Over 4,000 Recaps!

Tsu Surf

Tsu Surf defeats JC

by

Recap: From Summer Madness 12, a highly anticipated and long awaited style (‘pen’ vs. ‘AMG mode’) clash between Tsu Surf and JC ends up being a mostly one-sided affair after the veteran Michigan emcee got off to a hot start with a barrage of stifling personals in the 1st half of his opening round. And while it was a bit surprising seeing JC get so personal with an opponent, considering all the hype and back-n-forth yapping between him and Surf (well actually it was mostly Surf doing the promoting and shit talking beforehand) leading up to the battle, the EFB member’s change in tone and strategy seemed fitting. Yet stunningly it quickly went downhill from there as the usually boastful, wordplay-lit and God-centric pen of JC’s would succumb to a boatload of subpar punches.personals during the next two-and-a-half rounds that not only left him down and out, but had him pop-locking on stage. All the while Surf, already on an impressive run of 5 wins in a row against top tier opponent’s, would back up months of smack talk with a gritty, punchline-savvy, performance-heavy/crowd-controlling, metaphorically fire at times, street rhyme-lit and personally cold trio of rounds to handily get the win.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “This must be another JC, it gotta be, the JC I know had me covered when they shot at me!”

Tsu Surf defeats Cortez

by

Recap: A battle 10-plus years in the works, Cortez vs. Tsu Surf finally happens on the URL’s Civil War 2 card and for the most part it’s a goodie as both battlers made it competitive and came to fight. A turned up Tez (esp. during a killer 2nd round) would come packed with shitload of gritty punches to go along with some witty barbs, spicy Surf lingo flips and fiery personals. While an aggressive Surf dished a gang of stifling wordplay, hard-hitting personals (esp. during the deciding round 3) and multifaceted punches that for the most part landed hard. As for the elephant in the room that started with Aye Verb accusing Surf of ‘stealing bars’ during his opening round? Simply put, a non-starter as Surf not only has it been proven online that he didn’t plagiarize (tho he did, for a minute, have a similar cadence and rhyme pattern to that Quilly freestyle) anything, but the idea that flipping a handful of bars you’ve heard somewhere else is suddenly a flagrant foul that gets you tossed out the game would disqualify quite a few of your favorite battle rappers, including some top tiers. That said, a few things that hurt Cor a bit during this bout: choosing to go first (only because the feeling here is that with Cor having a better rebuttal game than Surf, he could’ve scored more), one too many indirect bars and the usage of that same raucous, but at times longwinded boilerplate rhyme pattern he’s been utilizing since his Grind Time days. Still, an easy decision on this one with the more haymaker-lit Surf taking rounds 1 and 3 for the win, while Cor returned the favor in round 2 to avoid the shuout.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “They said this could go either way, listen Jon B, if you aint trying to be where Jon be, don’t listen to what people say!”

Tsu Surf defeats Nu Jerzey Twork

by

Recap: A shortened (hey, don’t complain, at least he had one), but still punch-heavy 3rd round might be the only the blight on an all-around sterling performance from Tsu Surf here against an often-flow challenged Nu Jerzey Twork on URL’s Smack Volume 9 card. The Jersey vet, continuing to shine in 2021 after two superb showings versus John John Da Don and Calicoe, stayed consistent and in charge, using a variety of stunted lyrical wizardry, stinging name flips/schemes, action-packed mayhem, brazen set-ups/performance bars and fiery personals throughout (esp. in an epic round 2) his 3 rounds to 30 an opponent who might’ve came back too soon after his last rumble against Tay Roc a couple of months back. And while Twork, when he was focused (he did come with a crazy round 2), did entertain and score via a gang of hitting gun bars, wily personals and hardbody punches, overall his lack of preparation (probably not a good idea to get in petty Twitter beefs days before a big battle) which led to many a slip-up (esp. in round 1), would cost him again.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “I yell ‘Neighborhood!’ once then the locs around, it’ll look a concert outside if I scream ‘rolling loud!'”

