Slick Rick

Richard Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known by stage names Slick Rick, Ricky D and The Ruler, is an African-European rapper. Originally from South Wimbledon, London, England, he moved with his family to The Bronx in 1975. Rick's characteristic eyepatch was acquired after being blinded in the right eye by broken glass as an infant. He is best known for a series of hip hop recordings during the 1980s, including "Children's Story" and "La Di Da Di".
Charlie Rock of Harlem World crew was instrumental in bringing Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh together when Doug requested an introduction after he had seen him win local MC battle contests. It was at an MC contest at the 369 Armory on 142nd street in Harlem, given by promotion partners Ray Chandler & Charlie Rock, The Rick & Doug were formally introduced by Rock.

As a 20-year-old in the summer of 1985 he scored his first big hits (with Doug E. Fresh), "La Di Da Di" and "The Show."
Slick Rick released The Great Adventures of Slick Rick in 1988 while living in New York City. "Children's Story", which appears on The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, is one of the most famous songs in rap and has been covered by Black Star, Black Rob, Everlast, Tricky's side project Nearly God, UK rapper Ramson Badbones, Björk, and Japanese rapper Zeebra. The album attained platinum status, but Rick was unable to exploit this due to an arrest for attempted murder. He shot his pregnant cousin, that cousin's boyfriend, and a bystander, accusing his cousin of extorting money. Russell Simmons, head of Def Jam records, bailed him out and Rick quickly recorded The Ruler's Back before spending five years in prison.
"La Di Da Di", "Mona Lisa" and "Children's Story" are among his best known songs, with "La Di Da Di" being covered nearly word-for-word by Snoop Dogg on his 1993 album Doggystyle, and lines from "La Di Da Di" being borrowed by multiple high profile artists. "Childrens Story" was also sampled by Montell Jordan for his 1995 hit, "This Is How We Do It".
A third album Behind Bars was recorded whilst still in prison, and released to lukewarm sales and reviews. Released from prison in 1998, he remained with Def Jam and on May 25, 1999 released a fourth album, entitled The Art of Storytelling, generally considered the authentic follow up to his 1988 debut. The album featured Nas, OutKast, Raekwon from the Wu-Tang Clan, Snoop Dogg, Kid Capri, Canibus, and Doug E. Fresh, and received mixed reviews, writers citing the amount of skits, guest spots, and sometimes bland production as diluting the Slick Rick sound.
In June 2002, after performing on a Caribbean cruise ship, Rick was arrested by the then INS as he re-entered the United States through Florida. He was promptly told that he was being deported because he is a British citizen; since he had been born in London and moved to the States as a youth. In 1996, a law was passed which called for foreigners convicted of violent felonies to be deported, a ruling which was more vigorously enforced amid heightened security concerns after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Rick was continuously refused bail, but after 17 months in prison he was released on November 7, 2003.

Rumors suggested that Rick planned to release a new album, "The Adventure Continues," in 2007. However, in a recent XXL Magazine interview, he denied the claim. Rick is supposedly "waiting for a market to open up for a [more] mature audience".