Recap: Scoring left and right with a boatload of fiery personals, gritty punchlines, some fire set-ups and your usual assortment of aggressive mayhem/braggadocio bars, during this 1-rounder from Any Body Can Die Battle League, Noah even does a good job at predicting his opponent’s angle’s, leaving a recycle-prone and a bit flow-challenged, but still competitive Nu Jerzey Twork with yet another surprising loss on his record.
Verdict: Noah (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Noah – “Nigga, this shit is murder with a smile on, bodies to pile on, while you was setting goals, I was already breaking the pile-on!”
Recap: Nice of Illmaculate to finally show up in the 3rd round what with a punch and rebuttal-heavy turn that was certainly crowd-pleasing. But before that, this KOTD 3-rounder was all Ill Will, the Yak-town battler bringing nothing but steady heat via potent name flips, fiery gun bars, witty A. Ward barbs/personals and raucous punches in the opening rounds (while Illmac was rich-deep in mediocre schemes and punchlines that were hit-n-miss) to earn the win before a debatable 3rd round prevented a shutout.
Verdict: Ill Will (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Ill Will – “But bruh, you ain’t been the man in almost 15 years, still bringin’ up Scribble Jam, Fam’, the nigga that created Scribble Jam don’t remember Scribble Jam!”
Recap: Part of JC’s greatness is the fact that he always shows up, something that shouldn’t be taken for granted in a battle world littered with choke artists. Add that factor to having one of the best pen’s in the game, when one talks about a ‘beatable JC’, surely they’re going no lower than ‘B’-level on the game mode. And that what’s a little disappointing here: witnessing a Shotgun Suge getting off to such a raucous, heavy-hitting, mayhem-dishing and gun’s-a-blazing start in round 1 and letting the attentive Philly crowd down with a mostly pedestrian 2nd round (which he could’ve beat considering what was for JC, just a solid turn) and then Suge cutting short his 3rd round (in the face of fans who had to be anticipating some electric ‘What His Life Like?’ bars) after apparently forgetting his lines. And while it should be said that JC’s 1st and 3rd rounds were both sublime, gun-bar lit, punchline/metaphor crazy and witty with the personals, Suge delivering a stronger 2nd round definitely could’ve made a difference here.
Verdict: JC (W) 2-1
Favorite line: JC – “I’m not the one to get gruesome with, double-jointed, put a big body in a small box…see if he really been thru some shit!”
Recap: Battling prolifically of late, this time around Bad Newz takes on Swave Sevah on the RBE stage for 3 pretty intense and competitive rounds. Round one was littered with haymakers and heavy-handed punches/personals from both battlers, but a slightly more prepared-for-his-opponent’s-angles and smoother with the flow Newz edges the opening round, before a more condensed, set-up/bully-heavy and street scholarly Swave comes back to even things in the 2nd. The deciding 3rd round was close, but with Sevah getting extra mean with it, intricate and witty with the personals along with mixing in some dope bully bars and punchlines, even with Newz dropping a solid and at times, punch-heavy turn, it’s the more consistently nice Team Homi captain who ends up taking this one.
Verdict: Swave Sevah (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Swave Sevah – “You got shot by your Ace?!…damn, King!”
Recap: With the exception of perhaps a really popular battle rapper returning to the scene after a long hiatus or un-retiring after a long lay off, even if we’re being generous, I just don’t see the purpose in a battle rapper needing more than 5 minutes to spit his bars per round. I mean, what more do you need to say that can’t be said in 4 to 5 minutes? Seriously. Condense your shit. That rapping for 10 minutes straight may sound dope on paper and certainly becomes useful when arguing about top tier battlers who too often come unprepared. But forgive the fan who puts off watching a battle that’s near an hour long because he or she has more important stuff to do. All that said, JollyJay vs. Dizaster in Germany at 40-plus minutes long (with Diz turning in a minimum of 7 to 11 minutes per round when he wasn’t choking away his 2nd round and insisting on continuing what was an already longwinded final turn after the host tried to stop battle) and littered with hard-hitting/mocking personals on each side, comes down to the more punch-heavy, witty, scheme/storytelling-rich and angle-lit JollyJay taking both of the opening rounds for the win.
Verdict: JollyJay (W) 2-1
Favorite line: JollyJay – “Worst battle ever, could hardly believe it, like leaving Neverland…don’t feel the same way about a legend after we’ve seen it!”
Recap: Chilla Jones ventures to the UK’s Manchester Academy to take on Academy 18 finalist Major Concerns and what transpires is a close, at times punch-heavy bout that’s probably more noted for its understated wordplay then consistent potency on either side. But Jones, slightly more versatile with the bars, while to the delight of the raucous crowd, fire with the set-ups, personals, schemes and name flips, overall delivers more heat then his solid, but less potent opponent to take this 1-rounder.
Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “It seems if you wanna fight any man’s that above you, well could scrap…think he’s a swinger ‘cuz he ran through a couple!”
