Against The Grain - Page 22 of 85 - No Bias. No Narratives.

Real Deal and Charron [DEBATABLE]

September 24, 2021February 7, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Real Deal has been around the game long enough to know his lane. So whether it’s piercing punchlines, empathetic bars that sometimes pander to the crowd, stringent personals, a fly rebuttal/freestyle game or a combination of all of the above, there’s plenty of good reason as to why the Pittsburgh battle rapper/gym teacher has survived for so long, had a pretty solid battle career and won a couple of KOTD belts along the way. And it’s also probably why Real got to keep his belt here versus Charron as like it or not, he’s become an expert on making you feel his bars, which leaves you at your own peril when a battle against Real Deal is left in the hands of judges. That said, while a consistently spicy Charron did spit a pair of (“How you the Real Deal, you ain’t even the real champ!”) personal-heavy, storytelling-rich and punch-lit rounds to open things up (had the 1st debatable, thanks in part to a nice rebuttal by Real Deal, while the more potent Charron took round 2), a more steadily spiffy 3rd might’ve cost him here as Deal’s more winsome polemics and righteous personals gave him the edge in the final round here to make this one a draw.

Verdict: Debatable

Favorite line: Real Deal – “My father just died and he plugged it in a bar like an illuminated light!”

Emerson Kennedy defeats Viixen The Assassin

September 24, 2021February 6, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: The Riot Network has been delivering a lot of dope battles lately and here’s another one as Viixen The Assassin takes on Emerson Kennedy in a crowd-pleasing 1-rounder. Viixen, with an aggressive palette of hardbody punches and stinging personals/name flips makes her mark. But a handful of pedestrian bars by Viixen to go along with a consistently spicy, wordplay-heavy, personal-lit and freestyle-dropping EK, gives the Salt Lake City battler the win.

Verdict: Emerson Kennedy (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Emerson Kennedy – “Let’s just keep it factual, I’m leaving you no options, I seen it too, I’m reading you, the lease you done adopted, the astrology, the horoscopes, read a bunch of nonsense, like Venus is my Roman goddess, she sees us through the problems, that’s fear ‘cuz out here Venus is from Compton!”

Ish Mulah defeats QP (Quantum Physics)

September 24, 2021February 4, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: One could imagine how many past battles Quantum Physics, armed with one of the best pen’s in the game, would’ve won if he consistently lined up his effervescent rhyme patterns the way he does here in round 3 vs. Ish Mulah. Yeah, one could imagine. That said, taking advantage of QP struggling through his 2nd round (before calling it quits midway) and a solid 1st by the former S.O.N.S. member that could’ve came harder if not for the aforementioned lack of uniformity, the always believable, but this time consistently gritty with some excellent wordplay to match Ish Mulah, takes the first couple of rounds of this Massacre Battle Association 3-rounder for the win.

Verdict: Ish Mulah (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Ish Mulah – “Fuck that, I bought a .380 for QP…that’s bad business!”

Steams defeats Gwitty

September 24, 2021February 4, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Good thing he caught himself and got back to spazzing as a near choke midway through what was a fierce, punch-heavy, wordplay-nice, name flip-lit and electrifying turn from Steams almost prevented this We Go Hard 1-round win over a pretty solid and ever eccentric, but not as consistently biting Gwitty.

Verdict: Steams (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Steams – “Midterms coming up, I’m a finish you Paper, you got a problem? Doctor’s appointment, It’ll get physical later!”

Brixx Belvy defeats King Kamonzi

September 24, 2021February 4, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Staring off a bit pedestrian, in this 1-rounder from GOTG, King Kamonzi gets spicier with his punches as the battle proceeded to make things competitive. Yet, armed with a fiery arsonel of consistently lucid punches and some piercing name flips/wordplay/gun bars, it’s Brixx Belvy who easily gets the win.

Verdict: Brixx Belvy (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Brixx Belvy – “I see a foe [.4], he see a .9, the Hennessey different!”

