No Bias. No Narratives.
Mister Greco Recap: Two of the most prolific battle rappers in the game, Danny Myers and Dre Dennis, meet up on GOTG and outside of clear win in the 3rd round or Dre (where he used a stellar angle dripped in spitfire personals that easily beat what was a throwaway/complimentary turn by Danny), this one was extremely close. Indeed, while in both of the opening rounds Dennis excelled at dishing hardbody set-ups with spicy punches, it’s the slightly more storytelling/punch-lit, witty and condensed Myers who edges both turns for the win.
Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Danny Myers – “Hey, I was about to battle this nigga right outside, but Dre got to him first!”
Recap: Spicy, Christian-themed darts, fiery storytelling rhymes, fire set-ups, witty barbs and a gang of stinging gun bars/punchlines…for Ryda it’s a versatile and consistently hitting performance that altogether adds up to more than enough haymakers to beat back a freestyle-lit, but otherwise topsy-turvy (esp. on the name flips) A. Ward in this 1-rounder from House of Wolves.
Verdict: Ryda (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Ryda – “I’m here to let you know I am the first Buddist battle rapper…now see how I’m already the best at that?!
Recap: Seen better overall bouts from both battlers, but this rematch between Born and Xcel at KOTD’s Season 1 tourney is still a goodie with plenty of spicy lyrical burners, standout personals, stunted wordplay/braggadocios lines and fiery 4-bar punches reigning galore. But after losing round 1 while struggling a bit with his flow, Xcel gets it together in the latter two rounds with more consistently hitting darts to gain the win.
Verdict: Xcel (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Xcel – “Talking about you airing a Ruger, this nigga wouldn’t draw if he was Aaron McGruder!”
Recap: From URL’s Civil War card, another pretty solid effort from Real Sikh, filled with some witty barbs, a stockpile of aggressive mayhem and potent punches/name flips/rebuttals that still however wasn’t good enough to beat the punching power of Ave. The Norfolk, VA, vet using a gang of hitting pop culture references, sick name flips, piercing wordplay and sometimes righteous, but mostly flexing punchlines to take all 3 rounds for an impressive win over an opponent who otherwise has had a dope 2021.
Verdict: Ave (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Ave – “This Captain Planet, yeah the Indian got heart in the ring!”
Recap: Ryda versus Don Marino on URL’s Civil War for the most part is a goodie with the Miami rapper dropping his usual assortment of struggle bars and wily punches for more consistently hitting/spicier punchlines and a creative use of an angle in round 2 that was well lit with hitting personals. However, after getting handily beat in round 1, Ryda would step his punching acumen and via a barrage of witty darts, flexing/mocking personals, fire set-ups/storytelling bars and oft-Mexican themed, but either way still gripping bars that altogether edged both of the latter rounds to the Maryland battler and earned him the win.
Verdict: Ryda (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Ryda – “You got a great resume, low stock, your career’s been an odd one, you gotta be the only Mexican I know that can never get the job done!”
Recap: Against a Loso who seemed to be more interested in 3 rounds of righteous indignation that ironically became redundant at times (when he wasn’t kicking a bunch of subpar name flips) instead of more intricacy with his punches, versatility and performance stunting with his bars, in this URL/Civil War bout, Nu Jerzey Twork has a relatively easy time of it. The still young NJ vet using some stellar wordplay, raucous gun lines, rambunctious punches that landed well (esp. in the early rounds), hardbody religious-tinted personals that broke down his Christian opponent’s more charlatan-esque moments and not one, but two ‘Strapped In!’s screeds to cap a performance that reminded everyone that a motivated Twork can still rap with the best of them.
Verdict: Nu Jerzey Twork (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Nu Jerzey Twork – “I’ll take ya life if you try Twork, the Four Horsemen jump in, there’s hearses right at my mom church, this nigga A. Ward try me, I’ma grab the pipe and the .9 burst, you know how this Four Brother shit go…the white one die first!”
Recap: In an inquisitive battle between a couple of battle rappers/sound systems, Lu Castro delivers enough brazen punches, stinging wordplay, rim-rocking haymakers, some righteous ‘Big Dog’ barbs and graphic mayhem to outlast his opponent in the latter two rounds (after Jakk edged the 1st) and get the win over his former Goonie brethren in what was altogether a pretty competitive and fiery matchup.
