Recap: Stifling gun bars, visceral punchlines/4-bar set-ups, piercing name flips and rigid street missives, in this West-coast Traffic 3 matchup versus Reepah Rell, a consistently spicy Stuey Newton brings out the whole kaboodle and beats back an opponent who came nice with a variety of punches (esp. during a close 1st round) for the most part, but in the latter rounds succumbed to a couple of slip-ups, which in turn led to shortened turns and eventually a 30 for Stuey.
Verdict: Stuey Newton (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Stuey Newton – “You be painting your face like a weird bitch, tell ya makeup artist that bullshit don’t enhance your rounds at all, I mean you got your moments in the paint but it’s not enough…Pau Gasol!”
Recap: A spitfire 2nd round, a sometimes lazy with the punches/performance bars Big T and just enough bite to a host of elaborate schemes in the deciding 3rd round leads to an also abstract-lit, gaming bars-dishing and spicy with the personals Mike P getting a close win in this time clock-constrained Born Legacy Supreme 3-rounder from Smack/URL.
Verdict: Mike P (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Mike P – “I stack bodies like Twork stack’s hoodies!”
Recap: I’m sure that in the shower, while getting ready for this battle, 7 Weaponz went over his ‘dope’ bars again and thought he had a sure-shot chance of beating the likes of DNA. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have showed up, right? 7 was going to pull the upset of the year, get an immediate PG and the big stage wouldn’t be too far behind. Plus it’s only for one round, so screw you if you didn’t think 7 had a shot at pulling off the unthinkable….and now that this bodybag is over with, screw reality for getting in the way of 7’s longstanding dreams.
Verdict: DNA (W) 1-0
Favorite line: DNA – “I got the .4 in [foreign] behind the counter and I’m a give 7, 11!”
Recap: As Torture brutally found out in the 3rd round here, Bonnie Godiva doesn’t get enough credit for her rebuttal game. Other than that, a boatload of gritty bars an witty personals from both ladies at the very least made what was otherwise a pretty routine QOTR battle, competitive. However, it’s the more wordplay-heavy and slightly more haymaker-lit Godiva who edges both of the opening rounds for the win before a debatable 3rd.
Verdict: Bonnie Godiva (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Bonnie Godiva – “Bitch, when you put on a sundress, that look like your son dress!”
Recap: Dishing heat with some solid punches, fierce trap talk, bully bars and fiery personals, Murdock (whose rap stylings remind me of Calicoe) makes a nice bid to pull off an upset by beating DNA. Yeah, ok. No chance here, especially in a 1-rounder, as Mr. GHTFOH uses a consistent barrage of steely gun bars, flexing wordplay, congenial punchlines, some spitfire rebuttals and towards the end, off-the-dome darts to make your ears peek to send his opponent back to the drawing board.
Verdict: DNA (W) 1-0
Favorite line: DNA – “I’m packing a ton, shoelace on the back of the gun, and it s strung around the barrel like an African drum!”
Recap: Close, but a bit of a lethargic matchup between Illmaculate and Chilla Jones showcases some irony in that Illmac’s choice to go so hard on his opponent’s scheme-heavy rep is not only met with a versatile pallette punches, personal and schemes from (“Probably long nose, like it gotta be Gonzo, you’ll hear his [it] Pop so much, you would’ve thought it was Lonzo!”) Chilla, but Mac’s own standing for being one of the wittier battle rappers around, didn’t quite match his prestige here. Still, after edging the 1st round with steadier batch of punches and failing to take the 2nd due in part to Illmac’s comeuppance on the haymakers and dope (“Don’t Flop Chilla, or it’s no shots, you’ll get your soul swapper, Necrophiliac, dead-ass, you getting cold-cocked!”) wordplay, it’s Jones who edges the last, deciding round with a nice rebuttal and a more versatile alloy of heated zingers.
Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “Nintendo Punchout the only time Little Mac was a star in the game!”
Recap: Even with a slip-up as well as facing off against a gritty, solid and condensed showing from E City, Ru Bando’s wide array of potent name flips, piercing punchlines and head-ringing gun bars combine for the win in this 1-rounder from iBattleTV.
Verdict: Ru Bando (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Ru Bando – “I’ll pound the 5th like [smacks hand] ‘Little nigga, stop touching shit!'”
Recap: A more condensed and punchline-savvy B Magic might’ve edged the round anyway. But Born pulling out his phone to seemingly recall his lines is a costly blunder to start what was ultimately the deciding 2nd round, after Magic dropped steady weight in round 1 to take that on while Born salvaged the 3rd with more fiery punches.
Verdict: B Magic (W) 2-1
Favorite line: B Magic – “If you plan to survive you gonna need the Lord, I ain’t the ONE to fuck with like Yuigi board!”
Recap: Before Pakistan switches it up for a nice gangster movie scheme towards the end of his round, both he and Gwitty revel in unique ways to use their toolie’s. Altogether nothing epic, but less dry spots for Pakistan along with the aforementioned scheme warrants a little more versatility, a win and perhaps a forthcoming PG.