Tay Roc defeats Aye Verb

September 24, 2021February 1, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Another one of those ‘Damn, they ain’t battle already?!’ top tier vet moves as Tay Roc and Aye Verb finally link up for the first time on the URL stage. A solid battle that saw Verb provide a steady dose of boastful barbs as well as some biting personals, it’s still a more well-rounded Roc, unleashing a barrage of fiery gun bars, rugged name flips, righteous mayhem, spirited personals/wordplay on ‘Vegan Verb’ and piercing punchlines, who takes each round for the win.

Verdict: Tay Roc (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tay Roc – “You’ll get the .44 and .38 ‘cuz you extra Special, point black, 3 holes will make ya whole head a pretzel!”

DNA defeats Ave

September 24, 2021January 30, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: It’s only been a couple of battles since he came back from Covid, but it’s nice to see Ave’s repertoire expanding a bit from boastful barbs and piercing wordplay to getting more personal, angle-lit and righteous with his raps. That said, even with Ave dishing 3 solid turns, this one was all DNA. The NWX capo delivering 3 rounds of steady heat in this Smack Volume 7 battle without a missing beat, whether it was via sizzling name flips throughout the match, nifty punchlines after punchlines, flexing set-ups, fierce multi’s or salacious personals that leveled up to the point of dropping haymaker after haymaker and schooling Ave for an entire 3rd round (a classic) for his lack of a strong promo (amongst other things) game when it comes to his own battle rap career. Shit, it’s only January, but damn, if this new ‘No Gun Bar DNA’ isn’t becoming a serious problem.

Verdict: DNA (W) 3-0

Favorite line: DNA – “You wanna punch? Get hit wit’ the left quickly, the vets busy, the set hit me, you’ll never be the next Nitty, the closest we gon’ see Ave to Rum? wet Willie’s!”

Ace Amin defeats Ty Pretty

September 24, 2021January 30, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: One-rounder from Open Society Battle League, just when you thought Ty Pretty was making quite an impact with a bold and righteous turn devoted to separating real street dudes from battle rap pipe dreamers, Ace Amin pulls a Bigg K, pulls out the paperwork for the fans and proceeds to go ham on his opponent’s past misdeeds, which included accusations of rape with a gang of steely punches and scathing personals that not only got more stifling as the battle went on, but also handed Ace the vic.

Verdict: Ace Amin (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Ace Amin – “The jig is up, nigga what, I got my name ‘cuz my aim straight, my whole hood know how I give it up, you got yours probably ‘cuz you like to tie pretty women up, he’s sick as fuck!”

Chilla Jones defeats K-Shine

January 3, 2022January 29, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Against a performance-heavy, but topsy-turvy K-Shine whose wild idioms and oft-reckless punches made it seem like he was just throwing anything at a wall to see what sticks, Chilla Jones enlists a dope Matrix-themed round 1, before unleashing a wide barrage of festive name flips, mocking/righteous personals, piercing punchlines, some quality wordplay and a spitfire 1st round freestyle to handily gain a 30 in what was a highly-anticipated URL Smack Volume 7 matchup.

Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “Have you ever seen Morpheus glasses?, I mean your style’s is a reflection of it clear, ‘cuz yeah, it look good on the lenses, it just got no connection to the ear!”

Holmzie Da God defeats E. Ness

September 24, 2021January 29, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Personals based on E. Ness’ participation in the old MTV show ‘Making The Band’ are usually pretty stale. But Holmzie Da God’s ability to finesse those personals into hitting darts on Ness’ life now (as compared to his old bandmates) along with a bunch of other piercing punches, allows Da God to edge this ‘Jersey vs. Philly’ 1-rounder over his performance-lit, but bar-wise topsy-turvy opponent.

Verdict: Holmzie Da God (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Holmzie Da God – “How da fuck I go from watching you on Making the Band to watching da Band making shit without you!”

Swave Sevah defeats Gwitty

September 24, 2021January 28, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Pretty sure that Gwitty didn’t intend on being as funny as his opponent Swave Sevah certainly did in this witty 1-rounder from A New Era Comglomerate. But nonetheless he was, which while helping to keep things close, even with some nice punches mixed in, wasn’t enough to beat back Swave’s continual barbs on Gwitty’s alleged issues with hygiene.

