Classic Verse: Rakim and Eric B.‘s “Paid in Full” (Video & Lyrics)

That Rakim is one of the best rappers of all time, and that "Paid in Full" is a foundation hip-hop track, is one of those things that gets said so often and so easily it's ironically become almost meaningless. When's the last time you really listened to "Paid in Full"? I mean really listened?

Lyrics are underneath the video:

"Thinkin of a master plan
Cuz ain’t nuthin but sweat inside my hand
So I dig into my pocket, all my money is spent
So I dig deeper but still comin up with lint
So I start my mission- leave my residence
Thinkin how could I get some dead presidents
I need money, I used to be a stick-up kid
So I think of all the devious things I did
I used to roll up, this is a hold up, ain’t nuthin funny
Stop smiling, be still, don’t nuthin move but the money
But now I learned to earn cos I’m righteous
I feel great! so maybe I might just
Search for a 9 to 5, if I strive
Then maybe I’ll stay alive
So I walk up the street whistlin this
Feelin out of place cos, man, do I miss
A pen and a paper, a stereo, a tape of
Me and Eric b, and a nice big plate of
Fish, which is my favorite dish
But without no money it’s still a wish
Cos I don’t like to dream about gettin paid
So I dig into the books of the rhymes that I made
To now test to see if I got pull
Hit the studio, cos I’m paid in full."

First, to truly appreciate what Rakim did here you have to understand that in 1987 almost no one was rhyming like this. Rappers were no stranger to boasting and bragging, but this kind of autobiographical rhyming was almost unheard of. In fact, in many ways it can be considered the godfather of hustler rap. Second, while it can almost seem boring now, everyone only used end rhymes (rhyming the last word of every line) and while Rakim obviously follows that trend ("dish"/"wish", "pull"/"full"), he begins to find additional rhymes within the lines, and stretches the boundaries of what "rhymes" ("lint/"spent") by subtly shifting his cadence, a technique Eminem would later use to full effect.

And just in case this is starting to sound overly studious, more than 20 years after it first dropped, it also sounds dope as hell. And that's the definition of a classic.