Verdict: Lu Castro (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Lu Castro – “Let’s set this wolf trap, line the flex, 9’sand Tek’s, dull-ass blade, fucking boring, condom sex!”
Recap: His only mistake being prolonged rounds, in this URL/Civil War bout against Mike P, T-Top uses a versatile and name-flip lit round 1 before delivering a terrific, set-up savvy and stifling race angle in round 2 (that was capped by a sublime cameo from Top’s ‘white friend’ Anderson Burruss) to take that round as well and get the win before spouting a personal-bent 3rd round, that while redundant in is theme (more knocks on Mike;s girl), was still witty and punch-heavy to make this a 30. Mike P, who struggled to gain any momentum back after Top’s (in front of his hometown, Raleigh, NC, crowd no less) stellar 2nd, never seemed to never be in his bag either way, what with an up-n-down opening round, a Street Fighter scheme that didn’t transition well and a gang of subpar punches that when he wasn’t scoring with his usual assortment of graphic mayhem and jaunty punches/personals, gave him little chance in this battle.
Verdict: T-Top (W) 3-0
Favorite line: T-Top – “I love you, Mikey, just disappointed in the way it was handled, you damn near stopped her from havin’ y’all child, ’cause you felt like you were takin’ a gamble, well, I’m from Carolina, it woulda hurt to see the baby [DaBaby] get canceled!”
Recap: Spouting the kind of versatile and deep-level intricacy with his raps that separates the elite punchers from the rest of the crowd, a consistently punch and wordplay-lit B. Magic puts a bruising for 3 rounds on a mostly mediocre-punching Wrist God to handily get the 30 in this battle from Next Level Battle League.
Verdict: B. Magic (W) 3-0
Favorite line: B. Magic – “Walk up on him, him and the left soon meet, then my right, soon as that bitch connect dude sleep, you get a left then a right after a left [Ooowee!]…what a hook like N.O.R.E. on a Neptune beat!”
Recap: In this competitive 3-rounder from Major League Battles, the gritty, aggressive and unorthodox stylings of T Hurst were enough to consistently keep the heat on opponent Chef Trez. But dipped with a wide load of stifling wordplay, fiery name flips, stinging gun bars and fierce rebuttals/punchlines, the Chef would take both of the opening rounds for the win before a debatable 3rd.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “I might get it shaking with this square, but he still getting holes in the end…let’s have a dice game!”
Recap: Said it before, race angles against white battle rappers, for the most part, just come off as lazy penmanship. In other words, unless you’re a B. Dot or some other conscious battler (where it’s already part of your repertoire), unless you can kick some really unique or otherworldly shit that’s never been done before (or, be adept enough to incorporate race bars around one of your noted signature moves, which in X-Factor’s case would be his ‘Priorities’ lines and while he tried to do so, overall it just didn’t work), angling an entire round (as X-Factor does here in his 3rd against Bigg K) towards race just to score some points with the politically correct crowd and maybe get a win, almost never works. That said, even with a so-so 2nd round, it’s all Bigg K here. The Dawg striking once again with a gang of piercing punchlines/name flips, witty personals and stinging storytelling rhymes to beat an X-Factor who after a pretty solid round 1, just landed in a cesspool of nothing but filler and pedestrian punches thereafter.
Verdict: Bigg K (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Bigg K – “You work out?, big flex, I caught him at mid rep, pulled a p-90 X, it ain’t part of yoru gym set!”
Recap: Spouting a bunch of spicy name flips, grabbing your attention with some gritty wordplay and dishing a fierce/aggressive mix of grimy mayhem, punchlines and personals, in this 1-rounder from GOTG that featured Tay Roc making his 1st appearance in the Gates, an altogether pretty solid Wise certainly makes a name for himself. Yet, wasting little time (unlike his opponent, who did spit some filler here and there) with straight-ahead potent punches, wily name flips, fire set-ups, a conversational screed or two to go along with a gang of hardbody gun missives and righteous personals, even within the confines of a smaller league, Roc more than makes his presence felt.
Verdict: Tay Roc (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Tay Roc – “The gun lift, your mom’s won’t recognize you when that bag unzip, she like ‘That wasn’t Wise, you musta done some dumb shit!'”
Recap: Grind Time/KOTD vet Madness takes it right to Don Marino with 3 rounds of witty personals, hard-hitting Mexican barbs and other consistently piercing punchlines to handily beat back a spicy at times, but overall unsteady effort from the Miami legend.