Recap: Against a mostly persistent but inconsistent display of flashy gun bars from Kid Deph, in this 1-rounder from GOTG, Chef Trez not only goes ham with a roundhouse of stinging name flips, but spouts his versatility with a boatload of ringing punchlines/schemes, some feisty wordplay, pointed personals and his own host of searing heat to get the win.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Now I’m for the culture, besides, I’m too humble, I mean I’m here, giving Kid a shot…I’m the cool Uncle!”
Recap: Feasting off a gang of stupendous name flips, some seismic wordplay, fire punchlines and performance-rich 4 bar setups, Reepah Rell easily this Premiere Rap Battle League 1-rounder from a confident and nice at times, but overall clearly overmatched lyrically Optic Sightz.
Verdict: Reepah Rell (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Reepah Rell – “What is this, Revenge of the Nerds?, because you winning this is absurd, nigga you need to take a seat, i know they gave Pat [points at himself[ Riley, knowing they can’t handle Heat!”
Recap: A bit of slippage with the bars by B. Magic in round 2 and an equally lazy 3rd by both battlers, but overall the more punch-heavy Magic easily takes this rapping-on-beat Verbal War Zone battle over a mostly pedestrian Cash Blix.
Verdict: B. Magic (W) 2-1
Favorite line: B. Magic – “I am my brother’s keeper, what Nino mean, I’m still screaming ‘fuck you’ like Cee-Lo Green!”
Recap: Those gritty ‘Plug talk’ bars from Luck Dollaz in round 3 were fire and earned him the round. But before that JC’s more consistently piercing punchlines, pertinent mayhem, braggadocios darts and stinging wordplay edged him both of the opening rounds to gain the win in this fiery 3-rounder from SupaNova Battle League.
Verdict: JC (W) 2-1
Favorite line: JC – “When he thru, they gonna study me at HBCU’s, I black on the highest level”!
Recap: Two peas from the same pod when it comes to aggression, visceral mayhem, boasts and punch proclivity, even with a couple of reaches here and there Danny Myers is still able to supply more consistent heat and residual haymakers in order to win this rousing 1-rounder over Mega Da Savage.
Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Danny Myers – “I’ll give this nigga a hundred bucks early…it’s like the earning app!”
Recap: Fire PG battle between Sin Flee and Ty Main stayed competitive throughout with the two battlers both spouting a gang of fiery punchlines, aggressive bangers and gritty street antics/barbs. Split going into round 3, another dope lyrical turn by Main gets turned back by the cadence-switching, consistently sublime 1, 2 punching potency of Flee to earn the win.
Verdict: Sin Flee (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Sin Flee – “You look like a nigga that don’t get pussy…but very persistent!”
Recap: Now there’s a first: a battler calling his opponent ‘trash’ then proceeding to choke in the very next round. Nonetheless, even before the choke what with 2Four2’s brimming confidence and gritty stylings in the first two rounds, he wasn’t beating Piranha’s more gripping street narratives, steely punchlines, fire name flips and lofty gun/performance bars for 3 rounds anyway.
Verdict: Piranha (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Piranha – “I’m from Detroit home of the nigger known as Big Meech, you from Miami, home of the nigger that think he Big Meech!”
Recap: Besides dilly-dallying in a rapid mix of potent name flips and personals, in this 1-rounder from Colosseum Battle League, it’s a boatload of crafty punchlines and fierce set-ups that gets Steams past a nice at times, but mostly pedestrian Nu York.
Verdict: Steams (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Steams – “Nice Catholic teacher, I used to hit my students but I give ’em time!”
Recap: Overall, more direct than his opponent, dishing a boatload of fiery punchlines/name flips, a dunk, feelgood wit. stifling set-ups and some nifty personals, even with some elongated turns (and one too many mention’s of NJT), a more versatile Charron does enough in the first couple of rounds to beat a fierce and gun/punch-heavy, but also a bit watered down and not as consistent Rum Nitty in this electric 3-rounder from KOTD.
Verdict: Charron (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Charron – “I’m the opposite of my mom’s food…I’m too seasoned!”
Recap: The beginning of Big Kannon’s 3rd round here still has me scratching my head. Indeed, an aggressive Kannon who was already tee’d up during this URL/Born Legacy 8 matchup against Chef Trez from some heckler in the crowd as well as Tay Roc, who he nearly got into an altercation with in round 1, just never seemed to get his focus together in this battle. The Chi-town vet, who was pretty solid in both of the opening rounds, overall dishing one too many punches at Trez and Roc’s Cave Gang crew when he wasn’t spouting the aforementioned drivel or brashly attempting to keep up with his opponent’s off-the-dome heat. And those bumbs in the road by BK would only benefit Trez, who with the addition of fiery personals, rigid freestyles, gritty punchlines/gun bars and some killer wordplay would edge round 1 before (call round 2 debatable) handily taking the 3rd for the win.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “I was screaming Writer’s Bloque in every battle, for y’all I would’ve clapped tools, I was down for the Bloque like Embid, that mean I was even willing to shoot if I had to!”
Recap: Some day Drugz is just going to have to accept the fact that he might have the easiest moniker in battle rap to name flip. That said, even with a spitfire and ridiculous 3rd round, Bad Newz, for all his gritty bars, storytelling lines and flexing (granted with Drugz talking throughout his turns, being overtly aggressive at times wasn’t his fault) just keeps hurting himself with elongated rounds, in turn, making for too many pedestrian bars and to his opponent’s dismay, a wide of load of subpar name flips. And with a more condensed and consistent Drugz dropping a variety of lyrical shiners, stealth gun bars and rigid personals throughout his first two rounds, add another win to the column for the Gooonies.
