Slick Rick | |
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 Slick Rick performing in 2009 | |
| Born | Ricky Martin Lloyd Walters (1965-01-14)January 14, 1965 (age 60) Mitcham, London, England |
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| Years active | 1984–present |
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| Children | 2 |
| Musical career | |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip-hop |
| Works | Slick Rick discography |
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Musical artist | |
Ricky Martin Lloyd Walters[1] (born January 14, 1965),[2] better known asSlick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence as part ofDoug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. His songs "The Show" and "La Di Da Di" are considered earlyhip-hop classics. "La Di Da Di" is one of the mostsampled songs in history.[3]
As Slick Rick, Walters became the third artist to sign withDef Jam Recordings in 1986.[4] He debuted withThe Great Adventures of Slick Rick (1988), showcasing his storytelling structure mixed with humor and complex rhymes, including his signature song, "Children's Story." Facing murder charges and incarceration, Walters released two albums:The Ruler's Back (1991) andBehind Bars (1994). After being released from prison in 1997, Walters made a comeback with his fourth studio album,The Art of Storytelling (1999).[5] In 2025, he droppedVictory onMass Appeal Records.
His music has been sampled andinterpolated over 1,000 times,[3][6] in songs by artists includingEminem,Beyoncé,Mariah Carey,Beastie Boys,TLC,Nas,Miley Cyrus,Kanye West,MF DOOM,Czarface,Black Star,The Notorious B.I.G.,Snoop Dogg,MC Ren,Montell Jordan,Tech N9ne,Lloyd, andColor Me Badd. Walters is one of the most-sampled hip-hop artists of all time, and many songs based on Slick Rick samples have become hit singles.[7] Walters was one of the first hip-hop artists to be covered whenSnoop Dogg rapped Rick's lyrics from his track "La Di Da Di" almost fully on the track "Lodi Dodi," on his debut album,Doggystyle, in 1993. At the time, it was uncommon for rappers to record covers of each other's material.[8]
AVH1Hip Hop Honors honoree,About.com ranked Slick RickNo. 12 on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time,[9] whileThe Source ranked him No. 15 on their list of the Top 50 Lyricists of All Time.[10]
Walters was born in the South-West London area ofMitcham toJamaican parents.[11] He was blinded in the right eye by broken glass as an infant, which led to his signature eye patch in his career.[12] In 1976, when Walters was 11, his family immigrated to the United States and settled in theBaychester area ofthe Bronx.[13] AtFiorello H. Laguardia High School of Music & Art, he majored in visual art and metDana Dane. The pair became close friends and formed the Kangol Crew,[14] performing in school contests, parks, and small local clubs.
Walters metDoug E. Fresh at a 1984 talent showcase.[15] Doug was impressed by his talent and made him a member of his Get Fresh crew. Doug's beatbox and Walters' fresh flow turned "The Show"/"La Di Da Di" into international anthems that showcased hip-hop in its early years. Walters became the launching pad for "hip-hop's greatest storyteller."[16]
Walters' career began in 1985; he first gained success in the rap industry after joiningDoug E. Fresh's Get Fresh Crew, using the stage name MC Ricky D. He was featured on the single "The Show" and its even more popularB-side, "La Di Da Di", which featured Walters' rapping over Doug E. Fresh'sbeatbox. Both tracks gained some mainstream attention, they appeared onTop of the Pops[17] andSoul Train[18] with the Get Fresh Crew. Reflecting on the single inRolling Stone magazine, Roots drummer andTonight Show bandleader Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson said, "Point blank: Slick Rick's voice was the most beautiful thing to happen to hip-hop culture [...] Rick is full of punchlines, wit, melody, cool cadence, confidence and style. He is the blueprint."[19]
In 1986, Walters joined Russell Simmons's Rush Artist Management and became the third artist signed toDef Jam Records,[4] the leading rap/hip-hop label at the time.[20] Collaborating with his friend, DJ Vance Wright, Walters produced his solo debut,The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, which came out in 1988 on Def Jam. The album was very successful, reaching the No. 1 spot onBillboard's R&B/Hip-Hop chart. It also featured four charting singles: "Children's Story", "Mona Lisa", "Hey Young World", and "Teenage Love". The release is known for its storytelling and vocal characterizations. "With the combination of Rick's Dick Van Dyke-on-dope accent and his unique narrative style, the record was an instant classic," wrote critic Matt Weiner. "Each of Rick's songs was an amusing, enthralling story that lasted from the first groove to the last."[21]
In 1989, Walters' mother, Veronica, hired his first cousin, Mark Plummer, as his bodyguard. By 1990, Plummer had become a liability, trying to extort money from the artist numerous times.[22] Plummer was fired and, unsatisfied with his severance package, tried to rob Walters on several occasions and threatened to kill the rapper and his mother.[23] When Walters found bullet holes in his front door, he bought guns for protection. On July 3, 1990, Walters spotted Plummer in his neighborhood and fired at least four shots. One bullet hit Plummer; another caught a passerby in the foot. Neither suffered life-threatening injuries.[22]
He eventually pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted murder and other charges, including assault, use of a firearm, and criminal possession of a weapon.[24] The rapper called it an act of self-defense.[25] He spent five years in prison, two for the then-second-degree attempted-murder charges he received for the shooting, and three for disputes with theImmigration and Naturalization Services over his residency in the U.S. He was released from prison in 1997.[5] In the documentary filmThe Show,Russell Simmons interviewed Walters while he was imprisoned onRikers Island.[26]
After being bailed out by Simmons, Walters recorded his second album,The Ruler's Back, released in 1991. Despite peaking at No. 29 on theBillboard Hot 100,[27] the album received mixed reviews and was not as commercially successful as his debut.[citation needed]
Walters' third studio album (the fourth for Def Jam),Behind Bars, was released in 1994 while he was still incarcerated.[28] It was met with lukewarm sales and reviews.Behind Bars peaked at No. 11 on theBillboardTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and No. 51 on theBillboard 200.[29]
Walters remained with Def Jam and released a fourth album,The Art of Storytelling, on May 25, 1999. The comeback album paired him with prolific MCs includingNas,OutKast,Raekwon, andSnoop Dogg. TheLos Angeles Times announced it as the "triumphant return of rap's premier yarn-spinner", calling the song "2 Way Street" "a much-needed alternative to rap's misogynistic slant".[30] It charted higher than any of his prior releases: No. 8 on theBillboard 200; and No. 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
In June 2002, Walters was arrested by theImmigration and Naturalization Service (INS) as he re-entered the United States throughFlorida after performing on a Caribbean cruise ship. He was promptly told that he was being deported under a law allowing deportation of foreigners convicted of felonies. Walters was refused bail for 17 months and was released on November 7, 2003.[31][32] In October 2006, theDepartment of Homeland Security began a new attempt to deport Walters back to theUnited Kingdom,[33] moving the case from theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit based in New York to the more conservativeEleventh Circuit. The court is based inAtlanta, Georgia, but the trial was expected to proceed in Florida, where immigration agents originally arrested Walters.