Verdict: Madness (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Madness – “For you, battling me is on the top of your bucket list, for me it’s…whatever the fuck this is!”
Recap: This was unfair. Whether it was a spitfire, personal-lit, touching at times, but also rowdy 3rd round or a gang of stellar set-ups/punches, wily gun bars and mocking personals in the earlier rounds, for 3 rounds Ill Will (who overall, wasn’t even at his best here) dominates the loud and aggressive, but consistently basic bars from Jag. Indeed, even the Atlanta crowd were riled by this bodybag what with the West-coast battle rapper displaying an extreme lack of intricacy to his bars that by the final round just became hard to watch. And when you consider how much hype went into promoting this battle. you might be better off re-watching the faceoff, yunno when Jag still stood a chance to win.
Verdict: Ill Will (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Ill Will – “I’m forever ready, Pontiac got my back very heavy, they just know me as Will, the lights make me ill…like epilepsy!”
Recap: Brazen, mayhem-friendly effort from Noah, in this 3-rounder from WarTown Battles, while solid over all doesn’t hold a candle to the more intricate and consistently hitting, rebuttal spitting, name flip savvy and punchline/gun bar/personal-lit Chef Trez.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “They say the early bird get the worm first, but a desert eagle get the fucking opps!”
Recap: Impressive victory by Arsonal here in what was altogether a dope and competitive battle against his fellow New Jerseyan Real Sikh on URL’s Super Fight 4 card. Da Rebel, after struggling a bit with his flow in round 1 while facing a punch/wordplay-heavy and brazen Sikh, would come back in round 2 (after getting edged in the opener) with a pair of versatile, well-angled, lyrically-sublime, trap-talking, highly personal when necessary and punch-lit to the point of even spitting a rare rebuttal to take round 2 and edge what was a scathing and personal-bent 3rd from his opponent, to get the come-from-behind win.
Verdict: Arsonal (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Arsonal – “I got about 30 on neck, I got a 30 on deck, you still red-shirting pussy, you ain’t put Jersey on yet!”
Recap: The bars are always there. But once again displaying a lack of preparation via slip-ups and a super costly 3rd round choke, in an otherwise brazen battle that was spicy and mayhem-lit with the punches through and through, Lady Caution’s final round blunder would serve as the difference in losing this 3-rounder to Ms. Miami.
Verdict: Ms. Miami (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Ms. Miami – “Don’t ever play with my money, you’ll end up on the wrong side of my mood swings!”
Recap: In this 1-rounder from Flatline Battle Grounds, the slightly more condensed, haymaker-lit and gun bar/name flip/punch-heavy Chef Trez gets the win. But still an impressive showing from opponent Hustle who with a wide variety of gritty punchlines/schemes and an ability to change his flow mid-round, gave Trez all he could handle and could be someone to look out for in the future.
Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Chef Trez – “You gonna swing on who, don’t be the guy to try, ‘cuz I’ll drop Hustle like it’s time to get a 9 to 5!”
Recap: Who said top tier battle rappers don’t battle in the street anymore? Ok, scratch that as the only reason this 1-round, Trap NY matchup between O-Red and Young BMore takes place outside was due to Red showing up to the venue too late. Still, with a good ‘ole reliable bag of fierce translation bars, flexing wordplay and some gritty punchlines/set-ups, against a solid, but mostly pedestrian turn from BMore, it’s the NJ vet who gets the win here.
Verdict: O-Red (W) 1-0
Favorite line: O-Red – “I’ll do you like the last Verzuz nigga, yunno, D-Block and the Dips, head shot, you Jadakiss, that mean you carrying your Lox [locks] in this bitch!”
Recap: D.O.T. wins the funniest line of the night with that ‘A nigga twice my size? that just mean I gotta knock him out twice!’ barb. But in this 1-rounder from Our Society Battle League, it’s the more consistently hitting, action-based and mayhem-lit with the punches Sheed Happens who earns teh win.
Verdict: Sheed Happens (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Sheed Happens – “Hood nigga, Gorilla Zo, this my only banger!”
Recap: Not sure why Street Hymns would dish so many long-winded schemes in a tournament battle. That said, in addition to a topsy-turvy punch game that featured a handful of reaches and a Bad Newz that was just consistently gritty/hard-hitting with the pen (when he wasn’t scoring with fierce name flips and some stellar personals), this one-sided Season 1 tourney battle was pretty much decided after round 1.