Verdict: Drugz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Drugz – “If I clap stubs, he bleeding, not one, I’m dual wielding with the chrome, two pounds on his hip like a Superhero pose!”
Recap: Unbothered by any stage rust, after a brief hiatus from battle rap Rosenberg Raw returns to RBE and gets back to basics with a shitload of jaunty bully bars, steely punchlines, hitting personals and a consistent display of utter mayhem/braggadocio lines to beat back a Craig Lamar, who’s slick wordplay made for a close 1st round if not for his inconsistencies, before one too many slip-ups cost him the 2nd and a surprising choke in the 3rd helped Raw to pitch a shutout.
Verdict: Rosenberg Raw (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Rosenberg Raw – “I rock shit, I’m good in any hood like them hot chips!”
Recap: Name flips serve as the difference here as in what was a scintillating, gun bar-heavy, (Skates: “Cave Gang look like the Lakers so you trying to tag along, but you got enough to get the King here, but now the Magic gone!”) punch-drunk, (G Lowe: “I had options, I told Norbes lock in whatever you think is smarter…and the best bitch from Tennessee Volunteered…Candace Parker!”) personal-lit and close battle between rising stars G Lowe and Skates. Indeed, with the two battlers spitting a equal gang of gritty street narratives (along with a few witty barbs mixed in here and there to add a little levity) during their rounds that kept the crowd tuned in throughout the battle, the big guy from Tennessee was able to stand out with his usage of more intricate wordplay when it came to his opponent’s moniker. All in all, one of the dopest PG’s on record, but the edge here goes to Skates for rounds 1 and 3.
Verdict: Skates (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Skates – “My homie a ho, talking about I ain’t going 3-0, won’t believe me till he see the body…well Lowe [low] and behold!”
Recap: From URL’s NOME 9, versus a pretty solid and as-to-be-expected brazen/personal-lit 3 rounds from Arsonal, Ave was on 10 here. The Norfolk, VA, battler exquisitiely mixing up his punches throughout this battle with hard-hitting darts challenging his opponent’s street cred, stellar wordplay, mocking personals, fiery 4-bar set-ups, consistent mayhem and piercing name flips that while on overkill with his lengthiness, still amounted to comfortable 30.
Verdict: Ave (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Ave – “Listen homie, how is fake not an issue, when every time you in another nigga state, you getting chased out the venue?!”
Recap: In this solid 1-rounder from Kill Switch Battle League, Gwitty’s mostly anecdotal bars/residual mayhem/name flips are hit or miss. But a more versatile and consistent Ryda, confidently segueing from witty barbs to stifling gun bars to dope set-ups/schemes to rich personals to righteous pontifications on the state of battle rap takes this one.
Verdict: Ryda (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Ryda – “Bigger 9!…nah, I rather use some shit that’s mine, little blade…keep swiping like my shit’s declined!”
Recap: In this 1-rounder from Premier Rap Battle League, a pretty solid (tho he did have a couple of slip-ups), gritty at times and personally emotional turn by C4 Nito gets blown to pieces by an unbothered 40 B.A.R.R.S., who casually uses a plethora of piercing punchlines/name flips, head-swinging mayhem, rigid wordplay and hard-hitting personals to get the win.
Verdict: 40 B.A.R.R.S. (W) 1-0
Favorite line: 40 B.A.R.R.S. – “Trigger’s gonna reveal ya true friends, I could tell you what that means, nuthin’s gonna be OK C, this Thunder’s breaking up your team!”
Recap: Bullpen Battle League matchup between a making-it-rain Casey Jay and a pocket-tapping Cashflo Rizzy, for the opening rounds anyway, featured a gang of fire name flips from both ladies to go along with plenty of rigid mayhem/gun bars from Rizzy as well as fiery punchlines and gritty wordplay/personals from Casey. Tied (had Casey taking round 1, while an elongated, but steadily punching Rizzy took the 2nd) going into 3rd and final round, a still hardbody Cashflo would get off to a solid start until she ran into a case of the hiccups midway with her flow and then, while still struggling to remember her bars, eventually segued to a couple of tag-ins with her peers that were both hit-n-miss. Afterwards, a clean, versatile and punch-lit turn by Casey Jay would get the Texas vet the win.
Verdict: Casey Jay (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Casey Jay – “You think that you better?, Cash you [Cashew] must be nuts!”
Recap: After getting edged by a more consistently potent and (“A buck-fifty, behind his ear…it’s a magic trick!”) punch-heavy Bigg K in the 1st round, Geechi Gotti steps it up in the latter two, using savvy (“I don’t pump fake, I’m with the shit, Big who? bitch I done shot K’s bigger than this!”) gun bars, solid rebuttals, righteous punchlines, stinging personals and rare couple of slip-up’s from a still solid, but-not-quite-as-potent K in the 3rd to complete the comeback and take this fierce 3-rounder from KOTD.
