At the height of their powers, Led Zeppelin were the most brilliant band on earth. The English quartet were an absolute powerhouse, and their back catalogue speaks for itself. From ‘Stairway to Heaven’ to ‘Kashmir’, they’ve got their names on countless classics.
The band, comprised of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Bonham and John Paul Jones, made such a significant impact on the world of music, that we can still see their influence alive and well today. From Maneskin to the likes of Arctic Monkeys, you can hear flecks of Zeppelin’s influence still in the supremacy. Remarkably, the band have a relatively small back catalogue, with just over 70 songs, when their contemporaries Pink have 165 and The Beatles over the 300, but this tells us one thing. Unlike their British rock peers, for Zeppelin, the primary goal was quality.
Zeppelin formed in the wake of psychedelic heroes The Yardbirds split up in 1968 and quickly made a name for themselves as the most exciting group around, even eclipsing The Beatles in terms of the thrills that they had to offer. Famously, the band lifted their name from a quip by The Who drummer, Keith Moon, who posited that the new band would go down like “a lead balloon “.
Moon was right. Before too long, they were signed to Ahmet Ertegun’s rapidly expanding Atlantic Records, which would become their longtime home. They seemingly never ceased touring and filled the void that The Beatles left with their breakup in 1970. Zeppelin took rock in a much darker and heavier direction, thanks to the creative vision of guitarist Jimmy Page, and in addition to the works of Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Iron Butterfly, they laid the foundations of what would become metal.
However, it’s not just within the world of rock that Zeppelin made an impact. It’s across music that they’ve had a transformative impact, from pop to rock. Surprisingly, they’ve also had a great effect on rap and hip-hop, and have been sampled on numerous occasions, adding their unique style to the works of others, and helping to create truly refreshing sounds.
Duly, we’ve listed the ten best rap/hip-hop songs that sample Robert Plant and Co. Expect to see some classics and some lesser-known numbers.
The 10 best rap and hip-hop songs that sample Led Zeppelin
1.‘Come With Me’ – Diddy featuring Jimmy Page
2.‘Life’s So Hard’ – Tupac Shakur
3.‘Lyrical Gangbang’ – Dr. Dre featuring The Lady of Rage, Kurupt and RBX
4.‘Beastie Groove’ – Beastie Boys
5.‘Doctor’s Advocate’ – The Game featuring Busta Rhymes
6.‘Kim’ – Eminem
7.‘Voltage’ – B.o.B. featuring Playboy Tre and Mickey Factz
8.‘Gladiator’ – Bun B featuring Truck Buck
9.‘D.E.M.O.N.S.’ – Elzhi
10.‘Lesson 6: The Lecture’ – Jurassic 5