Verdict: Bad Newz (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Bad Newz – “Shot 5 times, you think being a virgin is tough? that’s a whole ‘nother hard!”
Recap: Clearly focused from jump, Prez Mafia uses a condensed and consistent gang of rambunctious punchlines, delicious mayhem and potent name flips to beat back a wily and hitting at times, but altogether unsteady effort from Primetime in this 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden.
Verdict: Prez Mafia (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Prez Mafia – “I set trends, you about to see a bullet more from ear to ear, from time to Time…I only shoot it here and there!”
Recap: Dope Born Legacy NW matchup between Saint Mic and Dre Vishiss sees the latter keep it close and competitive with a variety of spicy punchlines, well-lit mayhem, fiery gang talk and hitting name flips/struggle bars. Yet, while he did get edged in the second round, with a consistent display of potent/intricate wordplay throughout the battle to go along with some witty personals, banging braggadocios darts and fierce setups/punches, it’s the slightly more haymaker-lit Saint Mic who takes rounds 1 and 3 for the win.
Verdict: Saint Mic (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Saint Mic – “Bitch, I’ve had Bud in the crib since a kid…I’m Rudy Huxtable!”
Recap: Stepping up his wordplay throughout the battle, while dishing a gang of mayhem-lit bangers, hard-hitting personals and some spicy anime bars/name flips, outside of a slip-up prone 2nd round that the more meandering/unorthodox stylings of opponent Sheed Happens probably would’ve edged anyway, Tru Foe takes both the opening round and deciding 3rd for the win in this URL SM$ second-round matchup.
Verdict: Tru Foe (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Tru Foe – “They put a price on ya life and all it cost me was a fucking bullet!”
Recap: In this 1-rounder from GOTG, a semi flow-challenged and bit reach-bent Tink Da Demon still made things close with a slew of graphic, mayhem-lit punchlines. But in the long run it’s a more versatile/hard-hitting with the punches and personals, witty and righteous when need be and most importantly for him, consistent with the heat Chuck Book who gets the edge here.
Verdict: Chuck Book (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Chuck Book – “So let this nigga give me problems, the semi popping, then dump him on the side of the highway and leave a Demon on the shoulder like a guilty conscience!”
Recap: From QOTR, Robin Rhymes still needs to work on her delivery, one too many shots at Tay Roc might’ve cost her in the end and for all that insistence at going first to start the battle, how ironic it is that her opener was her weakest round. Still, a much stronger punch/name flip/personal game in rounds 2 and 3 by Robin combined with a 3rd round choke from Lady Caution, allows the Texas battler to take both of the latter rounds for the win.
Verdict: Robin Rhymes (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Robin Rhymes – “Hell, a tranny didn’t wanna suck your nigga dick and you was the next best thing!”
Recap: Strong, punchline/name flip/mayhem-lit efforts by both Lotta Zay and Riggz in this KOTD Season Week 5 match. And while Zay kept it close and made his presence felt throughout with a gang of aggressive and gritty darts, it’s the slightly more consistently hitting, wordplay-spicy and condensed Riggz who took round’s 1 and 2 (score the 3rd debatable) for the win.
Verdict: Riggz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Riggz – “You picked the wrong nigga, y’all better wake the fuck up before I fuck the whole wake teh fuck up!”
Recap: 1-rounder from Street Status comes with a dope mini-doc attached to it beforehand that came with nice footage on the St. Louis as well as a pair of insightful interviews with B. Magic and Tone Bone on their upbringing along with thoughts on the battle which itself was mostly one-sided as besides Bone winning the crowd over at times with some mocking personals and witty barbs, in comparison to Magic’s fleet of stifling 4-bar set-ups and stinging punchlines/wordplay, this one wasn’t that close.
Verdict: B. Magic (W) 1-0
Favorite line: B. Magic – “If you think you Heaven Sent like Keisha Cole, you’ll catch a couple off guard like the ‘Cheater’ show!”
Recap: A much-hyped rematch from their 1-rounder on Snoop Dogg’s short-lived battle league some years back, a buildup captivating, ever confident & street-smart, solid-punching, righteous and personal/gun bar-lit Calicoe, assisted by an elongated, too braggadocios and mostly pedestrian-bar (except for round 2 where his opponent’s bar efficiency was at its best) spitting Hitman Holla, delivers enough consistent heat in the 1st and 3rd rounds to get the win in what was at times a pretty lethargic 3-rounder from RBE’s Max Out 2 card.
