Eric B. & Rakim Blame Hackers for Trump Twitter Endorsement

A verified Twitter account attributed to pioneering Hip-Hop group Eric B. & Rakim posted a series of tweets endorsing Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Image via Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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Rappers Eric B & Rakim pose for a portrait session in 1987 in New York, New York. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Image via Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

A verified Twitter account attributed to pioneering hip-hop group Eric B. & Rakim began trending late Saturday night and early Sunday morning after it tweeted out a series of comments seemingly endorsing Republican nominee Donald Trump. Given Trump’s controversial remarks regarding immigrants, the multiple sexual assault allegations against him, and negative statements about women, handicapped and other marginalized groups, the tweets raised quite a few eyebrows, and the phrase “Eric B. and Rakim” began trending on Twitter. It would appear the account was hacked, as a later tweet thanked Twitter’s support team for helping with the matter.

This is the second confusing series of tweets related to Eric B & Rakim in recent weeks, as a series of posts from October 20 stated the group was gearing up for a reunion. The reconciliation talk was squashed, only to later be confirmed again from the same account. 

Eric B. & Rakim haven’t released an official project together since 1992’s Don’t Sweat The Technique. This weekend’s tweets, which primarily referenced the pair’s 1986 single “Eric B Is President” were highlighted by verbal jabs at Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and what appeared to be an endorsement of Republican nominee Donald Trump.

“Hillary ain’t speaking the truth, Trump is a business man. What America needs is @Eric B in the Presidential Cabinet as the secretary of…” the account said in a that has since been deleted.

None of the statements were mirrored by the groups individual accounts. Rakim has apparently not been active on Twitter since 2010, while Eric B.’s verified Twitter account hasn’t had any updates since late October. 

The Trump talk was walked back in a series of tweets following the original Trump endorsement, as it was confirmed the account was presumably being managed by someone from Eric B. & Rakim’s team.

They have since reportedly regained control of the account.

We'll continue to update as more information becomes available.

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