Big Daddy Kane - Ain't No Half-Steppin' (1988 video, lyrics, & information)

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

Big Daddy Kane - Topic, November 7, 2014
-snip-
The information given below about the song "Ain't No Half Steppin'" is from the summary of a YouTube video published by UPROXX video on May 30, 2018. That video was available when this post was published, but is now private."From the 1988 album: "Long Live The Kane"

Antonio Hardy (born September 10, 1968), better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is a Grammy Award-winning American rapper and actor who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap collective the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MCs in hip hop. The name Big Daddy Kane came from a variation on Caine, David Carradine's character from TV show Kung Fu and a character called "Big Daddy" Vincent Price played in the film Beach Party. Rolling Stone magazine ranked his song "Ain't No Half-Steppin'" #25 on its list of The 50 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time, calling him "a master wordsmith of rap's late-golden age and a huge influence on a generation of MCs.".... -snip- More information about Big Daddy Kane is found in this video's summary. **** Edited by Azizi Powell This pancocojams post presents information about Grammy award winning African American Hip Hop artist Big Daddy Kane. This post also showcase a video of his 1988 track "Ain't No Half Steppin" and provides the complete lyrics for that song. Information about what "half-steppin'" is included in this post along with the meanings of a few of the other African American Vernacular English terms that are found in this track. The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes. All copyrights remain with their owners. Thanks to Big Daddy Kane for his musical legacy, and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publisher of this video on YouTube. -snip- Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2017/05/what-half-steppin-and-other-vernacular.html for a 2017 pancocojams post entitled "What "Half Steppin" And Other Vernacular Terms Mean In Big Daddy Kane's 1988 Hip Hop Classic "Ain't No Half Steppin' "

**** INFORMATION ABOUT BIG DADDY KANE From https://genius.com/artists/Big-daddy-kane

 "Antonio Hardy (born September 10, 1968) better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is a Grammy Award-winning rapper from Brooklyn, New York. He started his career in 1986 as a member of the Juice Crew collective led by producer Marley Marl and rapper Biz Markie. Kane is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MCs in hip-hop, having an impact on respected rappers such as Common, JAY-Z, and The Notorious B.I.G.

He is known for his quick flow and hardcore lyricism on tracks like “Raw” and “Set It Off” as well as the laid-back flow of “Smooth Operator” and “Ain’t No Half Steppin',” along with New Jack Swing dance songs like “I Get the Job Done.” He made appearances in the movies Posse and The Meteor Man, and he won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1991 as a performer on the Quincy Jones track “Back on the Block.”

While he said KANE stood for King Asiatic Nobody’s Equal, BDK also said the following regarding his stage name:

 The Big Daddy part and the Kane part came from two different things. The Kane part came from my fascination with the martial arts flicks when I was young. The Big Daddy part came from the name of a character Vincent Price played in the film Beach Party.”…

-snip-
This page includes a video of Big Daddy Kane explaining how he got that name: When he was growing up his childhood friends called him "Bruce Lee*", "Young Grasshopper*", and "Caine*", because he loved watching the Kung Fu television series and the United States aired Kung Fu Movie Channel. When he started rapping, he decided to keep the name “Caine” [although he changed the spelling of that name to "Kane".
-snip-
Bruce Lee was a Chinese actor who starred in a number of United States made Kung Fu movies.

"Kwai Chang Caine" was the last name of the leading character in the 1972-1975  United States television series 'Kung Fu". He was called "young grasshopper" by his mentor and elder Master Kan. Click https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kung_Fu_(1972_TV_series) for information about that series.

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LYRICS FOR "AINT NO HALF-STEPPIN"
(written by Marley Marl & Big Daddy Kane

[Intro]

Mmm, mmm, mmm

Aw yeah, I'm with this

I'm just gonna sit here laid back to this nice mellow beat, you know

And drop some smooth lyrics 'cause '88

Time to set it straight, know what I'm sayin'?

And Ain't No Half-Steppin'

Word, I'm ready

[Verse 1]

Rappers steppin' to me, they want to get some

But I'm the Kane, so, yo, you know the outcome

Another victory, they can't get with me

So pick a B.C. date 'cause you are history

I'm the authentic poet to get lyrical

For you to beat me, it's gonna take a miracle

And steppin' to me, yo, that's the wrong move

So what you on, Hobbs, dope or dog food?

