The Def Squad has been going strong for over 30 years. As Hip-Hop celebrates its 50th anniversary, the three-MC core of Erick Sermon, Redman, and Keith Murray showed up in style at the 2023 BET Awards.

Erick Sermon kicked off the medley performing his 2001 solo song “Music” from his album of the same name. This BET Awards performance occurred in a year when “The Green-Eyed Bandit” revealed that he had overcome an opioid addiction while suffering some public losses. The self-produced Marvin Gaye-sampling track shouts out Sermon’s Def Squad band-mate Keith Murray. Moments later, the host, DJ Kid Capri, urged the Central Islip, Long Island MC to the stage.

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Keith performed his 1994 solo breakout “The Most Beautifullest Thing In This World” from his debut of the same title. E-Double produced the Jive/Zomba Records track. After recent reports of erratic behavior and controversial interviews from the respected MC, Keith Murray shows that his stage presence remains sharp, and his catalog has aged gracefully. Dressed in a suit, Keith meant business.

Redman followed, making an entrance through the crowd with a glow-in-the-dark bike. Reggie Noble performed “Da Goodness,” his self-produced 1998 collaboration with Busta Rhymes from Doc’s Da Name 2000. Busta, Jadakiss, Big Daddy Kane, and others cheered from the crowd while Red’ moved his nimble body to the beat, not missing a word. Notably, Busta Rhymes is the recipient of the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award from the BET Awards.

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Redman is at work at Muddy Waters Too. In 2019, Sermon released Vernia. That same year, Keith dropped Lord Of The Metaphor 2. Several new Redman collaborations, including songs with Logic and Royce 5’9, are currently on the Ambrosia For Heads playlist.

#BonusBeat: AFH‘s 2019 interview with EPMD: