"I Ain't No Joke" | ||||
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Single by Eric B. & Rakim | ||||
from the album Paid in Full | ||||
B-side | "Eric B. Is on the Cut" | |||
Released | 1987 | |||
Recorded | 1987 | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 3:54 | |||
Label | 4th & B'way | |||
Songwriter(s) | Eric Barrier, Rakim Allah | |||
Producer(s) | Eric B. & Rakim | |||
Eric B. & Rakim singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
Music video | ||||
"I Ain't No Joke" on YouTube |
"I Ain't No Joke" is a song by rap duo Eric B. &Rakim,released as the second single from their debut studio album Paid in Full . It peaked at number thirty-eight on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles &Tracks. Described as one of the album's "monumental singles", [1] Michael Di Bella wrote in the All Music Guide to Rock that "Rakim grabs the listener by the throat and illustrates his mastery of the rhyming craft". A music video was made for it,featuring dancing from Flavor Flav of the group Public Enemy. [2] The song was selected by Jay-Z for the NBA 2K13 soundtrack. It was also featured in the video game Saints Row.
Eric B and Rakim met in 1985,after Rakim responded to Eric B's search for "New York's top MC". [3] In 1986 they released their debut single,"Eric B. Is President",on an independent label Zakia Records. [4] Def Jam Recordings co-founder Russell Simmons found out about the duo and they were signed to Island Records. In early 1987 the duo started working on Paid in Full . [3]
According to Rakim,the duo spent a week working on Paid in Full, [5] with "I Ain't No Joke" taking most of it,four days. In an interview with Spin magazine Rakim said that while writing the song he deliberately avoided using obscene language: [6]
If you listen to the rhymes in "I Ain't No Joke", you know I was really thinkin' hard about that shit. Plus, what I was doin' was, like, I was makin' it real hard, but no curses or sum'n they wouldn't want to play all day, 'cause they got it in power rotation. So I was thinkin' of the hardest shit I could think of, but still sayin' sum'n that they could play all day. 'Cause that's the whole idea of the rhymes I write. I can get real crazy with rhymes, but they ain't gonna play it all day, and that's what's gonna get you paid: people constantly hearin' it on radio. I could make real stoopid [ sic ] shit that they'll only play on the weekend, then they'll have to bleep half the record out! But, you know, I ain't livin' like that. I'm gettin' paid, I wanna get paid.
"I Ain't No Joke" was produced by the duo using the samples from "Pass the Peas" by The J.B.'s [7] and "Theme from the Planets" by Dexter Wansel. [8] Like most of the album, "I Ain't No Joke" was recorded at Power Play Studios in Long Island City, Queens, New York City. [9]
Music video for "I Ain't No Joke" was directed by Vivien Goldman, a British journalist, writer, and musician, who also had experience in guerrilla filmmaking. The budget available to them was low, so she asked Eric B. and Rakim where they like to hang out, and chose it as the locations for the music video. The video features Rakim rapping in three different locations: in front of a graffiti mural, on a playground with his friends, and outside of an electronics shop in Harlem, in front of a crowd, with Eric B. playing on turntables. [10] The shots of these locations change constantly throughout the video. Both Eric B. and Rakim wear golden age era outfits, consisting of tracksuits and heavy gold chains and jewelry, and described by Complex magazine as "flamboyant" and "both classic and priceless". [11] The video also features a cameo appearance from Flavor Flav of the group Public Enemy, and a cameo of "Chill Will", a DJ from the trio Doug E. Fresh and The Get Fresh Crew, dancing on the playground and in front of the crowd near the store. [10]
Chart (1987) | Peak position |
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U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs [12] | 38 |
Public Enemy is an American hip hop group formed by Chuck D and Flavor Flav in Long Island, New York, in 1985. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as American racism and the American media. Their debut album, Yo! Bum Rush the Show, was released in 1987 to critical acclaim, and their second album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988), was the first hip hop album to top The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll. Their next three albums, Fear of a Black Planet (1990), Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black (1991) and Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age (1994), were also well received. The group has since released twelve more studio albums, including the soundtrack to the 1998 sports-drama film He Got Game and a collaborative album with Paris, Rebirth of a Nation (2006).
Trevor George Smith Jr., known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes. He has received 12 Grammy Award nominations for his work, making him one of the most-nominated artists without winning.
Eric B. & Rakim are an American hip hop duo formed on Long Island, New York, in 1986, composed of DJ Eric B. and MC Rakim. AllMusic wrote that "during rap's so-called golden age in the late '80s, Eric B. & Rakim were almost universally recognized as the premier DJ/MC team in all of hip-hop." Tom Terrell of NPR called them "the most influential DJ/MC combo in contemporary pop music period." The editors of About.com ranked them as No. 5 on their list of the 10 Greatest Hip-Hop Duos of All-Time, and Rolling Stone ranked them No. 5 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time.
William Michael Griffin Jr., better known by his stage name Rakim Allah or simply Rakim, is an American rapper and record producer. One half of golden age hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential and skilled MCs of all time.