Verdict: Calicoe (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Calicoe – “If I come with a team of shooters, I am not playing, number one pick don’t give a fuck what the scout saying!”
Recap: NXT vs Boze The Bambino in the 2nd round of URL’s UM4 tourney is a fiery and aggressive slugfest that saw Boze spout some unique name flips on his opponent when he was wasn’t dishing gritty personals and rigid 4-bar setups. NXT, on the other hand, loud and spirited throughout the bout, would come through with a gang of flexing punchlines, shrewd personals, some stellar wordplay and hard-hitting name flips. A close one that was a little chippy at times what with the competition being so heated, a couple of stumbles (a minor one in round 1 and a more blatant one in round 2) by Boze would edge NXT the first two rounds for the win before Boze came back with a stifling turn and took the 3rd.
Verdict: NXT (W) 2-1
Favorite line: NXT – “You played a clip of him say ‘I ain’t gangsta’, nigga neither was that!”
Recap: One-rounder from The Trap NY sees D.O.T. use a plethora of performance-stunting/well-styled name flips that combined with some brazen/witty punches/gun bars are enough to beat back the ‘Most Exciting’, but in this case topsy-turvy 1, 2 punches from O-Solo.
Verdict: D.O.T. (W) 1-0
Favorite line: D.O.T. – “But I can’t kill you tho, you my father’s uncle on my mother’s side…fuck it, [BOAW!}, now you my father’s uncle on the other side!’
Recap: One of the most impressive Bankhead’s you’ll ever see here as for 3 rounds against Piranha, the Milwaukee emcee stays in cruise control, using a gang of stifling name flips/metaphors and grimy punchlines to earn the 30 over an opponent who despite a bunch of hitting lines never seemed to find his focus, stopping short in both of the opening rounds of this KOTD match before choking away his 3rd.
Verdict: Bankhead (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Bankhead – “Man, fuck all that chattering shit, why batter a fish, when I can air fry him?!”
Recap: One-rounder from GOTG turns out to be a layup for Dougy as opponent Darange’s mayhem-rich, but generic and mostly pedestrian raps doesn’t hold a candle to the We Go Hard vet’s consistently blazing gun bars, fiery name flips and gritty trap talk.
Verdict: Dougy (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Dougy – “If I even hear he around I’m gonna spray, I’ll turn his crib into a picnic, the cloth will put his family down in broad day!”
Recap: With The Horseman delivering their sermons towards the fairer sex of late, it’s only fitting that Loso takes on 40 B.A.R.R.S in a 1-rounder on Bullpen Battle League. A close and impressively clean one considering that they only battled on one week’s prep, littered with a gang of spicy personals on both sides, some fiery wordplay/punches from 40 and some righteous burners from Loso, even while wasting a few bars on Ms. Hustle (who apparently he was supposed to battle instead) to start his turn, it’s the slightly more haymaker-lit Horseman who gets the win.
Verdict: Loso (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Loso – “Once you hit 40, you gonna look at life different!”
Recap: Versatile and potent at times to makes things close, but an altogether halfhearted effort from Drugz eventually gets run down on by the systematically bruising punchlines/personals from Big Chauncey in this 1-rounder from GOTG.
Verdict: Big Chauncey (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Big Chauncey – “[Bwoh!] I’ll get it go like Snowfall…man, boy you done fucked up like Season 3!”
Recap: A crazy, punch-heavy, mayhem spicy and lyrically brazen 3rd by Rum Nitty not only turns out to be the best round of this URL/Super Fight battle against Hollow Da Don. But saves the day for the Arizona vet, who thanks in part to some reaching and overused themes (snitching) in round 2, was behind a round heading into the final turn, On the other hand Hollow, playing with different flows throughout the match while scoring with some dope (“I’m in here giving y’all room shakers, but I gotta shake rumors!”) wordplay, righteous storytelling, unorthodox but fierce schemes and witty/stinging punches throughout the match, would hurt himself a bit with a few subpar lines as well as an overkill when it came to personals. That said, some fly breakdowns and head-ringing shiners by Da Don in round 1 while entertaining, didn’t always match the effort in terms of potency. And add to the mix an aggressive, determined, set-up rich, a little more condensed and punch-lit opener by Rum, while dripped with some filler here and there, was enough to force a draw and make this battle debatable.