Tsu Surf defeats Calicoe (Rematch)

by

Recap: Spouting a rapid-punching and brazen flow that combined with a sterling mix of hard-hitting personals, searing braggadocious 4-bar set-ups, wily name flips and street-laced rhymes that more than flexed their grit, in this URL/Till Death Do Us Part rematch against Calicoe (who won their 1st battle in Jersey), a versatile Tsu Surf delivers 3 rounds of pure, consistent heat to get some payback on his Detroit rival (who besides a stutter-step or two or three in round 3, was pretty solid throughout here, including enough hitting darts to make for a debatable 1st) and continue on what’s been a mind-blowing run since he ‘un-retired’ from battle rap.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “Death is what’s served for you, life is what you make it, Mine’s? ducking slo-mo from agents, the plug still in the back of my mind like The Matrix!”

Tsu Surf defeats John John Da Don

by

Recap: Imagine how much more cockier Tsu Surf will get if he regularly brings 3 rounds with him. Pretty much all Surf here (tho a mostly up-n-down John John Da Don did have a standout 2nd round with the dope call-n-response [‘You are not bigger than the culture!’] he did with the crowd) in this Summer Madness 11 bout as the Jersey capo used a blistering barrage of self aggrandizing bangers/schemes, fire personals, fierce gun bars, rigid street rhymes and hitting punchlines to score an impressive 30 against one of his longtime adversaries.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “All this multiple choice battle rap shit, man, you ain’t runnin’ wit’ the thugs, my multiple choice was: cop out, trial or snitch, my lawyer said, ‘None of thee above!'”

40 B.A.R.R.S. defeats Tsu Surf

by

 

Recap: Hey, at least this time it appears that Tsu Surf tried to finish his 3rd round. Still, after getting eked out by a slightly punch-heavier Surf in round 1, 40 B.A.R.R.S.’ gritty wordplay, steely personals, hitting name flips, a fire 3rd round rebuttal and boastful shiners were enough to handily take the latter two rounds as well as the win over an opponent who was not only less potent as the battle proceeded, but with his inability of late to consistently give us 3 smooth rounds, may want to start thinking about taking a break from battle rap.

Verdict: 40 B.A.R.R.S. (W) 2-1

Favorite line: 40 B.A.R.R.S. – “You out here burning bitches, talking about you’ll give me that WD easy, when that dick is a clearly apparent how you do bitches greasy!”

Loaded Lux defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Tsu Surf might have the bigger name, but battle rap politics aside, JC, who’s been calling out Loaded Lux for years, should’ve got this opportunity to battle him. And Lux probably had that in mind when he wrote his raps for this matchup. The veteran Harlem emcee getting downright flippant/personal with his pen, when he wasn’t kicking real shit about his place in the game to go along with spirited concoctions of verbal heat for 3 rounds. All the while, the ever boastful Surf, pride in his face and able to score at times with some hitting punches, still didn’t have the fortitude to avoid the occasional slip-up, no matter how many times he tried to run back his lines. A gritty offering on both sides with Surf coming at his best (and cleanest) in round 2, even a Lux who was never quite on his A-game, spazzes with enough consistency, drops enough intricate haymakers and with the help of an inconsistent opponent, delivers a 30.

Verdict: Loaded Lux (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Loaded Lux – “Dearly beloved, We are NOT gathered here today…for bullshit, when a dead man plan that’s usually a plot, right?, for the crypt, no, for the Crip, yeah, we came to see you off from the rip [R.I.P.]!”

Tsu Surf defeats Reed Dollaz

by

Recap: After infamously missing the recent Loaded Hollows vs. Gun Titles 2-on-2 match, it’s no doubt that a lot of battle rap fans were yearning to see who’d the ever popular Tsu Surf would face upon his return to battle rap after his latest bout with street drama. That the pick would be Reed Dollaz was probably a surprise to everyone, including his peers. And after a 1st round that saw a rapidly punching and verbally intoxicating Surf overwhelm the Philly vet with ease, it would seem that all the Reed doubters who predicted an easy Surf 3-0, would be correct. But in the latter two rounds Reed would finally get in his bag and show up, pressing on the ‘Rambo’-mode button and spouting a boatload of gritty (“Black hoodie on over the braids, Surf will splash on Roc, water go in the cave!”) punchlines, hitting personals and gripping street narratives to make the bout competitive. And while a lucid on his own life dealings, punch-heavy, (“Snatch his tre [tray], every time you on SMACK bring your food to me, I hate I gotta try Reed (read) in front my class like the school bully!”) mayhem-loving and name-flip spazzing Surf would still dish more than enough haymakers to take an altogether fire round 2 for the win, thanks in part to his opponent once again struggling with his 3rd round more due to his own continued comeuppance, Reed would salvage the final round and avoid the 30.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “They hit my arm, now when I shoot it don’t turn fully, boy, I’ll flip Dollaz like Smokey counting Worm money!”

