Rakim to Release New Album, ‘The Seventh Seal’

It's been nearly 10 years since Rakim dropped his last album, 'The Master,' but now his long-awaited return is finally upon us.

The god Rakim Allah will finally be releasing his aptly titled seventh album, 'The Seventh Seal,' on November 17, via his own label, Ra Records. Two songs from the set can be found streaming on the rapper's MySpace page, 'Holy Are You' and the newly added 'Walk These Streets,' featuring Brooklyn rapper Maino,

"I'm the tsunami of rap," Rakim said about the album in a recent interview with AllHipHop. "I'm going to shut it down and we'll start all over from the top. It's time to take it to the next level. Everybody is doing the same thing, we gotta keep evolving. 'Seventh Seal' is an option for those who want to change what they're doing, or trying to better themselves. It's not too much about Rakim, and more the listener. It's definitely for the youth, but I'm an old dude and got something for the old heads as well."

Rakim headlined Atlanta's A3C festival at the end of September and is scheduled to support the release of 'The Seventh Seal' with a month of tour dates kicking off October 25 in San Francisco.

Many blame Rakim's 10-year absence on his prior label, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Records, which has a history of delaying and shelving releases. When asked if Ra was simply awaiting the perfect moment to make his return, he said"It was more with the label thing...I wanted to get my business straight. I got my own label now [Ra Records], so there's no better time than the present."

In keeping with the tsunami theme, Ra claims that his album will bring about a whirlwind of change, returning socially conscious hip hop to the forefront."At this point, from what we've been going through and what we've been listening to, I think people are ready to change it up. You can only shoot somebody so many ways. You can only sell so many ki's of coke. You can only buy so many cars. I think it's getting to a point where Hip-Hop isn't going to have a choice but to change its lyrical content"

'The Seventh Seal' is in stores November 17, and features Maino, The Lox, Busta Rhymes and Rakim's daughter, Destiny Griffin.