47°
William Michael Griffin Jr., who has owned a home in Stamford, turns 47 on Wednesday. The Rapper was born January 28, 1968, in Wyandanch, Long Island.
William Michael Griffin Jr. is better known by his stage name Rakim. Rakim began his career as the emcee of the rap duo Eric B. & Rakim and was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
One half of golden age hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential and most skilled MCs of all time.
Eric B. & Rakim's classic album Paid in Full was named the greatest hip hop album of all time by MTV in 2006, while Rakim himself was ranked #4 on MTV's list of the Greatest MCs of All Time.
A legal wrangling in 1992 eventually led to the dissolution of Eric B. & Rakim and from 1995 through 1996, Rakim recorded several demos/songs by himself and eventually returned to recording in 1997 with The 18th Letter, which included collaborations with DJ Premier and Pete Rock.
In 2011, Rakim performed Paid in Full in its entirety at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City, in honor of the album's 25th anniversary and released a collaborative single with DMX entitled "Don't Call Me On September 24, 2013
The editors of About.com ranked him #1 on their list of the 'Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987–2007) and in 2012, The Source ranked him #1 on their list of the 'Top 50 Lyricists of All Time'.
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