Walk This Way – Run-D.M.C. | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#4) & R&B (#8); 1986
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
The music of Run-D.M.C. was an irresistible force that changed the sound and visibility of rap and hip-hop forever. Laying down the gauntlet with It’s Like That (#15 R&B; 1983), Joe “Run” Simmons (brother of producer/label owner Russell Simmons), Darryl McDaniels (D.M.C.), and DJ Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell created a new hard-hitting, streetwise breed of hip-hop, and a distinctive leather-
jackets-and-Adidas look to go with it. The title of their second album, King Of Rock, left no doubt as to Run-D.M.C.’s intention to fuse metal and hip-hop into a powerful leave-no-man-standing combination.
Everything came together on Walk This Way, featuring the song’s originators, Steve Tyler and Joe Perry from Aerosmith, on vocals and guitar.
Raising Hell became the first rap album to top the R&B chart, reaching #3 on the pop side, selling over three million copies, and sealing the pact between rock and rap.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Russell Simmons
- Rick Rubin
Lyrics Written by:
- Steven Tyler
- Joe Perry
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).