Verdict: Swave Sevah (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Swave Sevah – “Yo, this smell got me dumb mad bro, yo pass me the bag, I’m a splatter bum, no better yet, let’s put soap in a sock, wet it & beat him until he lather up!”

Danny Myers defeats Arsonal

September 24, 2021January 28, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Things of note with this URL battle between Arsonal and Danny Myers. For starters, there’s no way Danny battling Drugz just a couple of weeks prior to this bout didn’t effect the overall quality of his pen game. I refuse to believe it. Secondly, are Arsonal and his right-hand man Ray Swagg really not fucking with each other anymore?!? That’s something I hadn’t even heard about on the gossip blogs. Lastly, while he still ended up losing the battle, Arsonal was really lyrical here. The disrespectful NJ vet only losing the deciding 3rd (got Danny taking the first and Ars edging the 2nd round) to Danny’s standard histrionics, wily punchlines and platform personals (tho that was a fire Jersey battle rapper scheme he delivered in round 2) because of an elongated turn in what was a pretty close battle throughout.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Danny Myers – “I will drop an atomic bomb on your house, i support the nuclear family!”

Emerson Kennedy defeats Jay Lopez

September 24, 2021January 27, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Sporting a steady gang of hard-hitting (and well-themed) personals to go along with a boatload of feverish, but still potent punchlines and boastful barbs, Emerson Kennedy does enough to beat back the righteous/aggressive wordplay from a pretty solid Jay Lopez in this close 1-rounder from Underground Battle League LLC.

Verdict: Emerson Kennedy (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Emerson Kennedy – “You mad that I evolved and all your pen’s didn’t?, Jay you haven’t gotten better, and it ain’t gonna end different, we been waiting for a J but his career is Ben Simmons!”

Chef Trez defeats KD

September 24, 2021January 26, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Competitive 1-rounder from Smoke Room Battle League sees both Chef Trez and KD deliver fiery performances that were matched by plenty of piercing punchlines/ However, a more wordplay-heavy, mayhem-rich and slightly more versatile Trez earns the win despite going first and not being able to drop any rebuttals (a fact that was hilariously noted by KD after the coin toss).

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “This a horror movie, this round I brought was sick, I’ve been writing fire, Michael Myers off the jump you know I’m cut for this!”

NXT defeats Quban

September 24, 2021January 26, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: If the URL wants to change its format on building newcomers, they might want to tap into both sides of the table, instead of one. In other words, while last year’s Crucible winner, NWT, has certainly warranted moving up the chain of more seasoned battlers, judging from Quban’s perspective here, it’s pretty clear that the former Goonie didn’t share the same feelings on facing his opponent, esp. considering all the work he’s done put in for Smack (my suggestion, why not test NXT’s moxie against a rarely seen vet like an M. Ciddy or Quest Mcody instead). Nonetheless, still a dope battle between the two here with a lot of lyrical stunting displayed on both sides to go along with plenty of mayhem, stifling wordplay and piercing punchlines/personals. The angle-lit (extra performance points on pulling out Quban’s “old vest”) and slightly punch-heavier NXT edges rounds 1, before the fledging West-coast spitter ups his bar proficiency and scores with more than enough haymakers (and a spitfire mid-round rebuttal) to also take 2 for the win. 3rd round was another spirited and crazy one that saw both battlers equally lit, thus forcing a debatable turn.

Verdict: NXT *W) 2-1

Favorite line: NXT – “3am, overnight shift, trying to maintain bars, Remember the Titms, I ran practice through a graveyard!”

Kaboom and Jai 400 Block [DEBATABLE]

September 24, 2021January 25, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Kaboom vs. Jai 400 on a ‘Philly vs. Jersey’ card features a couple of fiery schemes, an elongated 2nd and a dope freestyle to open his 3rd round by ‘Boom as well as a gang of consistently (outside of a final round slip-up) gritty, quality punches/name flips from Jai. However, with neither battler quite on their A-game, a debatable 1st round, Jai edging the 2nd with a more condensed and steadily spicy turn before a killer turn by Boom in round 3 allows him to take that one, a draw here seems entirely feasible.

