35 Years Later, This Game-Changing Album Made Rap-Rock Impossible to Ignore

Blondie's 1981 hit song "Rapture" was one of the first to introduce a rap interlude in a rock song, with lead vocalist Debbie Harry rapping the entire coda. Still, the two genres stayed in their own lane until 1986, when Run-DMC’s cover of Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way,” recorded with Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, was released. The instantly-iconic track was a huge hit, making ‘Raising Hell’ one of the best-selling rap records of all time and almost single-handedly reviving Aerosmith’s dormant career.