Verdict: Geechi Gotti (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Geechi Gotti – “All my guns, the serial [cereal] scratched off like the grocery check list!”
Recap: A pretty solid, at times punch-heavy and oft-righteous showing by Ooops gets beat back in the 1st and 3rd rounds by a boatload of nifty punchlines, head-on personals, fiery schemes and some spirited wordplay/name flips from Emerson Kennedy, thus giving the Utah lyricist a successful debut on the RBE stage.
Verdict: Emerson Kennedy (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Emerson Kennedy – “Where I’m from, only snitches go to therapy Ooops, even tho we close to a brink, jealous of Ant-man, when I’m in trouble I can’t go to a shrink!”
Recap: Scoring at times with some mayhem-rich punchlines, but overall too often entrenched by pedestrian bars, in this 1-rounder from GOTG, Yung Murk gets finessed a more punch-lit, performance-heavy, scheme-spazzing and intricate Lu Castro.
Verdict: Lu Castro (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Lu Castro – “I’m so amazed, and from what this dummy staring, the next thing you know…drop Young [young], clumsy parent!”
Recap: Fire PG bout between Sonny and Hollaluyah Jones gets edged by the former who’s rich combo of fiery punchlines, real street pontifications, flexing mayhem and cleaner flow does just enough to edge the deciding 3rd round (after two debatable’s) over a witty, performance-stunting and name flip/punch-savvy Hollaluyah Jones.
Verdict: Sonny (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Sonny – “It’s on sight, the crowd don’t even know which ratchet I’m walking in with…it’s prom night!”
Recap: One too many Shotgun Suge references in the 1st round cost him a 30, but a stellar, punchline/personal-crazy, name flip-spazzing, gun-centric and wordplay meaty 2nd and 3rd rounds gives Fonz the win over Jai 400 Block (who went ham in the opening round, but proved to be less consistent in the latter rounds) in this 3-round Born Legacy battle from Smack/URL.
Verdict: Fonz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Fonz – “This nigga Chinese mustard, I finna put him in the bag for nuthin’!”
Recap: Once he got past the lazy ‘ShowOut’ personals we’ve seen time and again with Bill Collector, Dev Leone’s ability to spout a consistently mean punch game mixed in with a gang of brazen similes and festive gun bars end up being just enough to beat back yet another entertaining, but not as substantive effort from BC, thus giving Leone the win in this 1-rounder from GOTG.
Verdict: Dev Leone (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Dev Leone – “Hot girl summer, this ratchet got too many bodies!”
Recap: 1-rounder from Body Bag Battle League sees Swamp beating back Quban’s braggadocio punches, fiery (“A big chopper, get y’all chomped, eagles and hawks, Lord Farquaad, I’m the reason there’s animals on Swamp!”) schemes/punchlines and menacing name flips with a more versatile palette of stinging personals, rich performance bars and ill punchlines…until he had a huge slip-up mid-round. And while Swamp was able to get his groove back and continue on with a wide assault of verbal hijinks, despite spouting better bars overall, it’s the aforementioned stumble that makes this one a draw.
Verdict: TIE
Favorite line: Swamp – “Now we only got one round in this muthafucka and bitch you gotta go early…38, Kevin Gates, they both pearly!”
Recap: Consistently spicy throughout his 3 rounds with a gang of bruising punchlines, gritty gun bars, some flexing wordplay and plenty of residual mayhem, True Indeed (contradictory to him, actually thought his best round was the 1st) puts on a sublime performance during his first PG to beat back a slick-punching T Sawyer who got off to a hot start in round 1, but becoming a bit flow-challenged and inconsistent with his bar efficiency in the latter rounds.
Verdict: True Indeed (W) 3-0
Favorite line: True Indeed – “100 clip, he hear rounds all day, he memorizing!”
Recap: 90 seconds and only one round, but it still counts. That is, Geechi Gotto versus DNA on the BET Hip-Hop Awards ’19 stage for 25K, which ‘The Champ’ edges thanks to a slightly more consistent flow littered with some dope wordplay, spitfire name drops and rapid shiners on current events. Gotti’s turn, while solid in its own right with some fiery/braggadocio punches/gun bars and a couple of nice rebuttals, still slacked in lieu of piggybacking too much oo his opponent’s bars and also coming off a little sluggish with his raps, which altogether cost him the battle.
Verdict: DNA (W) 1-0
Favorite line: DNA – “Y’all watch Power?, he better get down, I name my gun Trey Songz, it’ll mess up a big rich town!”
