EPMD’s Strictly Business: A 25th Anniversary Retrospective - Page 3

In 1987, EPMD (credited as EPEE MD) debuted with their groundbreaking 12” “It’s My Thing/You’re A Customer” on Fresh/Sleeping Bag Records. While it was just one of numerous classic singles to drop that year it would have even more impact the following summer when both songs were on the 10 song opus Strictly Business.

“It’s My Thing” featured a loop of The Whole Darn Family’s “Seven Minutes Of Funk,” the infamous “Long Red” drums and perfectly placed vocal samples from Marva Whitney’s “It’s My Thing” captivated listeners. PMD & E Double’s verses weren’t as swift or verbose as some of the new wave of rappers, but between the production, sample layering & overall song construction of both “It’s My Thing” and “You’re A Customer” they were two of the dopest jams of 1987. Little did we know that was just the tip of the iceberg…

When EPMD resurfaced with the title track to their debut album Strictly Business, the epic Summer Of 1988 was coming to a close. Black music was at its modern zenith as both R&B and Hip-Hop cranked out seminal records and classic LP’s at a breakneck pace. Let me paint you a picture of what albums were popular at the time Strictly Business was about to drop. On the R&B side Tony! Toni! Toné!’s debut LP Who?, Guy & Troop’s self titled debuts, Al B. Sure’s In Effect Mode, New Edition’s Heart Break and Bobby Brown’s Don’t Be Cruel were the biggest albums of Summer 1988.

On the Rap side, we had Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper, Public Enemy’s It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back, Stetsasonic’s In Full Gear, BDP’s By All Means Necessary, Salt N’ Pepa’s A Salt With A Deadly Pepa, Big Daddy Kane’s Long Live The Kane, Eric B. & Rakim’s Follow The Leader, N.W.A.’s Straight Outta Compton were blaring out of walkmans, radios & cars all over America’s inner cities.

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Photo: Sleeping Bag Records

To put this all into further perspective, right after Strictly Business dropped, Marley Marl’s In Control Vol. 1 then Eazy-E’s Eazy-Duz-It came out. It was a golden era and making a classic in the midst of all of this musical excellence only magnifies EPMD’s achievements.

On August 30th, 1988 the LP dropped shortly after the title track was released as a single. The responses to both were immediate and overwhelming. The sample layering between Kool & The Gang’s “Jungle Boogie,” Eric Clapton’s version of “I Shot The Sheriff” and Mountain’s “Long Red” made for a trunk rattling beat that every B-Boy needed as his personal theme music. At a time where MC’s rhymed at frenetic paces while utilizing college level vocabulary words and flows that grew increasingly more complex, EPMD stayed with their slow pronounced flows with what seemed like straight talk. If the beats were hard, then the rhymes were easy listening. It was quite a departure from the other rappers of the same era. They stood out simply because they rhymed effortlessly and it perfectly complemented their rich, layered production.

EPMD had to contend with the noise of The Bomb Squad, Dr. Dre, Ced Gee, Marley Marl, Daddy-O, Prince Paul & DBC of Stetsasonic, Teddy Riley, Paul C, Hurby Luv Bug and many others at the time Strictly Business was released but they were soon catapulted right into that strata after the album hit store shelves. PMD famously rapped “30 days later the LP went Gold” but recent findings say it took closer to 4 months before that happened. Regardless, an independent Rap album going Gold in those days was quite an eye opening feat no matter how long it took. Now let’s discuss the album itself and it’s lasting influence.

EPMD’s strengths were their stellar production, effortless quotable rhymes without flying over listeners heads and their song construction. In addition to all of these factors was the utilization of their DJ, first Diamond J and later (for the other eight tracks of their album) DJ K La Boss. K La Boss’ scratches figured prominently in the tracks “Strictly Business,” “You Gots Ta Chill,” “I’m Housin’,” “K La Boss” and “Jane.” In retrospect, the departure of K La Boss allowed for EPMD to upgrade to DJ Scratch for the rest of their careers. That, however, is a story for another day.

Their rhymes were easy to remember and stuck in your head without you even realizing it. Even 25 years later, this is one of those iconic albums that most heads know from front to back by heart. Much like Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince on the ultra popular album He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper, EPMD didn’t take themselves super seriously. This was evident by E Double’s random attempts at singing even with a noticeable lisp. The fact that he rhymed and did whatever he felt like drew the listener in even more. It was a direct contrast to what LL Cool J, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Kool G. Rap, KRS One, Chuck D, Ice Cube, MC Ren and Kool Keith were all doing and it resonated with listeners on an unexpected level.

EPMD were a change of pace and unconventional at the same time. They were different from the rest but yet ended up part of group of young rappers and producers who established the aesthetic that future Hip-Hop albums would aspire to from then on. And to think, they were both barely out of their teens when they dropped their first single back in 1987 and had to learn their way around the studio through trial and error.

Funky album tracks like “Let The Funk Flow,” “The Steve Martin,” “Jane” and the DJ scratching exhibition “DJ K La Boss” incited rewinds and never failed to get people dancing whenever they were played. If you add to that equation some of Rap’s greatest singles in “It’s My Thing/You’re A Customer,” “Strictly Business,” “You Gots To Chill”  and “I’m Housin’/Get Off The Bandwagon”—the end result is a classic album that’s an enjoyable listen from top to bottom devoid of any skippable tracks.

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Parrish Smith and Erick Sermon not only helped to further define the sound, style and overall aesthetic of Rap music during the apex of Hip-Hop’s first Golden Era but their lyrical and sonic approaches also stood out. What many present Rap fans that don’t remember the late 80’s aren’t aware of is the quality of EPMD’s live show. They came out during the era of stadium Rap tours where they had to share a stage with the top acts of the genre and they had to be able to entertain as well as they did.

Between PMD, E Double, DJ K La Boss and dancers Stezo and Fendi they were able to hold their own on tours with Run DMC, Public Enemy, Stetsasonic, N.W.A, Big Daddy Kane, BDP, Eric B. & Rakim. If you couldn’t deliver live as well as you could on record you’d face serious scrutiny during this time and EPMD did not disappoint.

So here we are 25 years later paying homage to a great group and remembering a classic album that stood the test of time that still sounds as fresh today as it did back in 1988. Numerous artists and groups were inspired to make their own brand of Hip-Hop after hearing Strictly Business. EPMD is partly or directly responsible for the starting the careers of Stezo, Craig Mack, K-Solo, Redman, Das EFX and Keith Murray, among others, and they influenced numerous artists to be themselves and advance the art form by being original. EPMD’s potential weaknesses and idiosyncrasies instead became their strengths when they entered the studio. That’s as Hip-Hop as it gets.

As a kid, I remember staring at that album cover with the logo Haze designed (which I originally misread as “epmo”) and all the equipment around Erick & Parrish in the studio wondering how they made that album using it. I close my eyes and remember how that album closed with the ultra funky track “Jane” where they transformed Rick James’ jam “Mary Jane” into something completely new. I marvelled at it. I can press play on that song today and be instantly transported right back to 1988 and retain that exact same original feeling I had when the tape played on the box in my bedroom when I was 13.

The supreme height that you can attain when creating art is to make timeless material that will resonate with people and continue to move them now matter the amount of time that’s passed since it’s creation. Both Parrish Smith and Erick Sermon succeeded in doing so when they made one of the greatest Rap albums ever in their early 20’s when competition was it’s fiercest and the burgeoning genre was at it’s first creative apex and this should never be forgotten. If you’re a Rap fan you should listen to Strictly Business to know what the gold standard today’s rappers and producers should be ultimately aspiring to: creating timeless art that resonates with it’s listeners.