Verdict: TIE
Favorite line: Rum Nitty – “Hit the scene like Prince Akeem, Semi with me looking for this bitch in Queens!”
Recap: Guess times have changed a bit as it wasn’t too long ago that one could expect to get at least 4 to 5 minutes of bars from a battler in a 1-rounder. But seeing Nu Jerzey Twork (and recently his Jersey brethren Shotgun Suge) being able to reduce his time during a 1-rounder to 2 to 3 minutes (as he does here) can only be a testament to how much it means to a league’s gate to have him on their card. Still, even with a shortened turn, Twork’s stinging word association gutso, fiery name flips and raucous punches are enough to beat back a mayhem/gun bar-lit and overall solid turn from HNH Zeek, who btw easily rapped like 3 times longer than his opponent.
Verdict: Nu Jerzey Twork (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Nu Jerzey Twork – “Get to clapping this guy, I’m a lay H down on his side…look like a capital I!”
Recap: A battle between a couple of Carolina heads long in the making, helped by Swamp (who otherwise came through with 3 punch/personal-heavy rounds and even a couple of nice rebuttals) slip-ups in each of the opening rounds, an angle-deft (tho a little elongated throughout the bout) T-Top also uses a bunch of righteous storytelling/schemes, wily personals, rigid set-ups, witty barbs and piercing name flips/punchlines to take each of the opening rounds of this URL Super Fight IV matchup for the win before his more condensed opponent edged a close 3rd.
Verdict: T-Top (W) 2-1
Favorite line: T-Top – “Tell him we could go shoot the fade right now if ya man’s want it, but I never been a bitch so he probably won;t put his hands on me!”
Recap: In a raucous and competitive 3-rounder from We Go Hard littered with a gang of gritty punchlines and mocking/witty personals, a more steady-flowing and sly metaphor/name flip slinging Sonny, after getting edged in round 1, takes both of the latter rounds (that 2nd was superb) to comeback and pull off the win over Stumbles.
Verdict: Sonny (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Sonny – “If I lik a shot, he gonna be doing way than stumbling!”
Recap: Dre Dennis vs. Shotgun Suge for 1-round on GOTG ends up being a goodie rife with plenty of piercing punchlines and relentless mayhem. However, while he was able to hit with a variety of hardbody and even witty lines, an elongated turn, some pedestrian bars and a couple of reaches here and there by Dre allows the more condensed and slightly more steadily hitting Suge to edge it in the end.
Verdict: Shotgun Suge (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Shotgun Suge – “You say shit but never hit like a friend zone!”
Recap: “Shit, I could get a nigga but can’t keep a nigga, I gotta mouth on me!'”…a barrage of fiery/provocative punchlines, feelgood schemes and rigid name flips from Robin Rhymes in this 1-rounder from Kreo Battle League, certainly kept the crowd and her opponent in a frenzy, while keeping things competitive. But neither Rhymes’ rhymes or her sexy wardrobe could distract an aggressive Benji Lolo from consistently scoring with a plethora of stinging personals, wily name flips, witty burns, spicy set-ups and some piercing punches/gun bars to gain the win.
Verdict: Benji lolo (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Benji Lolo – “One night with me, you gonna have amazing raps…and a back brace!”
Recap: After half a decade battling elsewhere, Head I.C.E. returns to the URL for a competitive goodie vs Ave and the Harlem O.G. does his thing with a gang of stifling O.G. talk, hardbody bangers, a sprinkling of wit, roughhouse wordplay/punches and of course some nonsensical shit to keep you scratching ya head. A bit long-winded at times (esp. in round 1) with a few pedestrian bars mixed here and there, over an opponent who came equipped with his usual assortment of fiery braggadocios zingers, head-ringing name flips, rapid punches and in this case oft-funny ‘old head’ zingers, it’s still the slightly more haymaker-lit and quantitative I.C.E. who edges rounds 1 and 3 for the return win.
Verdict: Head I.C.E. (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Head I.C.E. – “Outside this league, you a nobody, then you joined a group of nigga’s and you the nobody!”
Recap: Close 3-rounder from UBL Midwest between Jay Lopez and Young Kannon featured plenty of bruising punchlines, head-ringing gun bars and resident mayhem. But after Lopez edged round 1 and YK returned the favor by edging the 2nd round, a strong 3rd by both battlers is edged by the more condensed, storytelling and slightly more consistent YK for the win.
