The song Big Daddy Kane called his “breakout”
The 1980s were an exciting decade for rap music. Hip-hop’s first full decade of existence saw an abundance of innovation and experimentation, which helped the genre grow and evolve into what it is today. One artist who was an integral part of rap’s growth in New York during the ’80s was Brooklyn legend Big Daddy Kane.
During this period, the New York hip-hop scene gave birth to some legendary artists and collectives, including Juice Crew, Run-DMC, De La Soul and Public Enemy. Not only was the era full of diverse, eclectic MCs but exciting new producers such as Larry Smith, Rick Rubin, Marley Marl and Pete Rock.
From EPMD, Stetsasonic, The Jungle Brothers, MC Lyte, MC and Shan to Too Short, Doug. E Fresh, Biz Markie, and Rakim, much of the decade’s good music, was released in 1988. The year saw two seismic projects drop: Long Live The Kane and It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us.
In an interview with the online music publication Rock The Bells, Big Daddy Kane and Chuck D looked back at the 1980s and reflected on their 1988 albums. Both LPs were put out on June 28th and were highly impactful.
Big Daddy Kane first made ripples in New York rap when he released his 12-inch debut single, ‘Get Into It’ with the B-side boasting ‘Just Rhymin’ With Biz’ and ‘Somethin’ Funky’. With lines such as “I give ya’ girl the kiss of death just like a vampire, stomp out MC’s just like a campfire / I go Rambo gigolo Romeo – Friday night spend money on a hotel to get a good night’s sleep.”
After showcasing his unique vocal tones, catchy cadence, and crazy use of metaphors, fans got hooked on Big Daddy Kane. One of the lyricist’s most significant songs was ‘Ain’t No Half Steppin’.
Speaking about the song’s creation, Kane (real name Antonio Hardy) explained, “That was a sample by the Emotions called ‘Blind Alley’ that I got from Biz Markie. It was the same day that Biz found the ‘Get Out My Life Woman’ record. He had been lookin’ for it for two years, and he called his DJ Cutmaster Cool V because he was so excited.”
He continued, “I said that means that you don’t care about this Emotions record, and he told me that I could have it. I grabbed it, and I always wanted to use that ‘Ain’t No Half Steppin’ hook because that was street slang that we used. I took it all to Marley’s crib, and he hooked it up, and I laid vocals. It became a masterpiece.”
However, Hardy didn’t feel like it was his breakout track. For that, the Brooklyn artist cited his song ‘Raw’. Reflecting on its release, Hardy recalled, “That was my breakout. Before ‘Raw’, I had only done ‘Just Rhymin’ With Biz’, and no one was booking me because they didn’t know who I was. I had a record out, but I was sittin’ home broke. I really wanted a record by myself, and ‘Raw’ was it.”
You can hear Big Daddy Kane’s self-proclaimed breakout track ‘Raw’ in the video below.