Verdict: Debatable

Favorite line: Kaboom – “I feel bad for ya hard luck, Gillie walked in…and Jai 400 got starstruck!”

Pristavia defeats Shy

March 14, 2022January 25, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Nice enough to insert some Scripture in her raps for those who need them, Christian battle rapper Pristavia also utilizes a gang of fiery street riddims and piercing punchlines to handily beat back a lyrically solid, but way too short and a bit flow-challenged turn from Shy in this 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden.

Verdict: Pristavia (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Pristavia – “See, you the type to do things just to fit in, I’m the type to black in the building whether you like it or not, that’s a sit-in!”

Jey The Nitewing defeats Nu Jerzey Twork

September 24, 2021January 24, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: After an 8-month absence from battle rap due to a car accident, Nu Jerzey Twork’s comeback to the scene, here on a Smack Volume 7 card against Jey The Nitewing, was for a most part, a feelgood performance. Indeed, armed with a gang of mocking personals, witty bars and blistering punches/schemes that really took flight during a spitfire 2nd round, despite getting edged in round 1 to his more versatile and punch-heavy opponent, Twork’s return after two rounds was a remarkable one, not to mention a nod to hard work and perseverance after all he’s been through outside the ring of late. However, in the deciding 3rd round, Nitewing’s consistent penchant for dry wit, rudimentary rhymes that hit their mark, tight angles, nifty wordplay and virtuous personals would be too much for even Twork, who midway through his round, seemed to misplace his bars before succumbing to freestyles and then, unfortunately ‘Jersey’-ing his way to a loss.

Verdict: Jey The Nitewing (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Jey The Nitewing – “I’ll shoot you while you taking a shit…yeah, that’s funny when it’s thought about, it’s even when the same nigga’s is asking me to stall them out!”

DNA defeats Geechi Gotti (Rematch)

September 24, 2021January 23, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: A highly anticipated rematch between DNA and Geechi Gotti sees the two get righteous as well as personal and deliver much more of a talking too at each other than expected. And while both battlers got their point across when it came to individually-slanted zingers, a more effective with the wordplay/schemes, consistent spicy, prophetic and less predictable DNA does enough to edge the first two rounds for the win before the more brazen Gotti earns the 3rd.

Verdict: DNA (W) 2-1

Favorite line: DNA – “New rules, I’m old-school I use the left-hand often, somebody better put Mark Cal away [Calaway] or he gonna be a dead man walking!”

Jey The Nitewing defeats Rio Nkosi

September 24, 2021January 22, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Well, never let it be said that Rio Nkosi wasn’t the first person to pull out a sword during a rap battle. Other than that not much to see here as a seemingly exasperated at times, but righteous and punch-lit all the way through Jey The Nitewing withstands 3 rounds of longwinded, subpar rhymes from an opponent who might be better off sticking with the conscious rap scene than battling.

Verdict: Jey The Nitewing (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Jey The Nitewing – “This isn’t even a battle nigga, not at all, this the trailer for ya funeral, I’m just giving another monologue!”

T Top defeats Eazy the Block Captain

February 8, 2022January 21, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: In a competitive battle that, as expected, was littered with loads of trap talk, gritty punchlines and quips on each other’s street cred, a loquacious, but still more consistently more versatile, name flip/personal-lit, witty and spicier with the set-ups T-Top takes all 3 rounds to earn the win over Eazy the Block Captain in this matchup from URL’s Super Fight card.

Verdict: T-Top (W) 3-0

Favorite line: T-Top – “You could come and fool them with all that fake hustling, talking about he was cooking as kid, yeah Eazy [Easy]..Bake Oven!”

Shotgun Suge defeats K. Walker

September 24, 2021January 19, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: A way more condensed, name flip-lit, fiery punching and mayhem-friendly Shotgun Suge does enough to beat back a witty at times and gritty with the punches, but filler-prone K. Walker in this competitive 1-rounder from The Battle Academy.

Verdict: Shotgun Suge (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Shotgun Suge – “I’ll let the heat press on Walker like Madam C.J.!”

