Hip-hop has always been a conversation between past, present, and future. But rarely do we get to hear those generations speak on the same track as equals. “Not To Be Defined” by Lazarus and Rakim isn’t just a song. It’s a time capsule, a manifesto, and a lyrical handshake between one of the genre’s most respected pioneers and one of its most powerful modern voices.
In an age of algorithmic anthems, this track reminds us that bars still matter and so does what they stand for. Rakim’s opening presence hits like scripture. The same sharp tone that once shifted the course of hip-hop in the ‘80s still slices through with timeless wisdom. On this track, he delivers lines like:
“It’s a jungle in the jungle, where trouble get in trouble / Murderers gettin’ murdered, and hustlers gettin’ hustled.”
That’s not just wordplay, it’s a warning. He paints the streets as a mirror of themselves, folding generations of violence, pain, and survival into just two bars. Rakim’s power lies in how much he can say with so little each line is a distilled truth from decades in the game.
Then enters Lazarus with a voice that doesn’t just match Rakim’s intensity but complements it. Where Rakim speaks from the trenches of history, Lazarus speaks from the edge of now as a Muslim, a doctor, and an emcee navigating the complexity of fame, faith, and function.
“Execs they got a problem with / The fact I went to college with a presidential scholarship / Kept me to be an apologist / But I’m a Rakimologist / Pac and Nas rhymin’ knowledge is how I acknowledged it.”
This is a man who understands the game and refuses to play it recklessly. He doesn’t just want a hit. He wants impact. And every word is weighed like a diagnosis.
This collaboration is special because it’s not built on nostalgia, it’s built on mutual purpose. Lazarus and Rakim don’t try to outdo one another; they amplify each other’s truths: Rakim brings the blueprint, Lazarus brings the evolution.
One of the standout moments is when Lazarus raps:
“Put the law into my hands, charge you with a crime / You see verbally, I could move a mountain with my mind.”
It’s equal parts Rakim homage and personal declaration. It echoes the “Thinking of a Master Plan” ethos while firmly rooted in Lazarus’s mission to blend knowledge and aggression into one unshakable force.
The production, handled by Dem Jointz, isn’t just there to support the verses it pushes them. Known for his work with Eminem, Snoop Dogg, and Aftermath, Dem Jointz gives this track a cinematic, heavy sound that feels carved in concrete. It doesn’t distract it demands. Just like the lyrics.
What makes “Not To Be Defined” so powerful isn’t that Rakim is giving Lazarus a “look.” It’s that they are speaking from parallel paths, different eras, same enemy: conformity. Commercial dilution. The silencing of purpose.
This line from Lazarus says it best:
“Ain’t no stoppin’ in my prime, when I’m plottin’ with the rhyme / You can’t put me in no box, I am not to be defined.”
That’s not just the hook, it’s the spirit of both men. Hip-hop needed this record. Not because it sounds “old school.” Not because it brings back lyricism. But because it reminds us that the mic is still a weapon if you know how to use it. And in the hands of Lazarus and Rakim, the mic isn’t just alive, it’s immortal.
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