Recap: Took a very long while, but thanks to RBE, we finally get to see 3 rounds of Serius Jones versus Math Hoffa. And after much hype, the battle itself was…ok. Not that, with all the back-n-forth, alleged Miami incidents, video blogging and animosity still lingering over the years, this battle didn’t have its share of machismo moments and flexing gestures that made you think the possibility of yet another incident could occur. But thankfully, both battlers kept it professional and left it all up to the bars. That said, surprisingly bar efficiency was lacking and inconsistent on both sides as both Serius and Math weren’t at their sharpest when it came to their pen games. Still, with quite a few dry spots and way too much bravado/sermonizing, by landing a couple of more haymakers that his more subpar opponent Serius edges the 1st round, before a more a consistently nice with the punches, witty at times and better equipped with the personals Math evened things up by taking the 2nd round. The 3rd round turned out to be each one’s best as Serius stepped up his wordplay and thus was able to score heavily at times with a wide load of piercing punchlines. But after a slow start, Math, who was displaying better angle/scheme work throughout the match, came through in the latter half of his turn, with some exemplary (“…but since I put hands on you, you done seen me 4 or 5 times, I’m very tangible, but you know if you try some dumb shit, I’m gonna mangle you, you don’t want the hands my nigga because I will handle you, but since you do little [Dolittle], watch the way you talk to animals!”) punchlines/personals to back his narratives and more importantly make the round and battle a draw.
Verdict: TIE
Favorite line: Serius Jones – “See?, this nigger think he could just get away with telling stories, but you a good fraud, you should change your name to Algebra ”cuz before you figure him out, Math just look hard!”
Recap: Challenging the dichotomy of Christianity in relation to Eurocentric whitewashing during a sublime 3rd round, that while met with a righteous and punch-heavy turn by Th3 Saga (enough to force a debatable), still showed off the formidability of his pen, a consistently punchline-lit, witty, wordplay-spazzing and set-ups rich JC, edges both of the earlier rounds of this hour-plus long battle to score the win in this long but still competitive 3-round Born Legacy 8 bout from URL.
Verdict: JC (W) 2-1
Favorite line: JC – “Saga doing good in his battles lately, now that’s something different, you really have changed your life since becoming Christian, you really are unstoppable when you don;t beat ya self…pun intended!”
Recap: With all those hard-hitting personals Ill Will was throwing at Ave and his Cave Man clique throughout this dope URL/Born Legacy 8 matchup, one can’t help but wonder if it had any say in the Norfolk, VA, puncher leaving the Cave not too long afterwards. Either way, complete with the type of competitive energy that you’d expect from two of battle rap’s best, after the slightly more condensed, fire gun bar spitting, brazen and witty at ttimes edged the opening round and the consistently boastful and punch-lit Ave took the 2nd, Will’s high battle rap IQ would come to play in the deciding 3rd. The versatile Pontiac, MI, rapper comically exposing Ave’s tendency to be an albeit great, but sometimes repetitive puncher while spouting a versatile round littered with piercing 4-bar set-ups, stinging name flips/personals, some head-ringing wordplay and his own unique brand of aggressive/raucous punchlines to take the 3rd for the win.
Verdict: Ill Will (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Ill Will – “This is cool, but the hood my reality, if I’m ridin’ down on Ave wavin’ the 5th, that’s just good hospitality!”
Recap: When B Magic’s struggling with name flips, you know that he’s probably in for a long night. The St. Louis vet making an appearance here on Cleveland’s Bar4Bar Battle League, failing to keep a steady flow, giving what looked like a half-hearted effort and eventually losing this 1-rounder to a mayhem rich and gritty-punching Way.
Verdict: Way (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Way – “He ain’t even worth a match, some nigga’s think Magic real, shit, some nigga’s think the Earth is flat!”
Recap: Spouting a consistent and aggressive array of gritty punchlines, self-deprecating barbs, fiery mayhem/wordplay and some solid name flips, Southern battle rapper Casey Jay edges a rebuttal-lit and punch-heavy at times, but less consistent with the heat C3 in this 1-rounder from Houston Bar Code.
Verdict: Casey Jay (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Casey Jay – “Try to play tough, this chopper will raise C like I’m trying to get my grades up!”
Recap: Dishing a plethora of fiery schemes, lucid gun bars, stinging name flips and fiending punchlines–outside of a close round 2 that saw his opponent spout a couple of fly rebuttals–over the course of 3 robust rounds Chef Trez makes easy work of a mayhem-slinging, but a bit elongated, wit-challenged and inconsistent KO.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “You don’t wanna see me enraged, what make him think he could beat the greats, like this a piece of cake?, a bullet will leak his face, they booked us to see K shine [K-shine] [Bowh!], but instead see DNA!”
Recap: Dope 1-rounder from Go-Rilla Warfare between Goodz and Gauge goes the former’s way as despite a pretty solid, slick-talking, braggadocio, personal and at times witty/punch-heavy turn by Gauge, a more refined, affable with the life lessons, wordplay-savvy, slightly more consistently-lit and personal/punch-heavy Goodz edges it at the end.
Verdict: Goodz (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Goodz – “You know why I’m doing better than these battle nigger’s?….because the nigger’s I hang with are doing better than me!”