Competition, I just devour

Like a pit bull against a Chihuahua

'Cause when it comes to bein' dope, hot damn

I got it good, now let me tell you who I am

The B-I-G D-A-double-D-Y K-A-N-E

Dramatic, Asiatic, not like many

I'm different, so don't compare me to another

'Cause they can't hang, word to the mother

At least not with the principal in this pedigree

So when I roll on you rappers, you better be

Ready to die because you're petty

You're just a butter knife, I'm a machete

That's made by Ginsu, wait until when you

Try to front, so I can chop into

Your body, just because you try to be basin'
No type of joke, gag, game, puzzle or riddle

The name is Big Daddy, yes, Big, not little

So define it, here's your walkin' papers, sign it

And take a walk as the Kane start to talk, 'cause ...

[Hook]

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

"Down the road"

[Verse 2]

My rhymes are so dope and the rappers be hopin'

To sound like me, so soon I'll have to open

A school of emceein', for those who wanna be in

My field and court, then again, on second thought

To have MC's comin' out soundin' so similar

It's quite confusin' for you to remember

The originator, and boy, do I hate a

Perpetrator, but I'm much greater

The best, oh, yes, I guess, suggest the rest should fess

Don't mess or test your highness

Unless you just address with best finesse

And bless the paragraphs I manifest

Rap prime minister, some say sinister

Non-stoppin' the groove until when it's the

Climax, and I max, relax and chill

Have a break from a take of me actin' ill

Brain cells are lit, ideas start to hit

Next - the formation of words that fit

At the table I sit, makin' it legit

And when my pen hits the paper, ah shit!

I stop and stand strong over MC's

And devour with the power of Hercules

Or Samson, but I go further the length

'Cause you could scalp my Cameo and I'll still have strength

And no, that's not a myth, and if you try to riff

Or get with, the man with the given gift of gab

Your vocab, I'll only ignore
Be sleepin' on your rhymes till I start to snore

You can't awake me, or even make me

Fear you, son, 'cause you can't do me none

So, think about it if you're tryin' to go

When you want to step to me, I think you should know that

[Hook]

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

"Down the road"

[Verse 3]

I appear right here and scare and dare

A mere musketeer that would dare to compare

Put him in the rear, back there where he can't see clear

Get a beer, idea or near stare, yeah

So on to be want to be competition

Tryin' to step to me, must be on a mission

Up on the stage is where I'mma get you at

You think I'm losin'? Pfft, picture that

[Hook]

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Ain't No Half-Steppin'

I'm the Big Daddy Kane

Mister Cee, step to me

[Verse 4]

The name is Big Daddy, you know, as in, your father

So when you hear a def rhyme, believe that I'm the author

I grab the mic and make MC's evaporate

The party people say, 'Damn, that rapper's great'

The creator, conductor of poetry

Et cetera, et cetera, it ain't easy bein' me

I speak clearly so you can understand

Put words together like Letter Man

Now, that's dictation, proceedin' to my innovation

Not like the other MC's that are an imitation

Or an animation, a cartoon to me

But when I'm finished, I'm sure that you are soon to see

Reality, my secret technique

Because I always speak with mentality

I put my title in your face, dare you to base

And if you try and come get it, yo, I'mma show you who's with it

So if you know like I know, instead of messin' around

Play like Roy Rogers and slow down

Just give yourself a break, or someone else will take

Your title, namely me, 'cause I'm homicidal

That means murder, 'cause I'm about to hurt a-

-nother emcee, that try to get with me

I'll just break him and bake him and rake him

And take him and mold him and make him

Hold up the peace sign, As Salaam Alaikum!