Verdict: Pakistan (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Pakistan – “I’m in my bag, watch me flip, this a County move, ain’t nothing good about this plate, it’s like County food!”
Recap: Guessing that, when it comes to his battle rap career, that this one of those days K-Shine would like to forget about as the Harlem vet incredibly chokes and then when given a second chance, stumbles again before giving up on a 1-round bout versus a pretty hyped up, well assisted by his man’s and gun bar rocking, but mostly pedestrian King Esco.
Verdict: King Esco (W) 1-0
Favorite line: King Esco – “After this murder y’all gonna watch the doc get rid of DNA!”
Recap: For all the talk building up to this battle, on Mickey Factz possibly ending Daylyt’s career by calling out all his battle rap antics (something he, ironically, hardly does anymore) over the years, this matchup actually ends up accentuating the idea that Factz might want to consider battling more often. That is, when he’s not taking himself a little way too seriously the preachy hijinks–as here we see Factz mixing righteous pontifications with fierce personals and lofty wordplay altogether with an aggressive performance. Take in Daylyt dishing a half-assed 2nd and 3rd round along with Factz gamely calling out his opponents propensity for sputtering (“He’ll say something like ‘If I could blink, with my ghetto eyes I’d see we’ve been hoodwinked!”) gibberish and you’re left with a clear bodybag for the BX.
Verdict: Mickey Factz (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Mickey Factz – “From the beginning [word] I saw D was an idiot with my two eyes, you 3rd string thinking your verb’s [or ‘verse’] clean, you and your hurt queen, verbal machete split him down the middle…he’ll B [be] in half looking like the number 13!”
Recap: In front of a UDubb crowd that seemed unusually enthused throughout the battle, a more versatile K-Shine utilizes just enough nifty punchlines, aggressive heat and gritty name flips to edge round 1, then survive a spitfire turn by Red in the 2nd before a more condensed turn in the final round (that featured an appearance by Therapist Red) gets Shine the win
Verdict: K-Shine (W) 2-1
Favorite line: K-Shine – “They say try not to sleep on Red…I’m in a coma!”
Recap: Despite a mostly solid (“I’ll take ya Playstation, put you on punishment, I’m your stepdad!”) performance from the steadily aggressive Rosenberg Raw, the oft-witty, heated, (“No women giving him the Netflix and Chill option, me?, I’m Netflix’s real option, that means you haven’t done shit, so I question you, are you still watching?”) scheme-dazzling and wordplay-heavy bars of Madflex combine to edge each round.
Verdict: Madflex (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Madflex – “I’m sorry Tiger, you could mark me out?, man I’m sorry how? Your body-type is ‘I don’t play sports and I’m not starting now’!”
Recap: Big Kannon survives getting creamed with ‘3 of them things!’ by Danja Zone in round 2, after just edging Danja with a more rambunctious, direct and less reaching 1st. That adds up to a deciding 3rd round, which Kannon edges with filthier bars, nifty wordplay and less filler.
Verdict: Big Kannon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Big Kannon – “You ain’t gotta warn me about Danja [danger], I’ve already read those signs from the gate!”
Recap: An entertaining battle doesn’t always add up to a competitive battle as Serius Jones versus Swave Sevah prove here. Granted, the two vets came with the (Serius: “Yunno, what’s fucked up?, sometimes I like this nigga ‘cuz his flow is tight, but I hate you ‘cuz your face is baggy!”) jokes, piercing personals, some hot bars and just for added kicks Jones gets into it with a heckler in the crowd. But when he wasn’t spitting a few shiners here and there, Jones is either reaching, dispensing dated bars or in a 3rd round that he had the potential to win, going on way too long with a gang of righteous filler. On the hand, Swave stays cohesive throughout, what with a dope performance to match as well as an ill (“Team Homi, he foolish, I’ll blow a hole in ya image till they all able to see through it!”) angles that increased his viability as the battle continued.
Verdict: Swave Sevah (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Swave Sevah – [Bong! Bong Bong!] see, it’s the ego spitter versus the ego tripper, I see Red and knock you out before the Pops, it’s liek Debo hit ya!”
Recap: Hot start by a punch-heavy, performance-friendly Don Dollaz (aka Don Marino) in the 1st round gets dismissed by an overall more consistent, wordplay-spazzing and spirited Xcel in this solid 3-rounder from WeGoHard.
Verdict: Xcel (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Xcel – “Nickle to you head, now you leaking common sense!”
Recap: Bangz uses some nice rebuttals, steady punches and in a move Hitman Holla would certainly approve…his little brother, to take out a punch-heavy, but inconsistent Riddles.
Verdict: Bangz (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Bangz – “You got the swagger of somebody I’d dump in the ocean, poke airholes all through the body, to prevent floating!”
Recap: A couple of Queens, NY dudes, Jimz and DNA, have to travel all the way to Massachusetts to meetup for a 3-round battle on the KOTD. But it’s still a goodie as a highly entertaining and bar-heavy Jimz edges round 1 despite a very solid turn from his opponent. Still, DNA manages to even things up in the 2nd, using a fire Queens scheme along with a couple of nice rebuttals to beat back a gimmicky round from Jimz, what with a backpack filled with hygienic products for a ‘Stop Being Dirty’ scheme that even Jimz seemed to admit went too long. Tied going into the 3rd, both battlers gave max effort with long rounds that proved their fortitude. However, a slightly more consistent and bar/wordplay/punch-crazy DNA, what with yet another rebuttal mixed in, manages to edge this one for Queens bragging rights in the end.