Rum Nitty defeats Don Marino

September 24, 2021January 18, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Assisted by a middle round choke from his opponent during round 2 (credit to Nitty for letting Don Marino make an attempt to complete his turn, which he still ended up cutting short), but scoring at will with a host of fiery punchlines, mocking personals, deft wordplay and flaring gun bars, Rum Nitty handily takes the first couple of rounds for the win in this Super Fight Matchup from URL. A fire, personal-lit 3rd round from Marino combined with a still solid Nitty choosing to go mostly indirect during the same turn allows the Mexican standout to avoid getting shutout.

Verdict: Rum Nitty (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Rum Nitty – “I’m a do you Shady fast…it’s a Rap [wrap] God!”

JC defeats Ryda

September 24, 2021January 15, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Outside of a spitfire 2nd round that bordered on immaculate with its cold set-ups, mocking personals, flexing heat and gritty wordplay, an ever confident JC, while not always on his A-game, still manages to deliver enough righteous punches in the deciding 3rd round to beat back a versatile (esp. those two stinging rebuttals to start his round 3), but a bit topsy-turvy in the latter rounds Ryda in this Born Legacy 11 battle from URL.

Verdict: JC (W) 2-1

Favorite line: JC – “Mr. Ryda, yeah you even spell your name lame, but I’ma show you why I [U, Y, !] am the difference!”

Danny Myers defeats Drugz

September 24, 2021January 13, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: A superlative, name flip/metaphor-rich, classic ‘Who Am I?!’ 3rd round by Danny Myers caps off an overall superb showing from the Cali vet here in this URL Super Fight battle versus Drugz. Danny, who also served up a fiery mix of hitting punchlines, mocking personals and boastful barbs, would land enough haymakers to take both the 1st and final round, hurting himself a bit only when he attempted to blast his opponent on an alleged incident with Yung Ill in St. Louis and thus leaving the well-armed, blazing at times and aggressive Drugz with enough room to force a debatable 2nd.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Danny Myers – “This battle was the highlight of your life and I’m the neon marker!”

E-Hart defeats Young L

September 24, 2021January 13, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Verbal War Zone 3-round battle on beats between E-Hart and Young L has the former delivering a steady dose of spirited punchlines, some piercing wordplay, a standout performance and gritty mayhem, while rapping in sync to each of the beats. An aggressive Young L, however, after spitting enough gritty name flips and heated gun bars to make for a debatable 1st, would choke away his 2nd round to his opponent before getting beat again in the 3rd thanks to a versatile and dope showing by Hart..

Verdict: E-Hart (W) 2-1

Favorite line: E-Hart – “20/20 vision, [points hand like a gun at Young L’s head], I hit it, it won’t be a good year!”

Dougy defeats Henny #3

September 24, 2021January 13, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: From We Go Hard, gritty street shit, piercing punchlines and persuasive gun bars dominate this competitive 1-rounder between Dougy and Henny #3. And while Henny, after a bit of a slow start, showed and proved with a gang of flexing bangers, the more consistently spicy Dougy, armed not only with his usual assortment of radiating burners, but a hail storm of bruising name flips, earns the win.

Verdict: Dougy (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Dougy – “The way we grew up it’s a difference, I wasn’t even spitting, you was making sure your bars crack, I was in the kitchen, wokring on my whip…this is way before Carfax!”

NXT defeats Funeral F.A.M.E.

September 24, 2021January 12, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Having seen a couple of NXT battles (him vs. Saynt is extra dope) before he hit the URL stage, one can attest to the immense amount of talent the kid has. And I’m willing to bet that Funeral F.A.M.E. does too…especially after this matchup. As the cadence-flexible NXT delivers 3 rounds of savage heat via a gang of head-twisting punchlines, fierce wordplay, stinging name flips and aggressive, performance-boosted mayhem to beat back an opponent who was altogether loud, loaded and gritty, but too-often reliant on name flips in the earlier rounds until he got more versatile and hitting with his bars during a standout 3rd round, which in turn forced a debatable and allowed F.A.M.E. to avoid the shutout.

