“Run-D.M.C.” by Run-D.M.C.

One of music history’s most pivotal moments.

Hello! 😊👋

Welcome to a new edition of the Best Music of All Time newsletter!

Today’s music pick celebrates the 40th anniversary of one of music history’s most pivotal moments.

Genre: Hip-Hop, Experimental

Label: Arista

Release Date: March 27, 1984

Vibe: 😵‍💫

With all due respect to groups like the Beatles and the Velvet Underground, there’s an argument to be made that Run-D.M.C.’s eponymous debut is the most important album of the past 75 years.

Like seminal rock bands decades earlier, the LP and the trio behind it legitimized an entire music genre and, by association, a wing of popular culture. Before dropping the record’s lead single, “It’s Like That,” hip-hop was surviving the fumes of disco and funk’s popularity. Hits from Kurtis Blow and the Sugarhill Gang were critical first steps but bear no resemblance to the harsh, gritty sound most music associates with hip-hop today. That all changed with Run-D.M.C., which pared down the instrumentals to emphasize hard-hitting drum machines and Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell’s impeccable scratching technique. Even at this early stage, the group had more in common with the era’s hard rock and metal outfits, prioritizing lean, mean arrangements and antagonistic, socially conscious lyrics. The rest, as they say, is history.

Four decades later, the track list reads like a list of critical hip-hop achievements. The aforementioned lead single features lyricism by Joseph “Run” Simmons, setting a new standard for streetwise storytelling. “Unemployment at a record high/People coming, people going, people born to die” are bars that, while clearly inspired by Grandmaster Flash’s “The Message,” modernize that template to sound, for lack of a better term, much cooler. Ditto for “Sucker M.C.’s (Krush-Groove 1),” an abrasive put-down of, as the title suggests, whack emcees that’s also widely regarded as the first battle rap track. However, the song with the most enduring impact may be “Rock Box,” which helped dissolve the sociopolitical walls rap and rock fans put up around their respective genres. It was a signal towards a future where Run-D.M.C.’s update of Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way” could be a crossover hit on mainstream radio and MTV.

Speaking of, the music video for “Rock Box” introduced the world to what became the trio’s iconic look: Kangol buckets, black Lee jeans, leather jackets, Adidas sneakers, and gold chains. Filmed in New York’s Danceteria punk club, it represented a seismic cultural shift we’re still feeling the effects of today.

👉 Don’t forget to click the album image to stream the album on your favorite platform 👈