Eric B. & Rakim, ‘Paid in Full’ – Legendary Rap Albums of the 1980s

Hot on the heels of Run-DMC in the mid-to-late '80s, Eric B. and Rakim were whom many saw as the future of New York rap, if not the future of rap itself.

'Paid in Full,' the duo's 1987 debut, is gutsy, sharp, a collaboration of B's supreme scratch work and Rakim's cool-but-complex lyricism. 'My Melody,' Paid in Full' and 'I Ain't No Joke' are just a few of the standouts.

Watch Eric B. & Rakim's' I Ain't No Joke' Video