Recap: Gee whiz, the way Chess kept reacting angrily (nevermind the fact that he was all up in Danny’s grill and touching him while he rapped multiple times throughout the battle) to Danny Myers’ aggression early on in this crazy dope URL Born Legacy 8 battle, you’d think the yung’n had never seen a ‘Bar God’ battle and thus wasn’t familiar with Danny’s energy and exuberance on stage. Nonetheless, besides the near scuffle in round 2, a couple of minor slip-ups by Danny in the 3rd round and Chess with elongated turns in both of the opening rounds would be the only hiccups in this bout. Indeed, besides his battles versus O-Red and Rum Nitty, can’t recall Danny punching with better consistency then he does here with plenty of versatility (not including one too many shots at Tay Roc and Cave Gang) to match, not to mention a bunch of banging name flips, some nice rebuttals and the usual assortment of rigid mayhem, parallel universe screeds and fiery gun bars with a flexing performance to up the ante. Still, Chess was just too much here. The CakeLyfe capo never missing a beat along the way with stinging personals on Myers’ well-noted family drama, a spitfire rebuttal in round 2, a sublime twist to his opponent’s parallel universe in round 3, dope punchlines/schemes and steely wordplay/gun bars to edge rounds 2 and 3 after a more condensed and nearly flawless Myers edged the opener.
Verdict: Chess (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chess – “He gon’ talk like he this wild vet ‘cause he was battlin’ on street corners and in lunchrooms, nigga, how you think they found Chess?!, somewhere in the fuckin’ slums, catchin’ wild wreck!, performin’ before there was even a crowd yet…like sound check!”
Recap: People who judge battles based on emotion shouldn’t be judging battles, because that can be the only reason Real Deal got the win (and the KOTD chain) over Chilla Jones here and that’s just not right. Hell, even I gave Real Deal the 3rd round, a punch-heavy, personal and at times heartfelt turn that surely touched anyone who’s dealt (or is dealing) with ailing family members. But the reason Real Deal got the final round here is because he consistently punched better than his opponent, NOT because he emoted better. And then of course, there’s a matter of the first two rounds: clear wins to anyone within earshot for Jones. After a solid, aggressive and at times punchline-spazzing turn by Deal in the first, Jones would come right back with a spitfire, over-the-top, personal lit and wordplay-heavy drenched with haymakers. And while the 2nd round was a little closer, combined with Real Deal’s inconsistency on potency and bent for pedestrian lines, a Jones’ that while he wasn’t quite as heavy-handed as he was in the first, was still more versatile with the punches, flexing with the name flips and way more personal savvy with the bars clearly took that round too for the win. Indeed, the controversy surrounding this battle’s verdict was warranted and KOTD should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this.
Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “I used to like your style specifically ‘cuz yours was different, now Real dropping lines got y’all hooked, no debate…but it’s more than fishing!”
Recap: In this 1-round Draft Night Road to K-Shine battle, the yung-un Dess650 puts forth a solid, but a bit pedestrian and flow-challenged effort that gets easily beaten back by Shine’s rich and aggressive combo of stinging name flips, heated punchlines, witty barbs and fiery wordplay.
Verdict: K-Shine (W) 1-0
Favorite line: K-Shine – “Scope on it, I’ll take the pick like I’m light-skin!”
Recap: From the top, let’s just call this one what it is: Geechi Gotti getting 3-0’d by the best Arsonal we’ve ever seen. Ummm yeah and that’s no knock to Gotti who came hard throughout this match with his usual and steady assortment of gritty punchlines, real-life gang narratives, feisty (“This bitch wit’ a beam, I’ll steam his face, nigga I’ll kill ya kid, now you a seedless Grape!”) gun lines and pointed personals (which included clowning on Ars’ fashion choice with the 1st round opening “Up here, dressed like a ‘How To Be A Crip Starter Kit!” line). But as hard-hitting as Gotti came with his pen, his opponent would just rise to another level here. Indeed, gamely conquering what are often his biggest hurdles: lack of consistent lyricism and a prone for filler, besides a bit of a slow start to his 1st round, this version of Arsonal didn’t have to rely on biggest strength, disrespect, to win. Instead, the Jersey legend got on his A+++ game and brought a steady stream of ringing haymakers with him via searing punchlines, aggressive bully bars, steely (“Nigga, you gonna meet karma, my hand speed fast and my reach longer, I never went to prison, I stayed free so who really been on these streets longer?!?”) pontifications, witty barbs and of course, a wide range of ill-mannered (“Show up to the funeral, reach in the casket and grab ya sister butt, ‘cuz my first name ‘I Don’t’, last name ‘Give a fuck'”!) shiners. All that and some dope wordplay and an over-the-top, crowd-pleasing, mid-2nd round freestyle along the way and you’re left with Ars edging each round for a shutout over Geechi Gotti.
Verdict: Arsonal (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Arsonal – “I’m from a city where mothers die for sets, I really live what’s in my notebook pussy, my life a Butterfly Effect!”
Recap: In this Banned Legacy 3 battle from URL, it’s an epic showing by the Bar God as a rampage-inducing, name flip-spazzing, aggressive, personal-lit, lyrically sharp and altogether punch-heavy Danny Myers rains down haymaker after haymaker (esp. during a flawless/classic 3rd round that contained a couple of mind-numbling freestyles) to beat back a clearly frustrated and mostly unprepared O-Red, whose 3rd round choke also heightened his opponent’s memorable evening.
Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Danny Myers – “The system been corrupt, so sellin’ dope, it was a need to do it, cops used to plant base on us before the Vegan movement!”