Source:
That online site also includes this information: Scratches: DJ Mister Cee

Mixed By Marley Marl

Release Date: June 28, 1988

Samples: "Get Into It" by Big Daddy Kane

"The Big Beat" by Billy Squier

"UFO" by ESG (NY)

"Ease On Down The Road" by Charlie Smalls (Ft. Diana Ross & Michael Jackson)

"Blind Alley" by The Emotions

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE MEANING OF A FEW OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN VERNACULAR ENGLISH WORDS IN THIS HIP HOP TRACK

These word are given in alphabetical order
1. def [rhyme]
From 

https://www.yourdictionary.com/def#:~:text=The%20definition%20of%20def%20is,means%20the%20music%20is%20excellent.
"The definition of def is a slang term that is excellent or first-rate.
..."That music is def".
**2. half steppin
From http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2017/05/what-half-steppin-and-other-vernacular.html
"What "Half Steppin" And Other Vernacular Terms Mean In Big Daddy Kane's 1988 Hip Hop Classic "Ain't No Half Steppin'"

"ain't no half steppin" - In the context of this song, Big Daddy Kane is saying that he isn't going to to "half step" when it comes to being a MC (rapper) i.e. He's not going to be a "sucker MC". [Read the definition for "sucker MC" below]

"Half steppin' = to fail to do something the right way, fully and completely; to fail to give something your all (all your commitment and energy).

"Half steppin[g] refers to the way you do something, and not the way that you step (move).

**3. MC

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapping#:~:text=December%2023%2C%202008.-,Emcees,hip%2Dhop%20music%20and%20culture.&text=MC%20can%20often%20be%20used,artist%20with%20good%20performance%20skills.

In the late 1970s, the term emcee, MC or M.C., derived from "master of ceremonies",[99] became an alternative title for a rapper, and for their role within hip-hop music and culture. An MC uses rhyming verses, pre-written or ad lib ('freestyled'), to introduce the DJ with whom they work, to keep the crowd entertained or to glorify themselves. As hip hop progressed, the title MC acquired backronyms such as 'mike chanter'[100] 'microphone controller', 'microphone checker', 'music commentator', and one who 'moves the crowd'. Some use this word interchangeably with the term rapper, while for others the term denotes a superior level of skill and connection to the wider culture."...

-snip-
A "sucker MC" is an insulting term for rappers who have very little skills on the mike or in creating lyrics (bars).

**
4. (rappers) steppin to me = Rappers (MCs) coming up to me (in a confrontational manner)

**
5. "Word" - an affirmative phrase that was widely used among certain African Americans, and later, by non-African Americans in the 1980s and 1990s. "Word" meant "Yeah. I agree [with what you just said].  "Word" is an abbreviated form of the affirmative African American saying "Word to the mother" (or "Word to your mother".

According to https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=word+to+your+mother
"Word to your mother"
"An anachronistic corruption of the phrase "word to the mother", which was a popular reference to Africa or "The Motherland" during the late 1980s Afrocentric movement.and later which means "I swear on the word of my mother"."
-snip-
 Another form of "Word" and "Word to the mother" is "Word up". These sayings are rarely used in the United States anymore. 

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE WORD "ASIATIC" IN THIS HIP HOP TRACK
The word "Asiatic" is found in Big Daddy Kane's track "Ain't No Half Steppin' " and is also included in the story that Big Daddy Kane made up after the fact for what his name "Kane" means, i.e. "King Asiatic Nobody’s Equal".

Here's the meaning for the referent "Asiatic" as it applies to this Hip Hop track: according to members of the Moorish Science Temple, "Asiatic" means "Black people who come from the Middle East" (which they considered to be located in the continent of Asia). Members of the Moorish Science Temple use the referent "Asiatic" for all people who (they believe mistakenly) refer to themselves as Black Americans or African Americans. Presumably, they also believe that the referent "Asiatic" should also apply to all other members of the Black Diaspora such as Black West Indians and Black people in Canada and in South America.

The Moorish Science Temple is a religious organization that was founded in 1913 by Noble Drew Ali. Members of that religious organization (who are called "Moorish Americans") practice a form of Islam. Very few African Americans were and are members of this organization, but it has had considerable cultural influence among African Americans. For instance, I don't believe that Big Daddy Kane was a member of the Moorish Science Temple, but he still used that "Asiatic" referent in this particular Hip Hop track and as a back story for his stage name. 

Click https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moorish_Science_Temple_of_America for information about the Moorish Science Temple.

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