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Struggle & ResistanceAchievement & Excellence

March 1986

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Resistance
Run-DMC and LL Cool J Bring Rap to Mainstream Audiences

Run-DMC's Raising Hell (1986), featuring the crossover hit Walk This Way with Aerosmith, reaches No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and becomes the first rap album to be certified platinum. Alongside LL Cool J's Radio, the year marks hip-hop's breakthrough into mainstream commercial culture, giving Black youth in Hollis, Queens and across the country a voice and a platform.

Events

  1. March 1986
    Run-DMC and LL Cool J Bring Rap to Mainstream Audiences

    Run-DMC's Raising Hell (1986), featuring the crossover hit Walk This Way with Aerosmith, reaches No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and becomes the first rap album to be certified platinum. Alongside LL Cool J's Radio, the year marks hip-hop's breakthrough into mainstream commercial culture, giving Black youth in Hollis, Queens and across the country a voice and a platform.

  2. March 1986
    Run-DMC's Raising Hell Becomes First Rap Album Certified Platinum

    Run-DMC's Raising Hell (1986) featuring Walk This Way with Aerosmith reaches No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and becomes the first rap album certified platinum. The year marks hip-hop's commercial breakthrough, giving Black youth from Hollis, Queens and across the country a nationally distributed voice.