Recap: After surviving a ferocious, spitfire, crime-ridden and gritty 1st round from Moon, the still competitive Bronx vet Sco pulls off a righteous comeback, using unique storytelling bars, some O.G. talk of hsi own, solid name flips, feelgood braggadocios bars and potent wordplay to, along with some help from a sputtering Moon, edge the latter two rounds and seal a win.
Verdict: Sco (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Sco – “You can’t rap better than me my nigga, think logical, or think a Spades game, ‘cuz see I keep getting booked ‘cuz what’s coming outta my hand ain’t possible!”
Recap: A real lively and lengthy one here as Ace Amin and Snake Eyez meetup for about an hour on the URL Summer Impact card for 3 rounds of fiery punchlines, pushing and shoving, Gooonie/Dot Mobb/Cave Gang drama, chain tossing, gangly street missives, prison war stories, stinging gun bars, gritty personals and piercing name flips. A couple of high energy battlers who both need to work on their professionalism and temperament’s when on stage, in the face of an elongated, a bit filler-prone and at times redundant-with-the-mayhem Snake Eyez in the first two rounds, a more condensed and crowd-controlling Ace’s ability to consistently bomb on his opponent with repeated 2-bar bangers, witty barbs, some fierce wordplay and mocking personals allows the DMV emcee to take the first two rounds for the win before a righteous and electric 3rd by both Ace and Snake gets scored a debatable here.
Verdict: Ace Amin (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Ace Amin – “Listen duke, do you think that going to prison is something more than something I had to do?, I’m not proud of it, I don’t even want the URL listing ‘Convictions’ as one of my attributes!”
Recap: Even if it’s over beats here on Verbal War Zone, it makes sense that if E-Hart and O’fficial were going to battle again, they do it for 3 rounds instead of 1 like they did the first time. And while the selected beats could’ve been hotte and both battlers brought plenty of gritty lines, the final result is the same as their first battle from 4 years ago: a more potent bar-wise Hart getting the win by this time taking the latter two rounds after getting edged by a more flow-proficient and condensed O’fficial in the first.
Verdict: E-Hart (W) 2-1
Favorite line: E-Hart – “Running through shit, I’m in my terrible two’s!”
Recap: Gotta love it when a couple of big dudes go at it. Bubba Forde and Murda staying aggressive throughout this PG with the righteous shoulder bumps, stickly gun bars, plenty of mayhem and bruising punchlines. But after a shortened round 1 by the longtime Baltimore vet that was handily beat by a raucous, name-flip friendly and punch-heavier Forde, Murda increases his rounds with a spiteful barrage of rambunctious punchlines (esp. during a crazy 2nd round), some fierce wordplay and stinging heat to edge the latter two rounds for the win.
Verdict: Murda (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Murda – “I ain’t fronting, I’ll spark and sit em, I’m throwing rounds, the trigger I hold it down, all commitment!”
Recap: Well, at least Vodka kept it entertaining as the confident, but mostly inconsistent Philly rapper (who seemed more prepared for a stand-up comedy show than a rap battle) made for some guffaws here and there with a steady stream of jokes and sandwich diaries. Too bad for Vodka tho as Cortez actually came to rap and that he did in this 1-rounder from The Battle Academy, using a blistering round of witty barbs, righteous name flips/personals, fire wordplay and dope punchlines to easily take the win.
Verdict: Cortez (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Cortez – “I mean what am I supposed to do with Vodka?, it’s proven Vodka…you never gonna touch the Smack stage because there’s nothing about you that’s Exclusive [Exclusiv] Vodka!”
Recap: Pretty solid URL Banned Legacy 3 battle between Geechi Gotti and Ill Will served up a gang of explosive gun bars from both sides, wicked sexual hijinks to go along with witty banter from Will, some spicy rebuttals from Gotti, mocking (Ill Will: “You be doing hair, you know what? I ain’t gonna debate about the nonsense, you a fag, I don’t know one nigga Straight Outta Compton!”) personals, graphic street tales and gritty name flips/punchlines. The best combined round, the 1st, gets edged by a more condensed and haymaker-lit Gotti, before Will came back with an altogether blazing 2nd round to tie things up heading into the 3rd. And tho Gotti had another nice rebut to combine with one more haymaker in the final round Geechi’s pen game just wasn’t as consistently lit as was his opponent, making this one a draw.
Verdict: Debatable
Favorite line: Geechi Gotti – “Nigga, this .9 mine [Bawh! Bawh!], Mackk you better check ya man [Bawh!], I just gave him another shot, everybody deserves a second chance!”
Recap: In this solid 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden, Chuck Book delivers a host of gritty punchlines, wily personals and local DMV gratuities. But one too may indirect bars from Mr. Book along with a more consistently nice, name flip scoring, personal-spazzing, gun line waving and scheme/punch-heavy Ryda gives the Goonie a check in the win column.
Verdict: Ryda (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Ryda – “I’ll abuse you, this ain’t the shit that your used to, Ryda hop out of with a big bird like Liberty Mutual!”
Recap: Did someone fail to remind Bad Newz of how aggressive these Philly rappers can be? 1st-round, near-tussle aside, an easy vic for Newz as overall his more steady punches and flagrant gun bars deliver more than enough static to beat back 3 pretty pedestrian rounds from hometown battler Frank Wit Da Grippaz.