Verdict: Young Kannon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Young Kannon – “Big .9, little .9, both I bring for the slaughter, that’s the broom twin and a baby twin, that’s Ice-T and his daughter!”
Recap: A mostly clean showing from the witty and street-savvy, but often slip-up prone Stumbles still isn’t near enough to beat back a stellar (tho a little long-winded), wordplay/personal-lit (esp. with the phone recording of his opponent in round 3), gritty and punchline/haymaker crazy 3 rounds from Boze The Bambino in this URL UM4 first-round matchup.
Verdict: Boze The Bambino (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Boze The Bambino – “Your death will look natural Stumbles like a speech impediment!”
Recap: From the 1st round of URL’s Ultimate Madness 4 tournament, gotta wonder if DG Da Paronta didn’t adapt his style a little too much attempting to mimic his opponent’s noted ‘Plug Talk’. Still a competitive goodie nonetheless as DG and Kyd Slade split the first couple of rounds, but it’s the rigid street narratives, witty barbs and stinging punches from Slade that allows the CT battler to take the 3rd for the win.
Verdict: Kyd Slade (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Kyd Slade – “I’m killing everything in the house but the babies, your little man only 12?, then son lucky, ‘cuz when I get go it’s Jordan Retro’s, everything from 13 up get done ugly!”
Recap: Sticking with a plethora of hardbody punches, braggadocio zingers and greasy personals that while not too over the top, still made their point, St. Louis’ MVP edges the first two rounds of this URL SM4 matchup for the win over a mostly pedestrian, just-happy-to-be-here Truth Watson before gaining the 30 thanks in part to his opponent choking in the 3rd.
Verdict: MVP (W) 3-0
Favorite line: MVP – “You are nothing, just wasted space…like a frat house!”
Recap: NXT versus Elijah Strait on URL’s UM4 was a close one as both battlers brought a near equal amount of heat with the fiery wordplay, intricate schemes, potent punchlines and daunting mayhem. Add in some spicy semantics regarding religion with the ability to score with more haymakers and it’s ever loud and aggressive NXT who edges the opening rounds here for the win before Strait’s best round of the battle, his 3rd, makes this a 21.
Verdict: NXT (W) 2-1
Favorite line: NXT – “It gotta be a Dream if they say Elijah won [Olajuwon]!”
Recap: Gritty and competitive URL/UM4 1st round bout between Piranha and an earnest, but a little dry spot-bent Casino gets edged by the Detroit spitter, who’s rigid build-ups to his punches, authentic street talk, persistent mayhem and creative name flips scored with enough heat to win both of the opening rounds for the dub before a 3rd round debatable.
Verdict: Piranha (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Piranha – “Drive-by, no double-back needed, hit Casino the first time like Beginner’s luck!”
Recap: Not sure what Chilla Jones was thinking (the only judge to go the other way on the decision), but this URL SM4 1st round battle between J2 and Tru Foe was pretty clear-cut as Foe surprised many with a flexing, punch-heavy, personal-savvy and even witty at times performance in rounds 1 and 3 (a flawless turn btw) to beat back an overall strong lyrically (esp. in round 2 which he edged) and name flip/gun-happy J2 who just didn’t have enough heat to match his opponent’s comeuppance in the other rounds.
Verdict: Tru Foe (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Tru Foe – “Since we gotta clash, I ain’t showin’ remorse, though, bring a whole new meaning to “LGBT” if you don’t know, that’s when a bullet go through your Leg, Gut, Back and your Torso!”
Recap: Fiery schemes, blazing gun bars, slick wordplay/set-ups and graphic/stinging punchlines, it’s all there for Real Name Brandon in the first couple of rounds of this dope Ultimate Madness 4 matchup from URL, giving the West-coast native the win before a more steadily hitting, gritty and punch-lit Swervoo took the 3rd to avoid the shutout.
Verdict: Real Name Brandon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Real Name Brandon – “I was in the Charger with the .9 before anybody knew Drew Brees!”
Recap: After getting edged by a bullish, personally disrespectful and slightly punch-heavier turn by Shotgun Suge in the opening round, despite being a little elongated with his raps, A. Ward uses a gang of witty personals, hard-hitting set-ups/schemes, righteous bangers and scintillating punchlines/Godspeak to edge the 2nd round before handily taking the deciding 3rd in this 3-rounder from The Battle Academy, thanks mostly to a bunch of piercing punches/personals, but also assisted by a Suge choke.