Verdict: DNA (W) 2-1
Favorite line: DNA – “Wayans family, I got a clip for all you bro’s, putting 5 down within arms reach, Jordan pose!”
Recap: Even with the taste of gun residue still in the air from Prep’s delicious (“We shooting for captain like a pick-up game!”) gun bars, a more one-themed round along with a midway and able assist from Dre Dennis hurts his cause by turning a one-on-one match into a handicap bout. That said, would Prep have won anyway without the help? Probably not. As Eazy the Block Captain’s consistently fiery (“The DMV too far, ain’t appointments for beef, we take walk-ins!”) punchlines, along with valiant and versatile bars on real street semantics and the like, gets the Philly spitter an impressive win.
Verdict: Eazy the Block Captain (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Eazy the Block Captain – “….since my first bid, nigga I was hoping to quit, but as Juvenile I just knew that I could Slow Motion the wrist!”
Recap: A mostly unprepared Bangz still manages to freestyle and rebuttal his way to a closer-than-what-you’d-think match against the forever punchline-heavy Tyranny. The latter possibly allowing his ego to get in the way of an easy 3-0 by attempting to copy Bangz’s off-the-dome antics. But also hurting himself a bit with elongated rounds that dropped his bar quotient enough to be edged in the middle round. For Bangz however, overall this showing is a huge disappointment coming off that fire and most recent Daylyt battle.
Verdict: Tyranny (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Tyranny – “‘Get him a soda!’, nah nigga, if we get it shaking, nigga you’ll end up flat!”
Recap: Credit to Joe Scrap for making it competitive against a top tier with a solid combo of nice storytelling bars and witty punches that could warrant a PG one day if he stays on point. But a rambunctious and consistently spitfire K-Shine, delivering heaters with steady moxie and relative ease, proves to be too much in this one-rounder from County Ground Battle League.
Verdict: K-Shine (W) 1-0
Favorite line: K-Shine – “They 9 deep, I swing on 8…Chris Childs!”
Recap: Bullpen Battle League and Queen of the Ring link up and have their best spitters go against each other on a Chival War card that featured Clone versus Casey Jay. A competitive battle that saw Clone deliver a dope effort what with a rugged mix of witty personals, gritty punchlines and solid name flips throughout the bout, it’s a more spitfire Casey Jay, crafty with every line, whether it’s via stifling name flips, piercing wordplay, fierce punches or sizzling gun bars, who takes rounds 1 and 3 (call the 2nd round debatable) for the win.
Verdict: Casey Jay (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Casey Jay – “You won one battle but nobody gives a fuck that you smoked Reggie!”
Recap: The underlying message here: if you’re a lower tier battle rapper with a rare shot at battling a legend, don’t make a rookie mistake by predicting what said legend will rap about you. That and Gwitty mostly spitting a whole bunch of filler, gives a Charlie Clips, no less on his B-game considering that he battled earlier in the day, an easy vic what with is arsenal of jaunty punchlines, dope wordplay and witty (“You look like you get your shape-ups in the car seat!”) personals.
Verdict: Charlie Clips (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Charlie Clips – “Your grandmom’s is the next to die, for a peek at my rhymes I should run her over in an Access-A-Ride!”
Recap: Illipsis scores with some nifty punches here and there, especially in a festive 2nd round that he edged with some killer personals. However, too many dry spots combined with elongated rounds cost him in the deciding 3rd round against a more resilient, witty at times and punch-heavier Real Deal.
Verdict: Real Deal (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Real Deal – “I was baptized in the walls of Galilee, blessed with the pen, but ‘Oh yeah!‘ I can coem off the stop with the savagery!”
Recap: IBattle League matchup with Qleen Paper hosting finds the rambunctious punches and schemes of Jizz Brown making for a solid performance. However, a few too many dry spots/redundant themes from Mr. Brown and a wittier along with a more versatile pen from Xcel, sets back any chances of an upset.
Verdict: Xcel (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Xcel – “For the green, I get him without letting the envy in, I see empty in, I’m emptying the simm he in, banana clip, ape shit, code name Simian!”
Recap: Thought the Saga line towards the end of his turn by Young Herb was funny and the rest of his gritty raps made for a solid effort. But in this 1-rounder from Iron Mouth Battles, a DNA spazzing with a shitload of spicy personals, hard-hitting punchlines/name flips and flexing gun bars/wordplay, would prove to be too much for even Herb in the end.
Verdict: DNA (W) 1-0
Favorite line: DNA – “Now I did my research and they said you in the Army, I’m like nigga you tough, but you do know Donald Trump in teh President, right?, nigga, you fucked!”
Recap: After splitting the first couple of rounds with the prolific Dre Dennis, a less reaching and more condensed E. Farrell lands enough punches to edge the 3rd and get in the win in this 3-round battle from TrayNY.
