Paid in Full is the debut studio album by 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 No. 58 on the Billboard 200 chart, No. 8 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".
Paid in Full is credited as a benchmark album of golden age hip-hop. Rakim's rapping, which pioneered the use of internal rhymes in hip-hop, set a higher standard of lyricism in the genre and served as a template for future rappers. The album's heavy sampling by Eric B. became influential in hip-hop production. The record has sold over a million copies and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified it platinum in 1995. In 2020, the album was ranked number 61 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Background Eric B. and Rakim met in 1985 after Eric B. looked for a rapper to complement his turntable work at the New York City radio station WBLS. After Rakim responded to Eric B.'s search for "New York's top MC",Ogg, Alex (2002). The Men Behind Def Jam: The Radical Rise of Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin. p. 105. Omnibus Press. Eric B.'s friend and roommate Marley Marl allowed him to use his home studio. The first track they recorded, "Eric B. Is President", was released as a single on the independent Zakia Records in 1986. After Def Jam Recordings founder Russell Simmons heard the single, the duo were signed to Island Records and began recording the album in Manhattan's Power Play Studios in early 1987. Rakim wrote his songs in approximately one hour while listening to the beat. He then recorded his vocals in the booth by reading his lyrics from a paper. In 2006, Rakim revealed, "When I hear my first album today I hear myself reading my rhymes but I'm my worst critic."JButters (August 1, 2006). "Halftimeonline.net ". HalftimeOnline.net. Accessed September 25, 2008. The duo completed the album in one week. They have said that they worked in 48-hour shifts and recorded in single takes to complete the album within budget.MacInnes, Paul (June 13, 2011). Eric B and Rakim record Paid in Full in a week . The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved August 9, 2011. In a 2008 interview with AllHipHop, Eric B. stated, "[T]o sit here and say we put together this calculated album to be a great album would be a lie. We were just doing records that felt good."Berrios, Martin A. (February 29, 2008). "Class Of '88: Paid In Full ". AllHipHop. Accessed September 6, 2008.
The album's success led to a contract with Uni Records and MCA Records, where they released their second album, Follow the Leader (1988).Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2002). All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul. p. 374. Backbeat Books. . Eric B. and Rakim are credited as officially producing Paid in Full. Although Marley Marl claimed to have produced two tracks ("My Melody" and "Eric B. Is President"), Eric B. has argued that Marley Marl was only an engineer. In 2003, Eric B. alleged the duo had not been paid in full for their work, and filed a lawsuit against the Island Def Jam Music Group, Lyor Cohen, and Russell Simmons.Strong, Nolan (October 17, 2003). "Eric B. Wants To Be Paid In Full, Suing Island Def Jam ". AllHipHop. Accessed July 15, 2008.
The album cover featured a photo of Eric B. and Rakim wearing custom-made Gucci "knock-ups" by Harlem tailor Dapper Dan.
Music Rakim's rhyming deviated from the simple rhyme patterns of early 1980s hip-hop. His free-rhythm style ignored bar lines and had earned comparisons to Thelonious Monk. The New York Times Ben Ratliff wrote that Rakim's "unblustery rapping developed the form beyond the flat-footed rhythms of schoolyard rhymes".Ratliff, Ben. Review: Paid in Full . The New York Times. Retrieved on October 19, 2009. While many rappers developed their technique through improvisation, Rakim was one of the first to demonstrate advantages of a writerly style, as with for instance his pioneering use of internal rhyme.Huey, Steve. "[ allmusic Rakim > Biography]". Allmusic. Accessed September 5, 2008. Unlike previous rappers such as LL Cool J and Run-DMC who delivered their vocals with high energy, Rakim employed a relaxed, stoic delivery.Light, Alan (November 13, 2006). "The All-TIME 100 Albums". Time magazine. Accessed September 29, 2008. According to MTV, "We'd been used to MCs like Run and DMC, Chuck D and KRS-One leaping on the mic shouting with energy and irreverence, but Rakim took a methodical approach to his microphone fiending. He had a slow flow, and every line was blunt, mesmeric.""MTV.com: The Greatest Hip-Hop Albums Of All Time ". MTV (2005). Accessed July 15, 2008. Rakim's relaxed delivery resulted from his jazz influences; he had played the saxophone and was a John Coltrane fan.Taylor, Steve (2004). The A to X of Alternative Music. p. 20. Continuum International Publishing Group. Freedom duLac, Josh. (October 2, 2006). "A Stop-and-Go Hip-Hop Show ". The Washington Post. Accessed September 5, 2008.Jbutters (July 6, 2006). "Rakim ". HalftimeOnline.net. Accessed September 5, 2008."Q & A w/ Rakim: Lyrics of Fury ". ThaFormula.com (2005). Accessed October 29, 2008. His subject matter often covered his own rapping skills and lyrical superiority over other rappers.Darby, Derrick; Shelby, Tommie; West, Cornel (2005). Hip Hop and Philosophy: Rhyme 2 Reason. p. 42. Open Court Publishing. .