Verdict: A. Ward (W) 2-1
Favorite line: A. Ward – “This is unfortunate for you, for the first time ever you done bit off more than you can chew!”
Recap: As often as we hear the phrase ‘He’s different!’, it certainly applies to Sheed Happens, who’s steely when need be, unorthodox, cadence-flipping, buttery flow certainly makes him a standout in a sea of formulaic, gun-bar happy rappers. Still, here against the ever bullish, oft-punch heavy and aggressive Murda (solid throughout except for a couple of minor slip-ups) at URL’s UM4, Sheed and his fellow Maryland opponent would put up a competitive fight with Sheed’s often incredulous wordplay and dynamic punch game, coupled with an energetic performance that matched his thrifty polemics allowing him to edge rounds 1 and 2 for the win before a debatable 3rd.
Verdict: Sheed Happens (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Sheed Happens – “Tell yo nosey ass neighbors to go inside, before I spin back with the stick…close ya blinds!”
Recap: The Battle Academy 1-rounder finds Bill Collector, after a bit of a slow start, get back on his grind with some fierce back-to-back punchlines that coupled with some witty personals, made things close in the end. But it’s a steadier Danny Myers, flexing with a some fiery schemes, wicked punches/set-ups and gripping personals, who spouts enough damage to earn the win.
Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Danny Myers – “Knocked him in a parallel universe where I ain’t got no kids…this shit quite boring, then I beat this pussy to death and the judge gave me 10 life for him!”
Recap: From We Go Hard, a consistently gritty, wordplay nice and name flip/punchline-lit Henny #3 spouts enough wreck to beat back a mayhem-rich and frequently stinging with the punches, but also a bit flow-challenged Bedaffi Green in what was altogether a fiery 1-rounder.
Verdict: Henny #3 (W) 1-0
Favorite line: Henny #3 – “Y’all ever seen the M&M commercial?, yeah?, Green’s a bitch!”
Recap: Try as he might to keep up with Mackk Myron’s ill impressions, personal insults and wicked/stinging/witty punchlines/similes, in this 3-rounder from KOTD’s Season 1, even while enlisting a similar game plan (as well as a couple of spicy rebuttals), overall Dallas Cash, while keeping the battle close and competitive throughout, just didn’t have enough steady darts to match his opponent’s over-the-top synergy.
Verdict: Mackk Myron (W) 3-0
Favorite line: Mackk Myron – “I’m a big stepper like Buddy Love on the gas pedal!”
Recap: From URL’s Born Legacy NW, Yung Griz certainly had to earn this one as opponent Mr. Biscuit’s patchwork of stinging 2-bar punchlines along with some feisty wordplay/personals allowed the Crucible 2 graduate to make his mark while keeping things close. Yet, for all of Biscuit’s verbal histrionics, the more condensed, rebuttal-spitting and versatile-punching Griz, bedazzling the crowd with everything from piercing punches to loaded gun lines to witty personals (mostly geared towards to his opponent’s choice of footwear) to fire set-ups/name flips/righteous bangers, does just enough to edge rounds 1 and 3 for the win.
Verdict: Yung Griz (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Yung Griz – “Popeyes! Biscuit! He gettin’ tired of the bars, till it’s Biscuit on a shirt like, ‘I ate mine in the car!'”
Recap: In a highly personal and sex-laced Panic Room 3 battle from QOTR that was much closer than the ATL crowd let on, after the two split the first couple of rounds, a more lyrically stunting and slightly more consistently hitting Krissy Yamagucci outlasts the thot bars/schemes from Yoshi G. in the deciding 3rd to edge the win.
Verdict: Krissy Yamagucci (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Krissy Yamagucci – “I was able to level up my pen without using Quantum Physics!?
Recap: Heinous and rigid when it comes to delivering mayhem, all the while sporting some insidous wordplay and effectively pronounced punchlines to keep you paying attention, Tink The Demon scores with enough heat to take round 1 and edge round 2 of this Born Legacy NW battle and get the win over gritty and lyrically stunting (esp. in round 3), but too topsy-turvy early on Steams.
Verdict: Tink Da Demon (W) 2-1
Favorite line: Tink Da Demon – “Jesus turned water into wine, I turn beef into vegetables!”