Verdict: E. Farrell (W) 2-1
Favorite line: E. Farrell -“Fuck a classic, class is now in session, ‘cuz you like Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump…playing stupid while you acting like a veteran!”
Recap: From the hilarious Scooby-Doo performance line to the solid wordplay displayed with the ‘crip’ bar, a way more comfortable in his skin O-Solo uses a load of wit to take rounds 1 and 3 and beat back a Serius Jones who needs to get out of his own way, with all the whining, pontificating, ego-tripping (esp. with that ‘fake Serius Jones’ sketch in the 2nd), and yunno…just rap.
Verdict: O-Solo
Favorite line: O-Solo – “You think you Lord of the Ring?!, bitch you just loitering!”
Recap: Solid turns from both (“You will get snapped on in one round, that’s a hubcap!”) (“Now I would call you a moolie, but you look like some shit I ain’t make up yet!”) Primetime and Jakkboy Maine in this one-rounder from Body Bag Battle League, gets edged by Jakk, who along with a gift for lofty punches and some crazy schemes, came one better when it came to fiery wordplay and overall, a more sporty performance.
Verdict: Jakkboy Maine (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Jakkboy Maine -“What, you talking shit because I’m out of town, well I got the pund up in here too, and since I’m the elephant in the room [Boww!], now who in here is a whom?!”
Recap: Seattle, WA battler Hipnosis displays his gift for fierce (“I mean I know you a top tier, but they you the GOAT, a great legend, well from 0 to 10, I give this nigga a 1…8 7!”) set-ups/wordplay and witty bars. But a slow start and a few dry spots here and there cost him against a more consistent, (“2 Tek’s and a hole in ya head, they think Rasheed back!”) hometown-scheming, freestyle-heavy and more versatile Charlie Clips in this solid one-rounder from Evry Lane Entertainment.
Verdict: Charlie Clips (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Charlie Clips – “How does it feel?, to know I came from out of town to kill you on your own stage, I’m a different kind of nigga, I hop out the car and then get road rage!”
Recap: Choosing to run with like 80% punches allows Ish Mula to put together a very solid (“Bar for bar, you ain’t even in my class G, actually when I calculated these punches…I’d be better off with Math B!”) performance against the veteran Cortez. However, when Mula alludes to Spanish battle rappers not liking Cortez, you can’t help but wonder why he didn’t address that particular rumor more in his raps. Because if that’s the case, why is it that when given the chance to face Cor one-on-one, most Spanish battle rappers have failed…miserably. And considering too thut with a way more versatile and (“Two battles in one day, nigger I’m that hungry, I offed Run and Will hit a brick wall like Crash Dummies!”) haymaker-heavy Cortez takes this one here, he can’t help but give notice to all Spanish battle rappers again, that he’s the best one out there.
Verdict: Cortez (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Cortez – “Lord forgive me, that chrome dumping, I’m dome hunting, it’s an everyday struggle waking up to Cyn [sin] like Joe Buddens!”
Recap: Bullpen Battle League in collaboration with Queen of the Ring presents another goodie as this inter-gender matchup between Bonnie Godiva and longtime vet Syah was chock full of salacious/scathing personals, stirring punchlines, witty barbs, some well-oiled wordplay and braggadocios darts. A competitive battle through and through, a more consistently spicy, funny and hitting Syah wins the bout after taking both of the opening rounds, before a spitfire 3rd by Bonnie avoids the shutout.
Verdict: Syah (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Bonnie Godiva – “I just wanna put my dick in ya throat, fuck battle rap, you got flavor but I only want you for the top and that’s Snapple facts!”
Recap: A fiery back-n-forth between two of the better West-coast up-n-comers, NXT and Saynt, while the rigid name flips, sizzling gun bars, piercing punches and boastful barbs hold their own throughout the battle, after the two split the opening rounds, a slightly more consistently spicy and personal-lit Saynt edges the deciding 3rd round for the win.
Verdict: Saynt (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Saynt – “He half white, y’all bringing food to me without season!”
Recap: Tough one to decide here as Holmzie Da God. delivering a round of spitfire gun lines and fierce (“They trying to think about how I found this bastard, it’s Alaska, I seen moon every day for a month straight!”) punchlines in an incredible 1st to a dope 2nd that featured more of the same (without the predictable ‘old man’ jokes that his opponent predicted he’d have lined up for him) to an albeit pontificating, but hardbody 3rd that showcased the God’s real life struggles, overall did almost everything right to win here. However, for 2 rounds, the O.G. Moon just came one better. After a solid, but flow-challenged 1st, Moon’s gritty street bars, fiending set-ups, bully (“But don’t think ‘cuz you hang around a dentist [Dennis], he’ll be able to pull a gun [gum] out your mouth!”) lines and witty personals finally caught up to the debonair of his consistent swag in the both the 2nd round and an even better and more versatile 3rd. In other words, a testament to Moon’s experience in the game and a nice come-from-behind-win in a fire battle that really didn’t deserve a loser.