Verdict: Bad Newz (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Bad Newz – “I’m a fool with it, since 13 years old Frank, I used to walk with heat, I probably shot my 1st opp around the same time that you lost your teeth!”
Recap: Dope showings from both Scotty Good and Fettuccine 20 in this gritty 1-rounder from We Go Hard. However with less filler than his opponent, the ability to serve up some sublime set-ups as well as a gang of consistently hitting punchlines/personals, it’s Fetty who gets the edge here.
Verdict: Fettuccine 20 (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Fettuccine 20 – “I’ll kill you outside and in ya house, your broad get the heater, y’all get shot in separate scenes…Martin and Gina!”
Recap: Matching his loud and aggressive performance with perfunctory heaters, frenzied name flips, some witty barbs and jaunty punchlines, a more than confident Drugz easily beats back the gritty, but mostly pedestrian punches of King Beanz in this 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden.
Verdict: Drugz (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Drugz – “The 5 7 f-ing is blasting, to hook a beam, I ain’t no snitch, and the dog ain’t gonna tell…I’m in ya bushes Beanz!”
Recap: One-rounder from Colosseum Battle League and as luck would have it, first time seeing this Fendi chick while watching a little in awe as her casual, unorthodox wordplay not only consistently lit up the scoreboard (as well as the room), but handily beats back a pretty punch-heavy-until-she-bizarrely-gave-up-her-turn-to-Staccs midway Jade.
Verdict: Fendi (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Fendi – “I make sure this Opp will sit [opposite] and this midterm school this kid, no college shit…I’m talking I.D. and [en] F Up any bitch who got Fendi backwards!”
Recap: Take out a clear round 1 win for a more intricate and condensed Chess and you’re left with a spitfire and highly competitive battle here against Bad Newz. Not that Newz had a bad opening round, but by upping the ante and matching his standard aggression with just-as-loaded bar efficiency via a shitload of piercing/boastful punches, rigid gun bars, head-ringing (“I’ll have my little nigga’s distract ya and while they confuse ya, I’ll squeeze on Chess [chest] from the back like the Heimlich maneuver!”) mayhem and gritty personals, the newest member of Tay Roc’s Cave Gang squad was able to validate making the cut. Still, for all of Bad Newz’ determination and grit, Chess was still Chess–the young Bronx spitter brimming with confident throughout his rounds while remaining resolute when it came to dishing more intricate punchlines, fiery name flips, rich anecdotes, stifling wordplay and steely (“I am not here to battle you, I’m just to make sure you get talked right, “I’m just giving Bad game like an off night!”) darts without missing a beat. That said, despite a highly potent turn by Newz in the 2nd, a near perfect, haymaker-drenched round by Chess edges him the round before an emotionally fire, but also hardbody round by Newz earns him in a draw in the 3rd against a still consistently prodigious Chess.
Verdict: Chess (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chess – “You like pushing on nigga’s in battles?, that’s cool, you facing Chess like my first time playing Chess…don’t be surprised if I make Bad move!”
Recap: Dope battle between two of the most energetic battlers in the game, Barz Major and Danny Myers, fittingly ends up in a tie as Danny’s substantive punchlines, fire (“Glock 5, running up on me bitch?, not wise, he tired of eating chicken…but I’m in line [holds out hands like a gun] to pop eye’s [Popeyes]!”) rebuttal game, stinging ‘parallel universe’ entries and piercing personals allowed him to edge round 1, before a debatable 2nd and a 3rd round defeat that while short on length, was still electrifying yet couldn’t equate to the stirring struggle bar themes Major took during his turn. Before his sublime final round, Major kept himself in the mix with a gang of raucous punches, frenzied 4-bar set-ups, righteous gun bars and piercing schemes/personals, a splendid effort that should’ve gotten him some extra shine even if he had lost the battle.
Verdict: TIE
Favorite line: Barz Major – “Everybody wanna be sick till they get shot, better be cool, before ya ass catch something that you can’t pronounce…like mesothelioma!”
Recap: Against a totally unprepared and capitulated Jakkboy Maine, Franchise’s gratuitous forms mayhem go on full tilt via a shitload of potent gun bars, fiending set-ups, some witty punchlines and wicked personals/name flips. Add to that a spirited Franchise coming extra vigorous with his performance throughout the battle plus coming better with his angles and an opponent willfully conceding defeat at the end of yet another shortened round and you’re left with a rare body shipped overnight and overseas from Canada to Virginia.
Verdict: Franchise (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Franchise – “You not ready, two hands on the bitch, I hold my Glock steady, big-ass gun, and the clip sticking out like Rex belly!”
Recap: Providing glistening commentary on the consequences for all those who stand in the way of his perpetual mayhem, but also dishing some feisty punchlines and piercing name flips along the way, a way more consistently nice Burke Bucs has an easy time beating back the overall less potent bars from Zay Smoove in this 1-rounder from GOTG.
Verdict: Burke Bucs (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Burke Bucs – “Next battle you better work out, I’m at his neck like a crew sweater, he Elroy and I’m George, trying to teach my son how to levitate in this new era!