AllMusic editor Steve Huey characterized Rakim for his "complex internal rhymes, literate imagery, velvet-smooth flow, and unpredictable, off-the-beat rhythms." Pitchfork writer Jess Harvell described his rapping as "authoritative, burnished, [and] possessing an unflappable sense of rhythm". Paid in Full, which contains gritty, heavy, and dark beats,Rose, Tricia (1994). Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America. p. 93. Wesleyan University Press. . marked the beginning of heavy sampling in hip-hop records. Of the album's ten tracks, three are instrumentals.Wang, Oliver (2003). Classic Material: The Hip-Hop Album Guide, p. 69. Entertainment, Culture, Writing Press. As a disc jockey, Eric B. had reinstated the art of live turntable mixing. His soul-filled sampling became influential in future hip-hop production. Music critic Robert Christgau noted that Eric B. had incorporated "touches of horn or whistle deep in the mix" of his sampled percussion and scratches.
Singles "Eric B. Is President" was released as the first single with "My Melody" as the B-side. It peaked at number 48 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and number forty on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales."[ allmusic Paid in Full > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles]". Allmusic. Accessed August 4, 2008. The track sparked debate on the legality of unauthorized sampling when James Brown sued to prevent the duo's use of his music.Simon & Schuster (2001). "Eric B and Rakim". The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Accessed August 4, 2008. PopMatters Mark Anthony Neal called it "the most danceable hip-hop recording" of 1986.Neal, Mark Anthony (November 19, 2003). "...And Bless the Mic for the Gods: Rakim Allah ". PopMatters. Accessed August 4, 2008. According to Touré of The New York Times, "It is Rakim's verbal dexterity as well as his calm, deep voice and dark tone that has made this song a rap classic: 'I came in the door/ I said it before/ I'll never let the mic magnetize me no more/ But it's bitin' me/ Fightin' me/ Invitin' me to rhyme/ I can't hold it back/ I'm looking for the line/ Takin' off my coat/ Clearin' my throat/ The rhyme will be kickin' it/ Til I hit my last note.'"Touré (August 14, 1994). "Pop View; Only One Star in the Two Schools of Rap ". The New York Times. Accessed August 6, 2008. Remixes of both “Eric B. Is President” and “My Melody” were included on the album as opposed to their original versions.
The second single, "I Know You Got Soul", peaked at number 39 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, number 34 on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales, and number 64 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. The track's production contains "digitized cymbal crashes, breathing sounds, and a bumping bass line."Perry, Imani (2004). Prophets of the Hood: Politics and Poetics in Hip Hop. p. 52. Duke University Press. The song popularized James Brown samples in hip-hop songs."[ allmusic Paid in Full > Overview]". Allmusic. Accessed August 6, 2008. The British band M|A|R|R|S sampled the line, "Pump up the volume", on their number one UK single, "Pump Up the Volume".Wojcik, Pamela Robertson; Knight, Arthur (2001). Soundtrack Available. p. 254. Duke University Press. . Rolling Stone ranked it at number 386 on "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time"."I Know You Got Soul". Rolling Stone (December 9, 2004). Accessed September 12, 2008.
The third single, "I Ain't No Joke", peaked at number 38 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. Described as one of the album's "monumental singles",Huey, Steve. "[ allmusic Eric B. & Rakim > Biography]". Allmusic. Accessed August 15, 2008. 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". The fourth single, "Move the Crowd", peaked at number three on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart and number 25 on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales. The track's B-side, "Paid in Full", was released as a single in 1987 and later remixed by the production duo Coldcut. The remix used several vocal samples, most prominently "Im Nin'alu" by Israeli singer Ofra Haza. In 2008, the song was ranked at number 24 on VH1's "100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs".Winistorfer, Andrew (September 29, 2008). "VH1's 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs ". Prefix magazine. Accessed October 14, 2008.
Reception and impact
In a contemporary review for The Washington Post, Mark Jenkins highlighted the single "Eric B. Is President" but was unimpressed by the rest of Paid in Full: "Its beats are monotonous, and the attempts to take 'jazz and the quiet storm' and 'convert into hip-hop form' fall flat." Robert Christgau gave the album a "B" grade in his "Consumer Guide" column for The Village Voice. Writing in 2001, he said it has "four groundbreaking masterworks" in "I Ain't No Joke", "I Know You Got Soul", "Paid in Full", and "Eric B. Is President", but was less enthusiastic about the other six songs: "They're pure, innovative, in-your-face—no doubt. But they're also turntablism with spoken decoration, of small use to anyone who hasn't internalized the 'real' hip hop aesthetic." In the newspaper's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll, it was named the 27th best album of 1987.