Verdict: Moon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Moon – “Nigga, you set our people back 400 years the way Joe did you, nigga you had me thinking P.G. stood for ‘plantation ground’ the way the white boy whipped you!”
Recap: Charron likes to refer to himself as the ‘SMACK Killer”, but credit Aye Verb for having none of that, showing up for all three rounds with a pretty dope, bar-heavy (“When I do a donut and get the arms moving round and round, it ain’t the ‘Get Your Roll On’ video!”) performance that kept this battle competitive and was only broadsided by lazy race card bars against a white dude with no history of even being questionably racist. Nonetheless, besides a debatable 3rd round, in the first couple of rounds Charron just came one better, with a more consistent flow, permeating name flips, witty personals and a variety of (“Put the strap to his face, that’s deja vu, they’re like ‘Charron, that’s a gun bar, you can’t write it’, yeah but it’ll sound hard as fuck once Ave. bites it!”) punchlines that kept his opponent constantly on the ropes. All in all, more than enough for Charron to win and more than enough to continue being a problem for URL’s best.
Verdict: Charron (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Charron – “These days you ain’t up to par, you should be a PG [A]ye!”
Recap: When he wasn’t faking a choke just to see what it feels like, a more condensed and versatile Goodz scores with more than enough punches to take out a mostly laborious D.I. Da Hennyman in this one-rounder from Do Or Die Battle League.
Verdict: Goodz (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Goodz – “iPhone texting an Android, don’t even hit me if you ain’t trying to talk green!”
Recap: Offhand, I think that Soul Khan is the last noted battle rapper to actually “retire” and really mean it. Still, when you’ve been in the game as long as he has, co-own a league and get the high-priced, legend that is Loaded Lux to come battle on your platform, if you’re Arsonal why not battle him yourself, call it your sendoff and go out on a high note? Then too, with battle rap being so unorganized what with fans caring way more about the here-n-now than the past, no one will care if you battle the likes of Da Uso Hipnosis and Hollow da Don less than a year after your “retirement” match anyway.
As for the battle itself? Elongated with a boatload of filler (esp. from Lux in the latter rounds, people can stop with that ‘over the head’ bar excuses) and even with the long history these two have… underwhelming, especially when it came to the personals and what with both battlers failing to bring their A-game. That said, Kung Fu Lux, with what was easily his strongest round, edges a (“Roscoe Jenkins in here, acting like he too good for the family reunion!”) boastful 1st with more haymakers before Arsonal (who had a pretty solid 1st), tho still beleaguered by a pen that constantly spouts pedestrian bars, takes the 2nd and 3rd with a nice combo of randomly impactful disrespect bars, fiery (“I shoot with one arm out, chin down, that’s a violin tactic!”) punchlines and deep-seated personals that brought down a bit his opponent’s Vanglorious chapter in battle rap.
Verdict: Arsonal (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Arsonal – “You Under Brother Polite, new covenant, where consciousness meets commerce, well right now you at Newark Symphony Hall nigga, where your conscious can meet Converse!”
Recap: In what was a straight-up punch-fest throughout, after a debatable 1st round with Madflex, Chilla Jones spices up his punches with some fiery wordplay and killer personals/name flips in the latter rounds all the while taking advantage of a shortened 2nd round as well as a flow-challenged 3rd from his opponent to take this 3-rounder from BOTZ Battles.
Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “You wanna know why they show me love in this town brother?, ‘cuz I been fucking with the West on the low long as LeBron mother!”
Recap: Heated punches from both sides allow (“It’s like I’m a youth minister how I reach the kid, transfer into an unfit parent and beat the kid!”) Mr. Mills and (“Mills, you can rap my nigga, but not quite a boss, you take shots but got no special powers…Natasha Romanoff!”) Aye Verb to split the first two rounds here in this 3-round battle from STL Street Report. But with Verb gamely schooling his opponent on his legacy in the game as well as saving his ‘Showtime’ signature raps for the final round, after a shortened (tho he had a nice rebuttal to start it off) and a little lackluster turn from Mills, Verb gets this one clearly
Verdict: Aye Verb (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Aye Verb – “Look at me King, tiem to reach inside yourself and find the higher you, you too old to be doing this Mills, but it’s my fault bro ‘cuz I inspire you!”
Recap: For the record, anyone who’s followed 40 B.A.R.R.S battle rap career knows full well what a huge fanbase she has. And that’s all and good as she’s earned that. But just to show how ridiculous Comment sections can be, skim through almost any one of 40 battle’s that doesn’t include her Jaz battle and you’d swear that 40 has never lost a round in her life. Yeah, they’re pretty insane. That said, a personal-lit and more condensed PC manages to edge round 1 of this Bullpen battle before 40 comes through with a snapping, haymaker/wordplay-lit round 2 (i.e. classic) to even things up. 3rd round was another punch-fest, but shortened on each side. Yet, while PC made the case for writing shortened turn’s with his opening round, a dope rebuttal to start off her 3rd and a slightly punch-heavier turn by 40 anyway, helps the Boston emcee offset almost choking away her final round and gaining the win..