Tsu Surf defeats Geechi Gotti

by

Recap: Spitfire, electric, aggressive and highly competitive battle between Tsu Surf and Geechi Gotti not only lives up to the hype, but judging from Gotti’s head nod approvals throughout the battle, might be the realest he ever felt another battler got at him in the ring. But then, Surf kicking gritty, real-life narratives has never been in issue for the Jersey rapper. Instead, it’s always been his ability to stay consistent during an entire battle and not choke (as Gotti, eloquently pointed in the 3rd round: “You see it seem like he really wrote wit’ heart, he told y’all everythang…but he left out the chokin’ part!”). And thankfully, in a battle coupled with stoppages and repeats of lines where you might’ve thought Surf was about to choke, he doesn’t here. And maybe that’s because he knew what he up against what with the ever steady Gotti bringing his usual assortment of stifling (“Seen niggas get shot by a .40 then become an R.I.P. tat in Old English!”) punchlines, wicked personals, authentic gang-bang talk and bodacious gun bars. Yet, for all of Gotti’s slamming street narratives and shitload of haymakers dropped in each round, the Compton rapper was hurt a bit by some mediocre punches here and there, a few reaches and even rebuttals that didn’t quite hit. Add to that a consistently game for the street talk, rapidly punching and (“You ever been shot by a Crip?, I have, nigga too scary, they had me in that county eatin’ muffins, tryin’ to get that last Blue buried (blueberry’d)!”) hard-hitting, scheme/wordplay-heavier, effectively personal when addressing his own shit and his (“This this nigga first NOME ever, nobody fuckin’ care, how you do on UFF? Oh you wasn’t there, what about the BET Awards? Smack this isn’t fuckin’ fair, Gladiator School?,Snoop, nigga you was where?, when you was selling hair I was sellin’ here!”) opponent’s shit, more performance-heavy and gripping throughout Surf rarely dishing any filler and the edge here goes to Surf in both the 1st and 2nd round’s before a slightly (“This shit is sad, I’m talking death after death, we really live that shit, closed caskets, we don’t even know if he in that bitch!”) punch-heavier Gotti edged the 3rd despite a dope and complete turn by Surf.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “Every time a nigga say a sad bar, don’t mean that’s a wow, my cuz had PS2, he still died, he only playin’ Dreamcast now!”

Rum Nitty defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Not this time. With a growing rep for choking away 3rd rounds, yet winning a battle anyway, Tsu Surf couldn’t be blamed for thinking he had this one. After all, a versatile, performance-hitting and punch-heavier Surf (assisted by a Rum Nitty mid-round slip-up) clearly took the 1st round here and came through with a pretty solid 2nd that had its share of haymakers too. But well-prepped from the jump with a boatload of eccentric gun bars, feisty punchlines that mostly landed, seething wordplay and some telling schemes/personals, after a pretty moderate (for him, anyway) 1st round, Nitty would turn it up in the latter rounds with enough consistent heat to edge the middle round, before practically being given the deciding 3rd round what with his opponent’s aforementioned failings.

Verdict: Rum Nitty (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Rum Nitty – “I got Champion status, what’s happening, get pressed for real, a whole nigger get revealed, had a whole neighborhood showing they true colors…like Pleasantville!”

