MC Duke obit

MC Duke, UK rapper and hardcore pioneer, dies

 

He was not on the list.

Pioneering UK rapper Kashif Adham, AKA MC Duke, has died.

Suburban Base Records, a label that Adham often collaborated with, broke the news on Instagram yesterday, April 21st. "MC Duke solidified his status as a legend in the UK music scene," the post read. "As a forefather of UK hip-hop, his influence reverberates through generations, laying the foundation for the vibrant UK rap scene that we know today, and we expect many will pay tribute at this devastating news." A long list of artists, including Goldie, Slipmatt and Nicky Blackmarket, paid tribute in the comment section of the post.

Hailing from East London, Adham got his big break at a DMC World Championships afterparty, where the tournament winner boasted that he could beat anyone who challenged him. Duke climbed onstage to take the challenge, emerged victorious and was subsequently signed to UK hip-hop label Music of Life in 1987.

Two albums and a string of singles followed, before Adham signed to Shut Up And Dance Records, one of the first labels to bridge the gap between hip-hop and hardcore. He continued on this path over the next few years, launching his own hardcore and jungle label, Hard Disk, collaborating with artists like Billy Daniel Bunter and Loop Da Loop, and performing at legendary rave spots like The Sanctuary in Milton Keynes. In 2007, he appeared in Charlie Sloth's track "Can't Forget About UK," which paid tribute to pioneering rappers from the UK.