Booking Slick Rick

Slick Rick Biography

The British-American rapper known as Slick Rick was born Ricky Martin Lloyd Walters in 1965 in London, England. When Rick was about ten years old, his family moved to the United States, settling in the New York area. Rick was drawn to the performing arts from a young age, and while living in the Bronx he attended the Laguardia High School of Music & Art. Initially, Rick focused on the visual arts, but after meeting Dana Dane, the duo began performing as rappers throughout town.

A chance meeting with Doug E. Fresh in the early 1980’s, brought Rick into the Get Fresh Crew, alongside Fresh, Barry Bee, and Chill Will. The Get Fresh Crew scored a major hit with the song “La Di Da Di,” and in particular Slick Rick was noted for his lyrical skills as a rapper. In 1986, Def Jam Records offered Slick Rick a recording contract as a solo artist, and he entered the studio to begin work on his major label debut.

The result was the 1988 album The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, which rose to the number one spot on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts. The album spawned the singles “Teenage Love,” “Hey Young World,” and “Children’s Story,” and established Slick Rick as one of the era’s up and coming rappers, noted for his unique narrative style. From 1988 to 1999, Slick Rick released the additional albums: The Ruler’s Back (1991), Behind Bars (1994), and The Art of Storytelling (1999), featuring such chart-topping hits as: “I Shouldn’t Have Done It,” “Behind Bars,” “Sittin’ in My Car,” and “Street Talkin.

Today, Slick Rick ranks in the top on lists honoring the era’s top lyricists and MC’s, and his songs are been among the most sampled by today’s artists in the new millennium. Slick Rick most recently appeared in concert for Will.i.am’s foundation fundraising, helping to raise nearly 2.5 million dollars for various causes which benefit from the organization.