012. If they do get in and have the chance to perform, there’s a good chance “Follow the Leader” will be on the setlist. Here’s a look back at the creation of and meaning behind that iconic track.
Leader Legend
Eric B. & Rakim formed in Long Island, New York, not too long before they emerged as the hottest rap duo in the game with their debut single “Eric B. is President” in 1986. Rakim was just a teenager at the time, but he already possessed both a distinct, focused flow and a knack for bringing in left-field metaphors and clever phrases that drove his points home. Eric B. acted as the DJ, creating minimalist beats that made sure to leave plenty of space for his partner to roll.
That was very much the formula for the duo’s first album Paid in Full, which was released in 1987. It was recorded in a hurry, which is partly why Eric B. kept the beats relatively sparse and there aren’t a ton of lyrics on the album—a few of the tracks are just extended scratching cuts. But singles like “Paid in Full” and “I Ain’t No Joke” turned the rap community on its collective ear with their intensity and self-assured nature.
For the next record, Follow the Leader (2018), Eric B. raised his game by peppering his beats with inventive samples and surprising twists that kept things from getting stale. (The music was so accomplished, in fact, that a bunch of top jazz artists recorded an album full of covers of the record in 2019.) That, in turn, prompted Rakim to raise his game even further.
In an interview with Billboard in 2019, Eric B. talked about how the pair attempted to shatter preconceived notions of what the hip-hop genre could be: “Rakim broke new ground. But we’d talk about his next moves first and he’d say, ‘Eric, how do you think this sounds?’ And I just pushed him and told him, ‘Man, do what you wanna do.’ His rhyme skills and styles were above the rest of ’em. You gotta remember, everybody else was rhymin’ talking about hip to the hop and all these ABC rhymes. That’s not in any way trying to downplay them, because they showed us the way to make money and be in rap music, all the guys that we followed. But we also set our own footsteps and put our own footprint on the music.”
Evidence of that daring is all over “Follow the Leader.” With its pulsating bassline and dramatic stabs of horns and strings, it sounds like a cool soundtrack for some kind of spy movie that’s both noir and futuristic all at once. Add Rakim’s relentless lyrical attack, and you’ve got one of the premier tap songs of that or any era.
What is the Meaning of “Follow the Leader”?
The title “Follow the Leader” serves a dual purpose. On the one hand, Rakim is trying to show the way to his listeners, urging them to go back and find the truths out about their history and culture on their own, rather than blindly believing the same old tales. I guess nobody told you a little knowledge is dangerous / It can’t be mixed, diluted, it can’t be changed or switched, he furiously intones.
On top of that, Rakim was sending a message to other rappers about his standing in the game. In the opening section, he paints an inventive sci-fi scenario where lesser MCs are spun into a kind of uncontrollable tailspin in a hopeless attempt to keep up with him. So keep staring, soon you suddenly see a star / You better follow it ’cause it’s the R, he advises his rivals.
Throughout the track, he delivers a barrage of one-liners that makes his line about his lyrics become the daily word prophetic. Among the most memorable: My third eye make me shine like jewelry and The stage is a cage, the mike is a third rail. And then there’s this breathless diss of an unnamed competitor: Stop buggin’, a brother said dig him, I never dug him / He couldn’t follow the leader long enough, so I drug him.
“Follow the Leader” is the track where Eric B.’s inventive musical ideas coalesced in perfect synch with Rakim’s unreal lyrical abilities. Like the title suggests, many artists in the genre have playing catch-up to this massive single ever since.
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Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
