Big Daddy Kane & EPMD in Wallingford Center

Big Daddy Kane is an American rapper from Brooklyn, born Antonio Hardy in 1968, who recorded as a member of the Juice Crew. His early albums Long Live the Kane and It’s a Big Daddy Thing established his fast, rhythmically precise delivery through tracks including “Ain’t No Half-Steppin’,” “Raw” and “Smooth Operator.” In 2018, he celebrated the 30th anniversary of his debut album at the Ford Amphitheater at Coney Island Boardwalk. Later that year, his NPR Tiny Desk Concert recast songs from across his catalog for a live band, and in 2021 he faced KRS-One in a Verzuz event at Barclays Center.

EPMD is an American hip-hop duo formed on Long Island in 1986 by Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith. Their stripped-down funk samples and unhurried rhyme delivery became central to East Coast rap through albums including Strictly Business, Unfinished Business and Business Never Personal, as well as tracks such as “You Gots to Chill,” “So Wat Cha Sayin’” and “Crossover.” Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith reunited for a New York concert in 1997 after several years apart, then returned to recording as EPMD. The duo later performed at Rock the Bells and joined the Hip Hop 50 Live concert at Yankee Stadium in 2023.