Emerging during hip-hop's massive creative expansion of the late '80s, Big Daddy Kane became known as the ultimate smooth lyricist of rap's first decade, yet there was more to him than the stylish wardrobe, gold jewelry, and sophisticated charisma. Kane possessed a prodigious rhyming technique honed from numerous B-boy battles; he could also be an Afrocentric consciousness-raiser versed in the philosophy of the Nation of Islam's Five Percent school, or a smooth urban soul crooner whose harmonizing was no match for his talents as an MC. While he never scored much pop-crossover success, his best material ranks among the finest hip-hop of its era, and his persona was enormously influential on countless future would-be players such as the late Biggie Smalls and Jay-Z, to name a few.

Big Daddy Kane was born Antonio Hardy in Brooklyn on September 10, 1968; the stage name "Kane" was an acronym for King Asiatic Nobody's Equal. In 1984, he met Biz Markie, and the two struck up 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 group of Hip Hop heads led 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," which became an underground sensation. His first album, Long Live the Kane, followed not long after and was equally well-received, producing another underground classic in "Ain't No Half-Steppin'." Kane consolidated his success with 1989's It's a Big Daddy Thing, which spawned arguably one of his most effective songs in "Smooth Operator" (and also found him working with new jack producer Teddy Riley on "I Get the Job Done"). 1990's A Taste of Chocolate was a wide-ranging effort, highlighted by Kane's duets with Barry White and comedian Rudy Ray Moore, aka Dolemite.

Kane's next album came in 1991's Prince of Darkness, a mellower, more R&B-based collection that strayed away from the underground talent that made him a star; however, he maintained his status with the ladies by posing for Madonna's notorious 1992 photo book Sex, as well as Playgirl magazine. 1993's Looks Like a Job For... was something of an artistic comeback, but it failed to re-establish Kane in the hip-hop community, which was in the midst of a West Coast/Dr. Dre-inspired love affair with gangsta rap. 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. Kane largely retired from the scene over the next few years, resurfacing in 1998 on Blackheart Records, releasing what was ostensibly his farewell album, Veteranz Day.

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 New York 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 video game 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.

On June 5, 2007, Chinga Chang Records released the mixtape Official Joints, which featured "BK Mentality", a new track by Big Daddy Kane.

Big Daddy Kane made a cameo in the video for Game's Pain, a track by Compton rapper The Game. The video also featured appearances by Raekwon, Three Six Mafia and Ice Cube. The Game also referenced Jay-Z's former occupation as Kane's hypeman with the line Ask a Jay-Z fan about Big Daddy Kane: Don't know him, Game gon' show 'em. The line can also be interpreted as a subtle shot at Jay-Z.

Big Daddy Kane made a surprise appearance on the remix of the song Don't Touch Me by Busta Rhymes

In 2007, Big Daddy Kane featured on 'Brooklyn (Remix) on The Brick (Bodega Chronicles), the debut mixtape by upcoming rapper Joell Ortiz.