Tsu Surf defeats T Top

by

Recap: Some early points on this battle: 1) This would’ve been a debatable classic if not for the Tsu Surf’s choke in round 3, 2) Surf has to do a better job at handling crowd reactions, it’s something every battle rapper has to deal with and ever since the 2-on-2 battle with Surf & Tay Roc vs. K-Shine & DNA, we’ve noticed that Surf has a hard time dealing with interruptions and 3) Yes, as Loaded Lux proved versus Calicoe, you can still win a battle even with a choke. That being said, this one clearly comes down to the first round as what was setting up to be a dope 3rd round (what with a great start by Surf) got deflated by two slip-ups by the Jersey vet before the aforementioned choke. So all Top had to do was deliver a solid, slip-up free turn, which he did with some hard personals and an ill (“Battle two times a month and you fucking up on your verses, Ha!”) Juvenile impression that showed off Top’s lowkey comical side. 2nd round easily belonged to Surf, despite a dope (tho elongated) turn from Top, it’s a confident Tsunami who dials up a blueprint on how to beat Top what with potent angles on Top’s trap house (“If we gonna rap, let’s rap, only what’s true nigga, like how your mother was on smack waaaayyy before you nigga!”; “She smoked your stash, that’s why you don’t fuck with ya mother!”) duplicity as well as righteous haymakers that more than hit their mark. Onto the first round where the only debate lies, what with both Surf and Top bringing their A-game and landing hard with winsome bars and steely street chatter. A close round with an equal amount of haymakers from each, it’s Surf who edges it with more creative angles, flawless flow, fire punches, a slightly better performance and more originality (in what added up to be a classic) in that Top may’ve bitten a couple of shiners from fellow adversaries Math Hoffa (the ‘Plies’ bar} and Tay Roc (the ‘Spic-n-span’ bar), the latter of whom, ironically, was on stage at the battle. So while the choke in all likelihood prevents this battle from being a contender for ‘Battle of the Year’, this spitfire matchup does nothing to take away from each battler’s top tier status.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “Custodian after school, walking with a mop, Earl Manigualt, i could knock a quarter outta Top!”

Shotgun Suge defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: WTF!?! After a near classic of a 1st round that saw both (“What y’all don’t know is Tsu Surf got him name from roller-blading, so you telling me you roller blade, moonwalk on skates and clap heat?!, nah that’s why I’m the shooter and driver, because Surf was always scared to get out the backseat!”) Shotgun Suge and (“Don’t ask me what my life like, nigga you already fucking know, savage shit, package flips, projects, pack of Crips, half a Grape, half a —, [bends down] on the knee with the .7…Colin Kaepernick!”) Tsu Surf bring their best heat and go toe-to-toe with hardbody punches, dizzing personals and sanguine gun bars throughout, out of nowhere Surf spoils this main event of a matchup by literally quitting on the battle in the 3rd round. Granted, from jump, there seemed to be plenty of tension (and a water bottle thrown from someone in Suge’s camp towards Surf’s entourage) on the stage what with two of New Jersey’s finest and former buddy’s going against each other after over a year of back and forth disrespect….bit still. Surf’s choice to chuck round 3 (after quitting halfway during a winnable 2nd round that had him seemingly hurting Shotgun’s feelings) was not only a huge let down, but was a serious disservice to himself, his opponent and most importantly of course, the fans.

Verdict: Shotgun Suge (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Shotgun Suge –  “He ain’t never did shit, he who murdering? How the fuck you making mixtapes about Newark and your hood in Irvington!”

T-Rex defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Hosted by Mistah Fab from Rap Grid & Dope Era’s No Mask event in Oakland, this 1-rounder between Tsu Surf and T-Rex features your usual assortment of brazen street rhymes and gritty punches. However, helped a bit by Surf struggling with his flow to the point of stopping his round short, the more consistently-lit Rex gets the win.

Verdict: T-Rex (W) 1-0

Favorite line: T-Rex – “I’ll bring a ratchet on TV…I’m Peter Gunz!”

