Antonio Hardy (born September 10, 1968), better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is a record producer/rapper from the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, New York. He worked with artists including Big L, Biz Markie, Marley Marl, Public Enemy, Teddy Riley, Rudy Ray Moore and Barry White. Heavily influenced by Grandmaster Caz in his earlier years, he continued to improve his fast flow and freestyle battle techniques. Part of Marley Marl's legendary Juice Crew, he also penned lyrics for fellow members Biz Markie and Roxanne Shanté. Kane was responsible for jump-starting and being the archetype for the career of Jay-Z, now a hugely commercially successful rapper who got his start as Kane's hypeman. He now lives in the Raleigh-Durham region of North Carolina[1].
Big Daddy Kane |
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Career
1980s
In 1984, he met Biz Markie, and the two struck a friendship. Kane would go on to co-write some of the Biz's best-known raps, and both eventually became important members of the Queens-based Juice Crew, a collective headed by renowned producer Marley Marl. Kane signed with Marl's Cold Chillin' label in 1987 and debuted the following year with the 12" single "Raw," an underground hit. Kane is known for his ability to syncopate over faster hip hop beats, and despite his asthmatic condition he is acknowledged as one of the pioneering masters of fast-rap. His sense of style is renowned and set a number of late-1980s and early-1990s hip hop trends (high-top fades, velour suits, and four-finger rings). The backronym "King Asiatic Nobody's Equal" is often applied to his moniker. His name "Kane" came from Kane from the popular TV show Kung Fu. The "Big Daddy" came from Vincent Price's character in an old Frankie Avalon movie, "Beach Party".
He released his debut album under Cold Chillin' Records in the early summer of 1988 called Long Live the Kane which featured the hip hop hit "Ain't No Half Steppin". The following year, he released his second album and biggest hit to date It's a Big Daddy Thing which included 1970s sample throwbacks like "Smooth Operator" and the Teddy Riley produced track "I Get the Job Done" which hit the R&B top 40 during the closing of the 1980s. He also had a memorable verse on the Marley Marl produced track "The Symphony" released in late 1988 which included Juice Crew member Craig G, Masta Ace, and Kool G. Rap (later remixed to include Big Pun, DMX, Kool G Rap, and KRS-One.
1990s
Big Daddy Kane appeared on Patti Labelle's 1991 effort, "Burnin'." He provided the rap chorus to the single "Feels Like Another One." He also appeared on the video release- Live in New York
Widely regarded as one of the greatest rappers during the "golden age" of hip hop (1986–1993), Kane's experimentation with R&B beats and his alignment to the Five Percent faction drew criticism. Later albums, such as Looks Like a Job For..., were acclaimed, but he was never able to return to the commercial and artistic success of It's a Big Daddy Thing. However, he still tours extensively.
As an actor, he debuted in Mario Van Peebles' 1993 western, Posse. Big Daddy Kane also posed for Playgirl and Madonna's Sex book during the 1990s.
2000s
Recently (especially as of 2002), a rejuvenated Big Daddy Kane has occasionally been visible collaborating with alternative hip hop artists, including Jurassic 5, Little Brother, and DJ Babu of the Beat Junkies. He has released two singles, the Alchemist-produced "The Man, The Icon", and the DJ Premier-produced "Any Type of Way" (on which he discusses urban collapse in post-9/11 New York City ["Giuliani got the streets lookin' like it's Amistad"] and the erosion of the middle class.)
Big Daddy Kane appeared on the trip-hop group Morcheeba's 2003 single "What's Your Name". In 2004, "Warm It Up, Kane" appeared on popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on Classic hip hop radio station Playback FM.
In 2006, he appeared as a guest MC on the track "Get Wild Off This", produced by The Stanton Warriors for their Stanton Sessions Vol 2. breaks mix.
In 2005, Big Daddy Kane was honored during the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors. After a medley of hits performed by T.I., Black Thought, and Common, he came out to perform his beloved track "Warm It Up, Kane" with his old dancers, Scoob and Scrap. The performance was tremendously well-received. Kane and Kool G Rap can both also been seen briefly in Dave Chappelle's Block Party documentary. Most recently, he appeared alongside the Wu-Tang Clan, Rakim, and his longtime friends Busta Rhymes and Q-Tip in a segment of the 2006 Summer Jam concert (June 7, 2006), as part of an initiative by Busta Rhymes to honor the legacy of New York City hip hop.
In 2007, Big Daddy Kane worked with The RZA on the soundtrack to the animé Afro Samurai (The RZA Presents: Afro Samurai OST) on the song "Cameo Afro". Suga Bang Bang also appeared. Big Daddy Kane and Kool G Rap also both guested on "Next Up", the Marley Marl-produced first single from Underground Kingz, the upcoming album by UGK (due for release on May 8th).
On April 24th 2007 Big Daddy Kane appeared on "Brooklyn Remix," a song from rapper Joell Ortiz's album The Brick (Bodega Chronicles).
On June 5th, 2007, Chinga Chang Records will release the mixtape Official Joints, which is to feature "If You Try", a new track by Big Daddy Kane.
Accolades
Big Daddy Kane is known to have one of the sharpest flows and deliveries of any MC. He, alongside Kool G Rap, KRS-One, and Rakim, is considered one of the greatest influences in all of hip hop history.
To me, Big Daddy Kane is still today one of the best rappers. I would put Big Daddy Kane against any rapper in a battle. Jay-Z, Nas, Eminem, any of them. I actually met Jay-Z with Kane. Kane brought Jay-Z over to my house. But nobody wants to see Kane. I could take 'Raw' right now and put it up against any record [from today]. Kane is one of the most incredible lyricists, the most real cat if you ever get a chance to meet him. Straight out of Brooklyn, soft-spoken and he will devour you on the mic. I don't want to try to out-rap Big Daddy Kane. I may out-dress him, but I'm not gonna try to out-rap him. Big Daddy Kane can rap circles around cats.[2]
The triumvirate of Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Slick Rick and Kool G Rap represent the greatest leap forward for the art of emceeing in hip-hop, and are considered to be among the finest rappers of the "Golden Age."
Discography
| Album cover | Album information |
|---|---|
 |
Long Live the Kane |
 |
It's a Big Daddy Thing
|
Taste of Chocolate
| |
Prince of Darkness
| |
| Looks Like a Job For... | |
Daddy's Home
| |
| Veteranz Day |
References
External links
- Big Daddy Kane at IMDb
- Template:AMG name
- Big Daddy Kane discography at Discogs
- Big Daddy Kane discography at MusicBrainz