Verdict: 40 B.A.R.R.S. (W) 2-1
Favorite line: 40 B.A.R.R.S. – “I ain’t even come with 3 rounds, I figured I’d hit him with two by four and that would make this a bar, bitch!”
Recap: Holding it down for the opening rounds with a gang of visceral punchlines, drawn-out mayhem and sporty name flips/wordplay/set-ups, a more condensed Swamp puts in enough work to beat back a thrill-seeking, gritty and punch-lit, but also elongated D Nice in what was a competitive 3-rounder from No Ransom Battle League.
Verdict: Swamp (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Swamp – “I made all the funeral arrangements for your ass nigger, I even paid for the plot, the casket was expensive as fuck, but shit even U-haul make you pay for the box!”
Recap: Wack move by Arsonal, knocking Iron Solomon’s cap off at the end of the battle, is a bit ironic when you consider that this KOTD battle between two ‘legends’ was ‘ok’ at best what with Arsonal’s penchant for filler and uneven angles and Iron, who when he wasn’t dishing a load of subpar bars, made some pretty lame attempt’s to mimic his opponent’s ‘disrespectful’ palette. That said, in what was easily his best round, Arsonal uses a nice variety of flexing punchlines to take the 1st before Solomon dishes a load of witty/pointed personals and astute angles/punches/wordplay to even things and take the 2nd. Last round saw Arsonal deliver a load of disrespectful race lines and other real life struggle bars with his usual flair. But starting out with a fire rebuttal, Iron’s 3rd round, consistently nice with a mix of fire personals, nice self-deprecation bars and aggressive shiners were more than enough to take the round and the win.
Verdict: Iron Solomon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Iron Solomon – “You see, Ars’s pen is average, that’s why everything you say is mean, you’re not nice!”
Recap: Honestly, in a consistently spitfire, both battlers on their A-game and super competitive battle like this one, there really are no losers. But after a slightly more versatile, gun bar swinging and (“I’m with the shit, Gotti known to keep a pistol, you dyin’ today…why you think they sent the Reaper [Reeper] with you?!”) haymaker-dropping Geechi Gotti slipped past a killer, punch-terrific turn by Glueazy to edge the 1st round, a wittier, adeptly (“Yeah, say somethin’, I’ll break somethin’, don’t bring your freak around me, or I’ll pistol whip her, yeah, crack her in the head like she thinkin’ ’bout me!”) braggadocios and (“Go ‘head, call up jake if y’all racist, but don’t sleep around white boys, we draw on faces!”) set-up/scheme-heavy Glu beats a solid, street-savvy Gotti to even things out. As to be expected, the deciding 3rd round was close with Glueazy continuing to spaz with a nice mix of lucid personals and more (“Chest shot, five will have him walkin’ like Red Foxx!”) salacious mayhem. But by taking on a (“You know how many nigga hit they mama’s phone like, ‘I’m on my way home’, but never made it?”) grimmer and darker tone with his bars to enhance that real street shit he’s become so noted for, Geechi Gotti’s unique ability to paint such an indelible atmosphere throughout his turn gives him the final round and the win here.
Verdict: Geechi Gotti (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Geechi Gotti – “What the hell wrong with all these white boys thinkin’ they can rap?, see, I gotta blame Marshall, the flame spark you, mini .40, get a small cap in the middle of ya dome like Hey Arnold!“
Recap: Daylyt and Bangz, two of battle rap’s best entertainers/rhyme schemers, go at it on the WeGoHard stage. And for two-and-a-half rounds it’s a spitfire show with Daylyt’s frenzied punches, witty performance lines and stinging (“He getting whipped, told you, you ain’t ready for the repo!”; “If I spot your top it’ll be wig stains, peep the start of the universe, I come with something Big Bang [Bangz]!”) wordplay going toe-to-toe with Bangz offhanded freestyles, spiffy rebuttals and roundhouse (“Nigga, the last time we seen a cold Light [Lyt] is when we opened up the fridge!”) haymakers. Debatable going into the final round, Daylyt’s want for struggle bars gets lethargic before he finds himself quitting a little early. However, it’s a different ballgame for Bangz, who turns up with a blazing turn of potent punchlines and exquisite (“Assault one, this nigga really got me aggravated…’cuz as soon as he walk through the door, I got two arms out like ‘I’m glad you made it!'”) set-ups to grab the win.
Verdict: Bangz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Bangz – “Nigga, this shot for you, no debate, you’ll fold and break, then put my foot so far up this nigga ass, the devil will not know which sole [soul] to take!”
Recap: When you admittedly refer to a battle as meaning ‘nuthin’ to you, you might not be as motivated to write your best bars. That seems to be the case here as Ty Law’s notorious punches are frequented by too many listless dyke jokes and ‘over-ya-head’ bars that bordered on reaching when he wasn’t scoring with definitive (“Chrome bitch spitting, I shoot till it’s hot as hell fire, give it to Q to cool in the mouth like a nail-biter!”) shiners here and there. On the other hand the always confident QB, seemingly (“He a faggot, his real name by law [bi Law], they can’t charge me with a crime, and that’s by Law!”) punching a little more these days than flexing with the personals, ably stood her ground in a one-round bout that on paper anyway, looked to be more competitive.
