#eric b.

Today in Hip Hop History:

ROUND 1: Paid in Full vs. Invasion of Privacy

Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full (1987) Genre: Golden age hip-hop Singles: Eric B. Is President, I Ain't No Joke, I Know You Got Soul, Move the Crowd, Paid in Full Grammys: N/A RIAA Certification: Platinum Rolling Stone Rank: 61

One of the most fundamental benchmarks of hip-hop, producer Eric B. and rapper Rakim's debut album as a unit would set up many of the genre's most basic staples. Credited with inspiring icons like the Wu-Tang Clan, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Nas, Eminem, and Busta Rhymes (and many more), Paid in Full would influence not only production style, with Eric B.'s heavy soul sampling becoming a mainstay of the genre, but would elevate the art of rapping as a whole, with Rakim being one of the first rappers to utilize internal rhymes and a more literary, stoic style of rapping.

Cardi B - Invasion of Privacy (2018) Genre: Hip-hop, trap Singles: Bodak Yellow, Bartier Cardi, Be Careful, I Like It, Ring Grammys: Seven nominations (including AOTY and ROTY), Best Rap Album RIAA Certification: 4x Platinum Rolling Stone Rank: N/A

Cardi B's debut album after the historic success of her song "Bodak Yellow" would only add to her meteoric rise; she would break multiple records with the release, including first album in music history to have all of its tracks certified platinum, longest charting album by a female rapper on the Billboard 200, and most-streamed female rap album on Spotify, Apple Music, and Youtube, to name a few. Invasion of Privacy mainly deals with fame, wealth, sex, feminism, and Cardi B's past, and would also make her the first solo female rapper to ever win Best Rap Album at the Grammys.