On May 23, 2008, New York GovernorDavid Paterson granted Walters a full and unconditional pardon on the attempted murder charges. The governor was pleased with his behavior since the attempted murders. Slick Rick volunteered his time to mentor kids about violence.[5][34] In 2016, Walters received the Mixx Cares Humanitarian Award.[35]
On April 15, 2016, Walters was granted U.S. citizenship, remarking, "I am so proud of this moment—and so honored to finally become an American citizen."[36][37] He retained his UK citizenship.[36][37]
On November 2, 2018, Walters released the single "Snakes of the World Today". In 2020, Walters featured onWestside Gunn's albumWho Made the Sunshine. In September 2023, it was announced that Walters was finishing up work on a new solo album, his first sinceThe Art of Storytelling.[38] It was confirmed in May 2025 that the album, titledVictory, released throughIdris Elba's 7Wallace record label andMass Appeal Records. It was accompanied by a film to premiere atTribeca Film Festival on June 7.[39]
On June 13, 2025,Victory, his first album in 26 years, was released on 7Wallace Music andMass Appeal Records, featuring appearances fromGiggs andNas.[40]
Walters married Mandy Aragones in April 1997, four years after the couple met at a Manhattan nightclub. The performer has two children from a previous relationship. The couple have donated about a dozen items from Walters' collection to theSmithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.[13]
Walters and theSoul Rebels Brass Band collaborated on June 21, 2012, in Washington, D.C. at the historicHoward Theatre, which re-opened in April 2012.[41]
On October 6, 2008, Walters was honored on theVH1 Hip Hop Honors show. In 2018, he was added to theBronx Walk of Fame.[citation needed]
Walters' style has been commended by music critics. Music journalistPeter Shapiro wrote, " 'Children's Story' was important because of its narrative structure and Walter's understanding of how crucial little sonic details—such as his use of a female voice and his yawning rap—were to hip hop style."[42]
As Slick Rick, he is largely known for his story raps, such as "Children's Story" and "La Di Da Di". Shapiro wrote that Walters "largely introduced the art of narrative into hip hop... none of the spinners of picaresque rhymes who followed did it with the same grace or humor."[43]AllMusic stated that he has the "reputation as hip hop's greatest storyteller."[citation needed] In the bookCheck the Technique, Walters is quoted as saying: "I was never the type to say freestyle raps, I usually tell a story, and to do that well I've always had to work things out beforehand."[44]Kool Moe Dee commented that "Slick Rick raised the lost art of hip hop storytelling to a level never seen again."[45]Devin the Dude noted that Slick Rick's "Indian Girl" is a good example of the type of humor that existed in hip hop's golden era,[46] and Peter Shapiro said that "he was funnier thanRudy Ray Moore orRedd Foxx."[42]
Walters retains some English pronunciations, which led Shapiro to say that Walters raps in the "Queen's English".[42]O.C. states: "The Great Adventures of Slick Rick is one of the greatest albums ever... the stuff he was just saying on there, it was so clear.. the [clear] syllable dude was Slick Rick for me".[47] He is also renowned for his unique "smooth, British-tinged flow"[44] which contains distinct structures. In the bookHow to Rap, it is noted that on the song "I Own America", he "puts a rest on almost every other 1-beat so that each set of two lines begins with a rest."[48] Kool Moe Dee stated that, "Rick accomplished being totally original at a time when most MCs were using very similar cadences."[49] He has what is described as "singsong cadences";[citation needed] Andy Cat ofUgly Duckling mentions that Slick Rick uses a melodic delivery on the track "Hey Young World".[50] Walters is also known to usepunch ins extensively, especially in his story rhymes as different characters;[51]Kool Moe Dee says Walters used "multi-voices to portray multiple characters."[45]
Walters makes an appearance as a playable character in the video gamesDef Jam: Fight for NY andDef Jam Fight for NY: The Takeover.[citation needed]
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