Big Daddy Kane – Ain’t No Half Steppin
Yo. So continueing on from my first post involing ‘Juice Crew’ it makes perfect sense to showcase another member and probably one of the most respected and skillful names in hip hop the mighty Big Daddy Kane. So for those of you who may have been living under a rock I shall hit you with the full skinny on this amazing artist then I’m going to break down the track ‘Ain’t No Half Steppin’.
Continue Reading After the Jump…
Born Antonio M. Hardy on September 10, 1968, in Brooklyn, NY, Kane is a native of the rough Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. He met his first mentor, Biz Markie—the “Clown Prince” of rap—in downtown Brooklyn in 1984; Markie and other rappers were mounting a recording session outside of McCurry’s department store. Kane was impressed with Markie’s outrageous sense of humor, performance style, and gregariousness, and the two became fast friends. They were soon performing together at local high schools. Through Markie, Kane met Marley Marl and Roxanne Shante, among other up-and-coming rap artists. In 1985, when Shante emerged as the “Queen of Rap,” Kane went on the road with her as a disc jockey, eventually writing some of her best-known material. Kane was also writing hits for the Juice Crew and Kurtis Blow at this time and even worked briefly with funk master Rick James.
Signed by Cold Chillin’
After touring with Shante, Kane started working closely with Marl on recording sessions for Shante, Markie, and other rappers under the aegis of Cold Chillin’ Records. The staff of Cold Chillin’ was sufficiently enamored of Kane’s songwriting ability to sign him on as an artist in his own right in 1987. The name “Kane” was adopted in 1982, but “Big Daddy” wasn’t tacked on until 1985. A close friend jokingly referred to Kane as “Big Daddy”; Kane loved the sound of it and has sported the nickname as his professional tag ever since. Near the end of 1987 Kane and Marl spent a few weeks working on Kane’s debut album, Long Live the Kane. The album sold well, and on the strength of its sales and the hit single “Ain’t No Half Steppin’,” Kane began touring the U.S., performing with rap acts Stetsasonic and Doug E. Fresh.
In January of 1990 Kane recorded a second album, It’s a Big Daddy Thing, which featured the hits “Smooth Operator” and the lauded “I Get the Job Done.” A string of coast-to-coast tour dates followed, Kane sharing the stage with rap giants Public Enemy and L.L. Cool J. Kane self-produced his third album, Taste of Chocolate, with some help from Prince Paul, who had served as producer for rap trio De La Soul. Taste of Chocolate proved funkier than Kane’s previous albums, and featured a posse of special guests, including the inimitable, heavy-breathing 1970s soul crooner Barry White, and the daughter of black activist leader Malcolm X.
Wry Wit Got the Job Done
Kane’s style of rap belongs to a hard-edged school that reflects life on the street. “Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy” and “Calling Mr. Welfare,” from the It’s a Big Daddy Thing LP, are just two showcases for Kane’s knowing, razor-sharp lyrics. But Kane is never far from humor either; he infuses many of his songs with his particular brand of wry, subtle wit. Kane relishes a clever play on words, as displayed in his classic dance hit, “I Get The Job Done.” The song’s chest-thumping beat builds to a rich crescendo while Kane’s smooth lyrics buttress its high-energy pace and good-natured bravado.
To some, Kane’s sartorial style typifies the upscale urban rapper: He sports white suits, enormous gold medallions and heavy link chains, fedoras, chunky gold and diamond rings, and a “Cameo flattop” hairstyle; his public appearances often feature a bevy of attractive, near-nude, fawning women who flank the rapper, suggestively stroking him periodically. The message his image presents is also evinced in Kane’s first three albums: Big Daddy is clearly savoring the good life, which many feel is warranted by Kane’s unique raps.
What sets Kane apart from other rap artists is the cleverness of his powerful “boasts”—one of the mainstays of rap lyrics. His rhyming style is solid and tightly woven; Kane also makes good use of familiar “samples,” borrowed riffs from other well-known artists like James Brown and Public Enemy. With Prince of Darkness, Kane expanded his repertoire with sophisticated balladry and more actual singing, as opposed to rapping. Kane was quoted in a 1991 Cold Chillin’ press release as saying, “I wanted to do songs that would appeal to both men and women. I think rap is still the strongest force in black music today, and it’s moving straight ahead, but it’s also expanding to take in lots of other styles.”
Member of the Five Percent Nation
While still in junior high school, Kane was introduced to a black Muslim sect, popular among rappers, called the Five Percent Nation. As an adult, Kane became a member of the sect at the behest of Rakim, a rapper he respects and admires. Kane points to Rakim’s early influence on him as an example of how rap artists can inspire rap fans to better themselves. As a member of the Five Percent Nation, Kane tries to educate listeners about world affairs and their relevance to blacks. However, he has at times been criticized for seemingly contradicting his faith by extolling the virtues of materialism, hedonism, and sex appeal. Kane fueled this fire by posing partially nude in a June 1991 issue of Playgirl magazine, while maintaining his sex-symbol status by posing for Madonna’s notorious 1992 photo book “Sex.” He responded to his detractors by telling The Source’s Chris Wilder: “I may make a political song. I may make a heritage song. Then again, I may make ‘Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy,’ I have fun with my music because of the simple fact that that’s what music is about; music is for enjoyment. And nobody wants to hear about problems all of the time.”
Kane moved to the MCA label for 1994’s “Daddy’s Home,” and dabbled in an acting career with appearances in Mario Van Peebles’ 1993 black Western Posse and 1994’s Gunmen. However, he largely retired from the scene over the next few years. Kane resurfaced in 1998 on Blackheart Records, releasing what was ostensibly his farewell album, Veteranz Day.
Ain’t No Half Steppin Samples
Right then this track is sample heavy so i’m going to forgo the bio for each sampled artist or this would be some long ting article. Instead there will be a link to each artists Wikipedia page so if you feel the need you can delve further. Just click on the album cover picture and BAM! its all yours.
Sample kicks in right from the start of both tracks for this one and is used through out beautiful track by these soul sisters.
The Emotions – Blind Alley
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The sample used from this track is at 00.18 and is used more or less from the beginning and through out BDK’s track. UFO is sampled heavily by numerous hip hop artists like J dilla, DJ Q-bert and the Beastie Boys.
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BDK samples just a tiny part of this track at 00.18 it kicks in at 00.29 and is used through out the track.
Also used by Heavy D for the track Love Sexy.
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A tiny little cut is scratched into the track from 00.10 from this classic. Funnily enough this track is also sampled by Will smith for Just Cruisin.Diana Ross & Michael Jackson – Ease on down the road
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This ones pretty self explanatory first used on the track at 01.29. Also used on De La Soul’s Ego trippin (Part Two) and numerous others.
Heatwave – Ain’t No Half Steppin
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The phrase ‘get on down’ is cut in at 04.01 on the track. Another heavily sampled track used to great effect by many artists including, LL Cool J, Dizzee Rascal, Jay Z and Jurassic 5 to name but a few.
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OK so thats nearly it for this monster bit of knowledge apart from one last thing click the image below to watch a video of BDK explaining a bit about the track himself.………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Big Daddy Kane – True Hip Hop Stories
CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW VIDEO
I’m out Peace Homies
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