Epmd Back In Business Views

General Goods

The duo reunited in 1997, recording a comeback LP, Back in Business. In 1998, a remix of the song Strictly Business appeared by the A&R man who signed the duo while at Fresh/Sleeping Bag, Kurtis Mantronik. Sermon released an album with Redman and Keith Murray as the Def Squad in 1998: El Niño was certified gold[citation needed] that same year. EPMD’s last LP, Out of Business, was released in 1999 as both a single CD and a limited edition double CD. The limited edition double CD contained both new material and rerecorded versions of its greatest hits. Smith released The Awakening (2003) on his own Hit Squad label, and Sermon released Chilltown, N.Y. (2004) on Motown/Universal. A Hit Squad compilation LP (overseen by Smith, featuring a new EPMD track) was released on Nervous Recordings in 2004.[1]

Two months later, EPMD and Keith Murray released a new song, titled The Main Event, produced by DJ Knowhow. In the March 2007 issue of Swedish hip-hop magazine Quote, Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith talked about whether the duo planned to record together again. On its recent tour, the group announced that it was working on a new album, tentatively titled We Mean Business.

EPMD's reunion album Back in Business may not be entirely successful, but it's far from being an embarrassment. Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith remain strong if unexceptional rappers, but the true news is in the music. Much of Back in Business captures the wild spirit of EPMD's classic late-'80s albums, complete with dense layers of sounds, samples, and funky beats. There's enough skill and invention in the production -- and just enough energy in the rapping -- to make Back in Business a welcome comeback. ~ Leo Stanley, All Music Guide

More than 20 years ago, the Brentwood, Long Island, team of Sermon and Parrish made huge waves with EPMD rs"s first album, entitled Strictly Business. The 1988 record went gold and was followed by several more classic rap records from the pair, including 1989irs"s Unfinished Business, 1992 rs"s Business Never Personal, 1999ors"s Out of Business and 2008drs"s comeback We Mean Business.