Comedian and actor Chris Rock kicked off his new HBO series Kill The Messenger last last week. Performing in the city that made him a household name, Rock graced the historic Apollo stage, and showed his deep love of Hip Hop with a surprise opening act.

Joined by deejay Aaron Lacrate [click to read], Rakim [click to read] performed an unexpected set for the packed house. "Rakim at The Apollo was massive back in the day. He tore that place down and it just shows how signifigant he still is, people freaked out and were doing the wop in the aisles. It was the perfect fit. Chris Rock's such a Hip Hop head that his crowd went wild, we did Friday and Saturday, both nights were legendary and Chris' show was just too on point! It was amazing to be looking out at the sold out three levels going wild, then to be in the crowd while chris literally rocked it," said Lacrate to HipHopDX Monday night.

The producer, deejay and fashion designer revealed, "This was the first time I ever deejayed for the God, and I kept imagining all the videos and classic footage of him and Eric B., I think I had an out of body experience." Having done remixes with Juelz Santana, E-40 and Lily Allen, Lacrate was asked if Rakim would ever be the audio subject of a "Bmore Gutter" remix. "Not sure about what will come next in the collabo but he is finishing a brand new record for Universal. Maybe 'Know the Ledge Part 2,'" revealed Lacrate.

Pictures from the event are available [here].