Verdict: QB (Black Diamond) (W) 1-0
Favorite line: QB (Black Diamond) – “That’s why real nigger’s don’t fuck with you and my presence got you feeling uncomfortable, I bust pistols, crazier than a Spanish bitch with trust issues!”
Recap: In this Spanish-tinged PG matchup, Profit’s performance and unorthodox stylings may prove to be noteworthy in the long run, but heads shouldn’t sleep on the spiffy bars and effort from Ralphy Gabbana either. Indeed, with Gabbana displaying more consistency and (“URL gonna monetize the views, but either way my hands is on Profit!”) potency with his punches/schemes in the 1st round, the DMV rapper was able to take the lead, before a more enriched-with-the-bars Profit came back to edge the 2nd. In the deciding 3rd, Gabbana, despite reaching a little bit with the name flips, makes for a solid enough turn to match what was also a solid and versatile turn from Profit, who might’ve edged the round and won the battle if he had come cleaner.
Verdict: TIE
Favorite line: Profit – “Plus I heard your bitch can’t cook, you should make her disappear, her rice and beans is trash, I’m chasing it, it’s weird!”
Recap: Dope, competitive KOTD battle between Bigg K and Pat Stay ironically comes down to K, a battler rarely known for rapping longer than his opponent, getting edged in the 3rd round for doing just that. Indeed, while K’s punchline/wordplay game was rousing at times and his personals often hit with amusing narratives, rapping almost twice as longer as Pat in the 1st round with lesser overall bar efficiency would hurt him there and one too many redundant heaters and as well as some surprising shots at KOTD (tho they were mean) would cost him in the deciding 3rd. For the performance-heavy Pat Stay, who for the most part impressed throughout the battle with stinging breakdowns of Bigg K’s style of rap, a couple of spicy rebuttals (as well as a spitfire, mid-round rebut in the 1st), witty anecdotes/punches and a host of boastful barbs, an ability to dish 3 condensed turn against an opponent who’s long noted for doing the same, would end up in his favor.
Verdict: Pat Stay (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Pat Stay – “[Bigg K kicks imaginary garbage after a line from Pat] You okay there, bro?, what are you, a fucking angry baseball coach?, well, I got that Slugger for next time you interrupt me, and I’ll let that Louie see K if this ginger thinks he’s funny!”
Recap: It’s a literal punch-fest in this dope 3-round battle between (“The type to rock socks and sandals outside when the snow’s deep, that’s why you ducked me in Chicago, you really had cold feet!”) E. Farrell and the vet (“Never go personal, I just kill nigger’s, I’m a kill you and you die…we got a deal nigger!”) B. Magic. With both hitting their marks more often then not, it’s a slightly more consistently strong, less predictable and more flow-efficient B. Magic that ends up winning it by handily taking rounds 1 and 3.
Verdict: B. Magic (W) 2-1
Favorite line: B. Magic – “Suicide, kill yourself, do or die, see these, a buck on the corner like the movie guy!”
Recap: Impressive, mayhem-dishing and boastful-ringing showing by J. Murda gets edged by an even more consistent, wordplay-spazzing, punchline-crazy and raucous turn by J-Krooger in what was a pretty competitive and fiery 1-round battle from Step Your Ink Game Up.
Verdict: J-Krooger (W) 1-0
Favorite line: J-Krooger – “A squad of killers, so if he raise a finger I need not to, Dre and Floss done Nike checked you, I’m just coming to re-box [Reebok] you!”
Recap: More a battle with a host of showmanship, rigid gun lines and “moments” (R. Streetz dropping the water bottle by Mack Mel to accentuate his ‘distracting’ 2nd round gun bar, being the best one) rather than a clean and fiery barfest, a surprising choke by Mel in the 2nd prevents this battle from being a classic. However, the PG battle’s competitive nature, sterling punches on both sides, a debatable 1st round and Mel coming back in the 3rd with a (“But I seen you came here in a new J’s, UCLA, nice chain, Norbes, I see you like the nice things, [swish!!!] buck-50 aside, I gave Streetz a bike lane!”) too-fiery turn that easily beat back a pretty standard round from Streetz, while normally making this one a draw, instead, thanks to the choke, gives it to R. Streetz.
Verdict: R. Streetz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: R. Streetz – “.22 in the boot, done rubbed on my Achilles so much, the skin don’t grow there!”
Recap: Doesn’t matter how much gwap they got, two legends you’ve never battled before, like Hollow da Don and Dizaster, shouldn’t be doing one-round promo battles. And then to make matters worse, after he goes first with a sterling and uninterrupted 5-minute round, Hollow starts openly gesturing and complaining about Dizaster going past past his allotted time limit. But if you’re confident enough in your bars (esp. after hearing most of your opponent’s already), why spoil a good matchup by whining and even leaving the stage because your ego can’t handle the possibility of Dizaster upstaging you with a longer round? Granted, KOTD could’ve done a better job with keeping track of the time. But Hollow’s been in this game too long to be putting his ego before the fans. All that said, when it comes to the battle, killer lines (and dope rebuttals) aplenty by both dudes certainly enlightened the crowd and did enough to warrant a 3-round battle in the near future. But da Don’s over-the-top versatility and Diz’s penchant for filler (esp. at the start of his turn) ends up giving Hollow the win…despite his antics at the end.
