Released in May of 1986, “Raising Hell” allowed Run-DMC to establish themselves as the Kings of Rock. The 40 minute, 12 track album consists of timeless songs such as “It’s Tricky”, “My Adidas”, and “Walk This Way (featuring Steven Tyler and Joe Perry themselves). For many, this ultimate crossover of Hip-Hop and Rock was indescribable. However, Run-DMC always made it possible for fans to get jiggy and jam to both genres.
Running as the album’s fourth and last released track, “It’s Tricky” gets a hold of a wicked guitar riff from The Knack’s “My Sharona” and Toni Basil’s “Mickey” to create a sensational rhythm. As stated in my previous post, most Millennials and Gen-Zers primarily know this song from the 2004 film “White Chicks” or from a newfound Tik Tok trend. Though I am a fan of both “White Chicks” and Tik Tok trends, I just hope those who recite “It’s Tricky” keep in mind the lyrical geniuses behind the song.
Up next on “Raising Hell”, Run-DMC released “My Adidas”, a complete love song made in tribute to the crew’s favorite sneakers/footwear. This track was shockingly created after the entire album was released due to Adidas manufacturers offering an endorsement deal with Run-DMC—making this the first non-athlete signing and forever marking the epic influence that Hip-Hop has on global fashion.
Last, “Walk This Way” was the album’s wall-busting, Billboard-making single. A phenomenal hit for Aerosmith in 1975, “Walk This Way” was drastically adopted by the Hip-Hop industry for its head-bopping rhythm. As producer/director of this album, Rick Rubin grew up listening to Aerosmith, he found it necessary to have Run-DMC record and update the song itself. It was also Rubin’s idea to invite Steven Tyler (Aerosmith’s lead singer) and Joe Perry (Aerosmith’s lead guitarist) to collab on this new and improved piece. As a board-smash hit, “Walk This Way” easily became number eight on the Black Singles Chart and number four on the Hot 100, making it the first Rap/Rock song to crack into the Billboard’s Top Five! Click below to listen to some of the tracks:
Being the first rap album to receive triple-platinum status, “Raising Hell” remains a critical icon to the entire music industry, not just rap and rock alone. It is an album that proves “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
As a final note, I would like to sign off on my most recent posts by rating albums based on my preference (everyone is different 🙂 ). As the first rated album, I am happy to give “Raising Hell” a well-deserved 10/10.