Follow the Leader is the second studio album by American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim. Following their debut album Paid in Full (1987), Eric B. & Rakim left 4th & B'way Records and signed with Uni Records, a subsidiary label of major label MCA Records. They recorded Follow the Leader at Power Play Studios in New York City. The duo produced, composed, and arranged the album with additional contributions from Rakim's brother Stevie Blass Griffin, who contributed with various instruments. Eric B. & Rakim worked with audio engineers Carlton Batts and Patrick Adams on the album. In a similar manner to their first album, a "ghost producer" was brought in for two songs. In a 2007 interview with Unkut.com, The 45 King said he produced both "Microphone Fiend" and "The R". "Microphone Fiend" was originally made for Fab 5 Freddy, until 45 King gave it over to Eric B., the group's "DJ".
Louis Eric Barrier is an American rapper, producer and DJ for the golden age hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim.
Paid in Full is the debut album of American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, released on July 7, 1987, by Island-subsidiary label 4th & B'way Records. The duo recorded the album at hip hop producer Marley Marl's home studio and Power Play Studios in New York City, following Rakim's response to Eric B.'s search for a rapper to complement his disc jockey work in 1985. The album peaked at number fifty-eight on the Billboard 200 chart, number eight on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and produced five singles: "Eric B. Is President", "I Ain't No Joke", "I Know You Got Soul", "Move the Crowd", and "Paid in Full".
Don't Sweat the Technique is the fourth and final studio album by American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, released on June 23, 1992, by MCA Records. It was recorded and produced by Eric B. & Rakim at The Hit Factory in New York City. The album builds on the sounds of 1990's Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em, with Rakim sounding more aggressive on Eric B.'s jazzy, soulful production.
Golden age hip hop is a name given to mainstream hip hop music created from the mid-1980s to early-mid 1990s, particularly by artists and musicians originating from the New York metropolitan area. An outgrowth of the new school hip hop movement, it is characterized by its diversity, quality, innovation and influence on hip hop after the genre's emergence and establishment in the old-school era, and is associated with the development and eventual mainstream success of hip hop. There were various types of subject matter, while the music was experimental and the sampling from old records was eclectic.
"I Know You Got Soul" is a song recorded by Eric B. & Rakim in 1987. A commercial and artistic success, it was ranked #23 by Rolling Stone on their list of Top 50 hip-hop songs, and #396 on their list of 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
William Jonathan Drayton Jr., known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American rapper and hype man. Known for his yells of "Yeah, boyeeeeee!" when performing, he rose to prominence as a founding member of the rap group Public Enemy alongside Chuck D; with them he has earned six Grammy Award nominations, and has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
"Cop That Shit", also known in its censored form as "Cop That Disc", is the lead single taken from hip-hop duo Timbaland & Magoo's third studio album, Under Construction, Part II. The track features vocals from Missy Elliott. The single was released on September 29, 2003 in Europe, but was not released in the United Kingdom until March 8, 2004. The hip hop track itself refers to people downloading and burning music instead of buying it. All of the tracks' verses are resung verses from classic rap songs, however some of the lyrics are changed. Timbaland's verse is a rewrite of "I Know You Got Soul" by Eric B. & Rakim, Missy's verse is a rewrite of Paper Thin by MC Lyte, and Magoo's verse is a rewrite of "I Got It Made" by Special Ed.
Classic is the second compilation and sixth album overall by hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, one of the titles of the European version of Universal Music Group’s Millennium Masters series. Despite being an Eric B. & Rakim album, the back cover featured Eric B. with Chuck D. because of an editing error.
"Girls Around the World" is a song by American recording artist Lloyd. The song features rapper Lil Wayne and was written by Lloyd and Lil Wayne, along with Eric Barrier and William Griffin. The song was produced by his production team, Big Reese and Jasper Cameron, who also produced his breakthrough hit, "You", which also featured Lil Wayne. The song served as the lead single for Lloyd's third studio album Lessons in Love. "Girls Around the World" received positive to mixed reviews from critics, some of whom noted it as generic, and others named it as a top track from the album. It reached No. 64 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 13 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song samples the drum break from "Ashley's Roachclip" by the Soul Searchers, as well as interpolating Rakim's verse in "Paid in Full" by hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim.
"Rebel Without a Pause" is a song by hip hop group Public Enemy and the first single from their 1988 album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. The title is a reference to the 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause.
"Follow the Leader" is a song by American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim. It was written by group members Eric Barrier and Rakim Allah and released as the first single from their second studio album of the same name.
"Know the Ledge" – originally on the soundtrack of the film Juice as "Juice " – is a 1992 single by hip-hop duo Eric B. & Rakim. The film's theme song, also released on the duo's 1992 album Don't Sweat the Technique, it features a distinctive sample from Nat Adderley's 1968 hit "Rise, Sally, Rise".
"Paid in Full" is a 1987 song by American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim. Written and produced by group members Eric Barrier and Rakim Allah, the song was released as the fifth single from the duo's debut studio album, Paid in Full (1987). It became one of the group's most successful singles, owing heavily to a popular remix of the song by English electronic dance music duo Coldcut.
The discography of Eric B. & Rakim, an American hip hop duo, consists of four studio albums, five compilation albums, 15 singles, and nine music videos. Eric B. & Rakim formed and signed a record deal with Zakia Records in 1985. The following year, the duo signed a deal with 4th & B'way Records. Their debut album Paid in Full was released in 1987. In the United States, it peaked at number 58 on the Billboard 200, number 8 on R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It appeared on the Dutch, New Zealand, and UK Albums Chart. Paid in Full produced five singles, four of which appeared on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The fifth single "Paid in Full" (1988) peaked in the top five of the Dutch and New Zealand Singles Chart.