Verdict: NXT (W) 2-1

Favorite line: NXT – “You sloppy, they only think you crazy when you yelling, you could be AWOL with a white sheet…watch your projection!”

Jai 400 Block defeats Jakkboy Maine

September 24, 2021January 11, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Although he did go a little overboard with the John John angle, when it came to the personals, Jai 400 still hits with enough salacious/mocking personals, rigid name flips/schemes, fiery set-ups, witty barbs and consistently spicy punchlines/gun bars to take the 1st and deciding 3rd round and win this matchup over the solid unorthodox stylings of a Jakkboy Maine who did put forth a captivating and quality effort despite struggling with his flow a bit here and there.

Verdict: Jai 400 (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Jai 400 – “Watch him for the backstabbers, for the Love of the Money, you’ll take the Stairway to Heaven if ever you owe Jai [O’Jay]!”

Franchise defeats Dev The Demon

September 24, 2021January 9, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Predominantly unleashing the heavy gun bars throughout this Riot Network 3-rounder, but also bent on graphic mayhem as well as some solid punches/personals/name flips, Franchise does enough to hold steady with a raucous and personal-savvy Dev The Demon for two rounds, before taking advantage of a couple slip-ups from his opponent, while spouting yet another turn of unbridled heat in the deciding 3rd to gain the win.

Verdict: Franchise (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Franchise – “You with no action, stop capping, them shootous, I am not jacking, I remember late nights I was a type savage, robbing nigger’s and giving they shit back, it was called practice!”

B. Magic defeats Pollo Creed

September 24, 2021January 9, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Another reminder of how nice he is when he comes prepared and has his shit together, B. Magic strings together a gang of consistently piercing and versatile punchlines/name flips to edge a gritty and pretty solid turn by Pollo Creed in this competitive 1-rounder from The Rap Committee.

Verdict: B. Magic (W) 1-0

Favorite line: B. Magic – “Question mark how the clip look nigga, I’m raising clues!”

Kid Chaos defeats Th3 Saga

September 24, 2021January 9, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: After a debatable 1st round that saw both Th3 Saga and Kid Chaos get busy with a gang of flexing punchlines, piercing name flips, swinging flow patterns, stifling gun bars/mayhem, rich storytelling and dope wordplay, a battle that was on its way to being a possible classic, gets thrown completely off by Saga incredibly choking away the latter two rounds. And for a clearly disappointed at his opponent’s misadventures Chaos, a couple of personal-lit, biting but also witty turns going at everything from Saga’s religious faith to his battle rap record, wouldn’t necessarily turn out to be a waste as much as they were feenin’ for some of that same energy in return.

Verdict: Kid Chaos (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Kid Chaos – “Let’s keep this conversation a buck, the U.S. Treasury ain’t change the dollar bill in decades, so why should I?…I’m one of them ONE’s!”

Swamp and Swave Sevah [DEBATABLE]

September 24, 2021January 6, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Dope battle between Swamp and Swave Sevah on URL’s Born Legacy 11 card sees the two go at it full steam with a boatload of mocking personals, witty barbs, rich storytelling, gritty punchlines, bully talk, a spicy rebuttal by (“Nigger’s still getting at me about this karate shit, when that shit gonna pass?, yo, y’all realize y’all make fun of me ‘cuz I know how to kick y’all ass?!”) Swave to go along with a hard freestyle by Swamp and some flashy heat/gun bars. Despite a slight hiccup midway, Swamp with more haymakers takes round 1 before another condensed and blazing turn by Swave gets him round 2. 3rd round was another goodie with Swave getting righteous on the angle tip while gamely utilizing his opponent’s born name throughout his final turn, while Swamp kept it a bit more condensed and versatile while delivering enough boastful darts and piercing punches to make this one a toss-up.

Verdict: Debatable

Favorite line: Swamp – “This ain’t nuthin’ but the old head that pull up to the park, do nothing, make one shot, now he telling everybody to get back on defense!”

