Follow The Leader
by Eric B. & Rakim
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Eric B. & Rakim bestography
Follow The Leader is ranked 2nd best out of 5 albums by Eric B. & Rakim on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by Eric B. & Rakim is Paid In Full which is ranked number 960 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 1,809.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Follow The Leader on YouTube
Follow The Leader track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 82 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Follow The Leader rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 1 hour ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | cicadelic | Q magazine Recordings Of The Year 1988 | 2/50 | - |
| 2026 |  covecove | Top 50 Music Albums of 1988 | 24/50 | 3 |
| 2026 | Jakor | Top 60 Music Albums of 1988 | 29/60 | 3 |
| 2026 |  videoheadcleaner | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 30/100 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Wasinski | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 95/100 | 0 |
| 2026 |  Repo | Top 87 Music Albums of 1988 | 20/87 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Norman Bates | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 6/100 | 5 |
| 2026 |  cestuneblague | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 7/100 | 5 |
| 2026 | Exist-en-ciel | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 28/100 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Patman360 | Top 83 Music Albums of 1988 | 8/83 | 5 |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 139 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 580 | |||
Follow The Leader collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 48 members
Follow The Leader ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 136 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 09/19/2026 12:42 | cicadelic | 14,157 | 73/100 |
| ! | 08/23/2026 19:06 | Jonboy | 148 | 79/100 |
| ! | 05/11/2026 16:39 | Jakor | 5,550 | 70/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.6/100, a mean average of 76.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 78.0/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.4.
Follow The Leader favourites
Showing latest 10 members who have added this album as a favourite | Show all 17 members
Follow The Leader forum mentions
pedro1976 06/16/2026 13:47 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)
Mercury 12/14/2021 22:52 in Greatest Metal According to Gowi/LedZep/Repo/Rocky and I!
neilgee 09/20/2020 11:09 in What album are you listening to right now?Follow The Leader comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
Graeme2 TOP 100 COMMENTER 09/30/2017 22:20 | #198951 | TOP COMMENT
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Rapping records in the late 80s came out, it seemed, on a near weekly basis that upped the game on the last. The lead single and title track on this, just like the first single on the debut, upped the game to such an extent that it just left all competition destroyed. Well, competition is none eh. I'd listen back and memorise that single that much I nearly wore the tape out. The first 3 tracks on the album are as good as any album, in any genre, ever. Yep, too many instrumentals but the actual rapping cuts, especially the first three are fucking jaw dropping. Why the fudge do you think he is so revered? I think I bought it the day it came out. What's with that strange fade before the end of lyrics of fury though? Never understood that. Anyways, what the fuck is it with rating it 20 and shit like that? You don't like the rap? Why listen? Weird.
If Paid in Full was the blueprint for golden age hip-hop albums, then Follow the Leader is the tower. Rakim's rapping at this point far outclasses his contemporaries, and Eric-B's beats and record scratching are some of my favourites of the decade save for maybe some of Jam Master Jay's stuff. A must-listen and criminally underrated here.
Graeme2 TOP 100 COMMENTER 12/06/2013 12:22 | #96493 | TOP COMMENT
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Too many instrumentals. Probably rushed it out quickly which is a shame as the first 3 tracks are as good as any on any hip hop album. Still a great listen and the instrumentals are good but this should of been up there with the greatest albums.
Larcx13 11/04/2020 03:02 | #260165 | TOP COMMENT
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I could do without the instrumentals but in a way it makes it better. Every track where Rakim spits, all 8 of them, are pure gold on this one. I found Paid in Full inconsistent compared to this.
This is my favorite Eric B. and Rakim album. Both MC and producer are at their best here.
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