Tsu Surf defeats Aye Verb

by

Recap: Before this battle dropped, word around town was that Aye Verb took this matchup against Tsu Surf easy. But watching it is a whole ‘nother matter. Simply put, even tho this battle didn’t come out as dope as it looked on paper, it’s Surf who ends up adding another win to his Midwest roster by out-barring his opponent with a bunch of potent (“You battled Griz Guru and said ‘you shot at a car when you was 22, that ain’t what a body about, by 22 I was a ho with regrets, ashamed of my body count”) personals, lofty gun bars and paunchy (“Tsu Surf got a ghostwriter, that’s what them niggas said right?, well if there is a ghost writing, I swear that nigga dead nice!”) wordplay that even had the Chicago crowd yelling for more. As for Verb, outside of his requisite ‘Showtime; routine, for all his confident (“Ride up, hollow his crib, that’s a renovation, put a couple of holes in his roof, extra ventilation!”) swag points, not only did the St. Louis vet often fail to deliver the shrewd wordplay we’re used to seeing, but too much filler as well as his use of standard ‘I’m more of a G than you’ angles would also hurt him. That said, Surf would take round 1 easy before clearly taking the 2nd via a better performance that was matched by just as dope (“I never had cable, couldn’t tell you about no Showtime!”) punches for the win before a harder hitting Verb (“You a handout-ass nigga, that’s why you can’t stand out, ass nigga!”) did enough to take round 3.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “My big homie said bring the wolves that fool might try you, my boy’s cold, I’m don’t want to send them on ya…cold, pneumonia, that flew [flu] right by ya!”

Calicoe defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Overall an underwhelming battle between Tsu Surf and Calicoe. But more surprisingly Surf, who upon making his first appearance on the hometown UDubb stage disappoints with all-too-short rounds, a handful of reaches and way too many complaints about crowd noise. A sometimes ordinary Calicoe, but still forever comfortable on the Jersey stage, stayed aggressive throughout his three rounds and won rounds one and three with a plethora of rich performance bars and more potent (“Everybody want to be B.I.G. till they in that blue bourbon!”) personals than his opponent. On the other hand while Surf hit here (“…and you the sucka nigga that clearly threw Meech under the bus!”) and there with some dope (“You battled Suge and said you had a show with Rick Ross…When?…Where? Did he know you was there?”) personals, too much elongated set-ups and righteous filler in the end hurt him. Yet Cal, who finessed his rhymes with mostly personals, really laid into Surf with “Why this my fourth battle in Jersey and the first time they seeing you?” Easy money, indeed.

Verdict: Calicoe (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Calicoe – “He the first nigga on Instagram on some ol’ lavish shit and get smacked with the burner for not having shit!”

Tay Roc defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Some battles lean on consistency and some lean on moments. Tsu Surf vs. Tay Roc? Definitely more momentous, which thankfully didn’t make it any less competitive what with a bar-heavier Roc taking the 1st round before Surf made a pretty flexing comeback in the latter half of his 2nd round to edge that turn and make things even going into the 3rd. A battle littered with plenty of ferocious gun bars (esp. from Roc), understated wordplay, very little personals, a bunch of name flips, boastful barbs, a boatload of dry spots and a slew of graphic mayhem, would see its climax in a surprisingly underwhelming final round that the steel gripping lines Roc managed to edge…because he just happened to have more moments than his opponent.

Verdict: Tay Roc (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tay Roc – “Test Roc, get a cracked head and a neck shot, paralyzed from the neck down, he can’t even play his X-box!”

Tsu Surf defeats Hitman Holla

by

Recap: From URL’s Summer Madness 4 card, with what included a fight between the two in the days leading up to the battle, Hitman Holla versus Tsu Surf had to be the most anticipated battle of 2014. And while the battle featured two classic rounds (Hitman’s electrifying 1st round that featured one of his best Showout-assisted remix’s to go along with the 1st non-verbal rebuttal, which he claimed by simply taking his hoodie off in response to a bar Surf said in his opener and Surf’s highly personal and superbly executed punchfest in the 3rd) as well as enough moments (good and bad) to ensure that it’ll be more than just a footnote in SM battle rap history, outside of the opening round (which while a bit short, was still pretty hitting), thanks in part to a bunch of pedestrian bars and some questionable moments by Holla (the lame attempt at a 2nd remix in round 2, the subpar Michael Jackson bars and one too many shots at Shotgun Suge), Surf’s consistent ability to hit with some standout wordplay, witty barbs, fire set-ups (including another dope use of his signature ‘Lock pick the door, Errrrhhh!’ screed) and hard-hitting personals/punchlines was just too much here. The Jersey native taking both of the latter rounds handily (tho Holla did spout some lyrical bangers here and there) to come back and win the battle.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “Your mother was at the game, cardboard colors, fresh signs, my mother was in pain ‘You wanna speak to the inmate, press 9!'”