Verdict: Hollow da Don (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Hollow da Don – “Sike I lied, nigga I got bars, I’m mad charming, make him feel at home with a desert [dessert] that’ll sand storm him!”
Recap: The gritty, open-ended and posturing street missives from Trackz more than make their mark in this dope 1-rounder from RBE. But a more versatile, direct, gun bar/name-flip friendly and slightly more punch-lit Eazy The Block Captain manages to rack up enough points to get the win.
Verdict: Eazy The Block Captain (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Eazy The Block Captain – “Nigga, you ever been through it?, theer was times when I was dead pop, I mean ya man shot, bullets glaze, leg shot, don’t gotta put no tattoo on my face to remember the body ‘cuz a real nigga already left the tear drops!”
Recap: A ‘Napolean Dynamite’ reference highlights a versatile performance here by Skates, who versus a solid and (“The .4 will straighten him up, y’all better get Skates in line!”) gun-centric Bars the Animal, uses a plethora of bully bars, lofty (“When this .22 feel like a .9, what’s wind chill factor?”) gun lines, fire set-ups, fiery punchlines and even some rare wit to outshine his opponent for 3 rounds and take what, despite the final score, was still a pretty competitive battle.
Verdict: Skates (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Skates – “It don’t matter of it’s 30 years later, you’ll still get got nigga, ‘cuz I’ll give my own son the contract, I’m Doc Rivers!”
Recap: Jerry Wess’ rambunctious name flips and fiery gun bars prove to be too much for a slip-up prone Milk Da General.
Verdict: Jerry Wess (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Jerry Wess – “They call you Da Gneeral, get hit with the Bill Russell, that’s plenty rings, these bullets will go in General…like this could be about anything!”
Recap: After dishing a pretty pedestrian 1st round that easily got beat back by a fire, OG-savvy turn by Moon, Diesel steps it up with steady aggression, backed by fiery name flips, some nice schemes and roundhouse punchlines to take rounds 2 and 3 for the win over a still solid, but not as potent opponent in this PG match from Smack/URL.
Verdict: Diesel (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Diesel – “I’ll have Moon staring at the .50 like his birthday coming!”
Recap: Dishing stinging name flips, righteous schemes and hard-hitting personals in rounds 1 and 3 with extra flair and confidence, Charlies Clips easily sets back an erratic Danja Zone in this 3-rounder from Black Ice Cartel.
Verdict: Charlie Clips (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Charlie Clips – “…and this nigga a snitch, running with State Farm, what that mean he pop up with the wrong Jake!”
Recap: Who doesn’t love an aggressive, hard-fought fight? That’s what happens here with Times and Dre Dennis on the KOTD stage, what with both spitting hardbody lines, frenetic gun bars and in the case of mostly Dennis, spirited name flips. That said, a couple of too-close-to-call rounds leaves this one decided in the first, where a more potent, wordplay-heavy and consistent with the mayhem, Dre Dennis won pretty handily.
Verdict: Dre Dennis (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Dre Dennis – “You try to jump me ‘cuz my goons ain’t with me?, nigga the tool ain’t friendly, I’ll be squeezing from the back like the toothpaste empty!”
Recap: A fire one-rounder between Bedaffi Green and Lexx Luthor has them both flexing their mettle. With Luthor spitting jovial personals along with a plethora of witty and hefty (“You wanna use science, fair, after your battle with Glu, stick to the projects!”) one-liners and Green, at his boastful (“Fuck a penny for your thoughts [click, click] you’ll get a nickel for your action!”) best, dishing multi-faceted shiners with steady aggression. Yet, as hard as it is to knock anything here, it’s Green, with slightly more consistent heaters and less dry spots, that earns the win here.
Verdict: Bedaffi Green (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Bedaffi Green – “I’m ready to make a movie the moment you act foolish, casting for it, retarded clip, nigga I want you to act stupid!”
Recap: Witty anecdotes, storytelling raps and stinging (“If I Smack you, everybody gonna know [no] me and I never bought tickets to N.O.M.E.!”) wordplay from Floss Da Boss. Aggressive gun (“Fuck that [Bang!!!], I’ll let it kick off wherever you feel welcome at, ‘cuz I’m right at home!”) lines and rich (“It’s the same old church song, I’m done with him [hymn]!”) set-ups from J. Murda (who’s flow was consistently nice, despite all flags for unsportsmanlike conduct throughout the battle). Altogether make for a close, competitive battle on the RBE stage. However, it’s the personals, especially when it came to mocking his opponent’s (“Hey Murda, you been screaming ‘Fuck the World’ forever, what did it do?”) repertoire, that gives Floss the deciding round 3 and a win.
Verdict: Floss Da Boss (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Floss Da Boss -“Nigga, I dare you come to my crib, I’ll show you I ain’t the one to creep on, I’ll be sitting there with the arm in the chair like I’m holding somebody seat for ’em!”