Danja Zone defeats O-Red

September 24, 2021January 5, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Consistency counts for something as a pretty solid throughout and never off his game Danja Zone, via a plethora of spicy 4-bar set-ups, some fiery wordplay, plenty of boastful darts and the occasional piercing name flip/personal survives a sublime and punch-heavy 1st round from O-Red to edge the latter two rounds what with the help of his opponent delivering two topsy-turvy turns that too often bordered on choking.

Verdict: Danja Zone (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Danja Zone – “You cook, I cook, so what you saying nigga like Paula Deen!”

Awthentic defeats Gwitty

February 18, 2024January 5, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: From WeGoHard, Long Island, NY versus Long Island, NY aka Gwitty vs. Awthentic stays close for a couple of rounds before a sublime 3rd by an already up 2-0 (thanks to a couple of steadier-hitting and more efficient turns in both of the openers) Awthentic, via a gang of intricate/boastful punches and that more than sizzled with its stream of killer wordplay/similes serves as the coup de grace over an opponent who while clearly prepared with a steady bag of crowd-pleasing euphemisms, gritty street tales and other performance-rich darts, was way too pedestrian overall to keep up.

Verdict: Awthentic (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Awthentic – “3rd round, it’s time to show the nigga he not tough, I’ll put a taser ro this Grape and turn Watts’ up!”

Th3 Saga defeats Bandit Montana

September 24, 2021January 4, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Solid, gritty and mocking effort by Bandit Montana gets beat back by a more consistently spicy, name flip-lit, mayhem-dishing and wordplay/set-up heavy Th3 Saga in this competitive 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden.

Verdict: Th3 Saga (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Th3 Saga – “So can I please get the respect I deserve?, after this round, or is there shade when I wig on Ban…I’m trying to skip town!”

Bill Collector defeats Arsonal

September 24, 2021January 3, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: In what was a close and competitive, but also gritty and highly personal at times 1-rounder from The Battle Academy, a performance-heavy Bill Collector’s mostly rambunctious punchlines along with a trio (1 crazy dope, 2 solid) of rebuttals edges what was a brazen and disrespectful, but also flow-challenged turn by Arsonal.

Verdict: Bill Collector (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Bill Collector – “I wanted to give you different pieces out of the magazine like a ranson note!”

JC defeats Franchise

September 24, 2021January 3, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Matching his opponent’s consistent love for gun bars with plenty of piercing heat of his own, while also adding a gang of mocking personals, rigid name flips and fiery punchlines/wordplay to the mix, JC does enough in each round to score a 30 on Franchise in this exclusive 3-rounder from the URL App.

Verdict: JC (W) 3-0

Favorite line: JC – “So how you always throw these punches, but I land mine better, I’ll send a shooter to Toronto so fucking accurate he’ll leave with a Franchise record!”

Rosenberg Raw defeats Head I.C.E.

September 24, 2021January 1, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: In this 3-rounder from RBE, a hot start by Head I.C.E. in round 1 gets blown to bits in the latter rounds by an increasingly sublime Rosenberg Raw, who’s more bullish/old man mocking punchlines, steely street chatter and fiery wordplay combined with an opponent who didn’t have much to offer in rounds 2 and 3, proved to be more than enough for the win.

Verdict: Rosenberg Raw (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Rosenberg Raw – “They pack trey’s [.3’s] trust me, if the gat wave they buck him, it’ll crush ICE, now he just a gas-station Slushie!”

JC defeats Riggz

September 24, 2021January 1, 2021 by Mister Greco

Recap: Dope, punch-heavy and consistently fiery battle between JC and Riggz comes down to a spitfire, haymaker-drenched 3rd round from Mr. Carter, whose death before dishonor rhythm’s, rigid name flips/gun bars and systematic breakdowns surrounding demise worked in unison to edge the deciding round and up young Julian’s body count.

Verdict: JC (W) 2-1

Favorite line: JC – “That’s why I brought extensions ‘cuz JC warned y’all about the Latter days!”

