A classic hip-hop album from Eric B. & Rakim experiences new life in the form of jazz, bringing smiles to music lovers across the globe. ‘Follow the Leader Reimagined as Jazz’ has registered its name on the top of the Billboard Jazz Album charts nearly 31 years after the original recording was released. No small feat, this achievement further cements the vast influence of hip-hop over the past 50 years.
As an ode to Eric B. & Rakim’s 1988 critically acclaimed album ‘Follow the Leader,’ producer Jonathan Hay, Benny Reid, Mike Smith, and Atlas Jenkins spent countless hours doing a world of justice to the original record. The greatest challenge with this project was to maintain the innate admiration owing to the iconic status of ‘Follow the Leader.’ The second, equally daunting, was to translate its essence into a jazz style, a medium far removed from the charismatic Rap voice of Rakim scattering rhymes across the instrumental landscape crafted by Eric B.
The transformation involved Reid guiding his tenor saxophone, alto saxophone, bari saxophone, and flute, pacing up and down the forgotten alleyways of Rakim’s lyrical genius. All the while, Hay orchestrated the grand scheme on the producer’s chair, with Smith, Jenkins, and audio artisan Mani Ajami bringing genuine dynamism to the canvas. As a bonus, DJ Whoo Kid partnered with Hay on a fascinating remix to ‘Follow the Leader.’
Eric B. & Rakim conveyed their blessings and backed the album, expressing their contentment to see a body of work they were so intimately connected to become a source of inspiration for another work of art. Eric B. mentioned to Forbes’ Javier Hasse, “Hearing the music faithfully arranged and re-recorded with the stellar group of musicians Jonathan Hay, and Benny Reid brought together not only stays true to our original work but elevates and highlights the core concepts we drew from 30 years ago. It really completes a full circle… We imitated jazz, and now jazz is imitating us.”
Rakim, who has been referred to as the God emcee for his gifts on the microphone, showed his satisfaction with the trajectory of the project. He stated that he had always been heavily influenced by the jazz genre, and witnessing this transition has evidently brought him great joy.
The jazz reimagining was greeted positively by fans and critics alike, touching the pinnacle on the Billboard charts, further solidifying it as a tour-de-force within the annals of music.
Recognizing the genius of its creators, Eric B. & Rakim admitted, “Couldn’t have done a better job myself and [we] created the original album. The simple way to put it is that life imitates art, and art imitates life, and it’s all coming around full circle.”
In the prosperity of this reworked album, critical acclaim met commercial success. An instrumental reworking of an age-old classic, once the preserve of a devoted hip-hop following, was now being replayed as jazz. It was a testament to the binding cord of music, and its ability to transcend genres and generations.
These words from both Eric B. and Rakim highlight the brilliant endeavor undertaken by Jonathan Hay, Benny Reid, Mike Smith, and Atlas Jenkins. An intersection of two worlds, this album marries the improvisational fervor of jazz with the rhythmic ingenuity of hip-hop. An immense achievement that’s all come full circle, paying the ultimate tribute to the past five decades of hip-hop. The beautiful serendipity is in how Hay and Jenkins met Eric. B & Rakim in Lexington, Kentucky, as that meet went on to become music history, a testament to the lasting effect one moment can have on the course of music history.