Shotgun Suge defeats Brooklyn Hanz

September 24, 2021December 30, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: Helped a bit by Brooklyn Hanz struggling with his flow in the latter rounds (despite a couple of still strong turns), Shotgun Suge survives a mayhem-dishing, slick-talking, punch-heavy turn by Hanz in round 1, returning the heat with some piercing personals, raucous bangers and scintillating name flips/4-bar setups to edge rounds 2 and 3 for the win in this competitive Born Legacy X battle from URL.

Verdict: Shotgun Suge (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Shotgun Suge – “The only thing Hanz [hands] shoot is rock, paper, scissors!”

Real Sikh defeats B. Magic

September 24, 2021December 28, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: URL Born Legacy X matchup sees Smack Class of 2020 “rookie” Real Sikh turn the tables on longtime vet B. Magic for 3 rounds via a gang of mocking personals, righteous discourses on battle rap efficiency, stinging 4-bar setups and piercing punchlines/name flips to beat an opponent who started off witty, punch/name flip-lit and solid in round 1, but succumbed to pertinent slip-ups and a choke in the latter rounds to help give Sikh the 30.

Verdict: Real Sikh (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Real Sikh – “Talk about ‘I told him once…’, you ain’t telling us shit, you be trying to tell us something then forget what it is!”

Bad Newz defeats Boze The Bambino

September 24, 2021December 27, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: From LetsTalkAboutIt TV, assisted by opponent Boze The Bambino’s topsy-turvy name flips as well as a couple of longer, but not quite as qualitative turns, a loud and aggressive, but also consistently hard-hitting, name flip-lit and raucous with the heat Bad Newz takes the first two rounds of this competitive 3-rounder for the win, before a cleaner flowing, punchline-lit and steadily fiery Boze took the 3rd.

Verdict: Bad Newz (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Bad Newz – “You getting damaged, all 3 rounds you getting vanished, ‘cuz I keep the stick and light up any card I touch better than Gambit!

Loso defeats Cali Smoov

September 24, 2021December 27, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: Relying on a gang of rigid name flips, well-lit Christian prophecies and a bunch of blistering personals to the point of even exposing the lies surrounding his opponent’s music career, an aggressive and dogmatic Loso handily beats back the ever passionate and righteous, but topsy-turvy yarns of Cali Smoov.

Verdict: Loso (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Loso – “You got beat up in Hawaii, don’t punch me please, but that’s like getting robbed at Disneyworld or stabbed at Chuck E. Cheese!”

Chef Trez defeats Jajo

September 24, 2021December 26, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: Showing off his funny bone amongst a boatload of fiery gun bars, persistent mayhem, mocking personals, dope rebuttals and gritty punchlines, Chef Trez scores a 30 in this IMBL battle against a solid and witty at times, but flawed when it came to punches, Jajo.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Show him the small clip, it’s a sneak peek, gun under his chin, separate everything, it’s a neat freak, I press the button, push everything to the top…it’s a retweet!”

Ave defeats Fonz

September 24, 2021December 26, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: Boastful barbs, hard-hitting punches, fiery gun bars and fierce name flips/personals aside, it’s a returning-to-the-scene Ave’s dope/metaphor-lit father/son, vet/rookie angle in the deciding 3rd round that edges what was another fire round from Fonz and that in turn earns the Norfolk, VA, vet the win here in this competitive 3-rounder from URL’s Born Legacy 11.

Verdict: Ave (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Ave – “You get my drift, it’s not that I don’t honor shit you do, but Smack and them kept us distant that’s why our bond just never grew, you know how hard that is to view?, boy that shit gave me an Ultimate Madness, that why when I say was torn, I meant from you!”

Chef Trez defeats E. Ness

September 24, 2021December 26, 2020 by Mister Greco

Recap: Close 1-rounder from The Battle Academy between Chef Trez and E. Ness is lit with boastful zingers, fiery 4-bar-set-ups, rigid gun bars, piercing name flips and gripping/witty punchlines. And while the old-school performing/beat-friendly stylings of Ness made for a solid show, a couple of more haymakers and a paid of dope rebuttals by Trez gets the Chef a win.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “But this the wrong match, I’m a show you that fame is boring, y’all seen me put Smack down and still be a legend killer…I’m Randy Orton!”