Charlie Clips defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: Considering the names here, except for Clips 3rd round, this battle was a little disappointing. But IMO that’s more on Surf’s part. I mean, not only does Surf have a huge (albeit rare) slip-up, but most of his bars were basic and I thought he would’ve used more angles along with personals on Clips–hell, even some nice “What I Gotta Put In Subtitles?” schemes could’ve done damage and possibly given Surf a win (w/o a slip-up of course). Just seemed like the energy/motivation just wasn’t there for Surf, surprising considering a clear win over the likes of Clips would look good on anyone’s resume. I gave Surf the round because it was clearly his best and cuz’ Clips finished his kinda lame, Clips clearly got the 2nd and 3rd tho.

Verdict: Charlie Clips (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Charlie Clips – “I’ll search for him then click on Surf, that’s a YouTube app, the gun under this Big T going [sound effects] ‘beep, beep, bigidiy, boukou bap'”

Hollow da Don defeats Tsu Surf

by

Recap: As challenging of a performance that Tsu Surf put on here, overall, Hollow da Don used experience and plenty of variety to do did him one better. But then that’s you’d expect from Hollow, nevermind the long absence, in this battle Hollow not only proved that he still has it, but that he belongs in anyone’s Top 5. More importantly, Hollow easily proved that he deserved a shot against Loaded Lux at the next Summer Madness. Sure, the first round was fire on both sides, with Hollow making a statement and spitting some ill bars (surrounded by some aggressive filler and weird moments like the ‘making it rain here’ show and literally sniffing on his opponent to make a joke), but the edge here goes to Surf what with an ill freestyle to start things off coupled some mean (“Your mom probably was a whore and your daddy didn’t love her, kids by a another nigga, so your brother probably wasn’t your brother, walk up in her room dumping, shooting straight for the cover, [makes like he’s fucking] I felt just as bad as your father…putting a hollow in your mother!”; “A thirsty nigga in the club, I’m trying to hit everything standing, it got a kickback when it shoot, so when it aim you gotta slant it, want your life?, crawl for it, trying to see the gates and access granted, on the block with something Deandre size, one way to explain that night?…Brandon!“) schemes, personals and punches that all landed hard. Still, Hollow’s 2nd and 3rd round clearly gave him the win here. In the 2nd da Don stepped it up and just bodied an (“He ain’t about that Gunplay, so why lay [Wale] hands on him?”) alright, but mostly underwhelming turn by Surf with feening (“Damn, you was locked like Pac, but Surf wasn’t there to bail you out?!”) personals, ill (“I said anytime, it’s an open invitation, you could come to a nigga’s hood, my address is 19 22 I Wish A Nigga Would!”) set-ups, crazy name flips and standard jokes. While in the 3rd, it was just more (“Every day I’m in the hood, tapped up with the cop, KD/Dwayne Wade…I wake up to the block!”) haymakers from Hollow, complete with battle rap 101 bars and stinging punchlines/personals that easily beat another solid, but not-nearly-as-nice round from Surf.

Verdict: Hollow da Don (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Hollow da Don – “But since his man gave him the charge he’s been on the low, dodging imprisonment, hoping it gets better playing Chris Webber trying to forget about that timeout in Michigan!

Tsu Surf defeats Conceited

by

Synopsis: Conceited versus Tsu Surf easily stands as one of the top 3 battle of 2012. After all, everything was here: fire bars, dope punchlines, (Con: “It’s a good thing you put those rhymes in subtitles ‘cuz nobody wants to hear them!”) personals, hot performance bars, ill schemes, nice-set-ups, stinging wordplay, a close, intimate atmosphere that intensified the battle and even a couple of light rebuttals by Surf. Somewhat debatable altogether, but Surf gets the edge here for these reasons: Surf going toe-to-toe with a punchline feen in Con, less overall filler and more (“Question: ‘If all your money is on your outfit then what the fuck is in your pocket?!'”) bite and versatility with his bars/schemes. That makes for Surf edging the first two rounds, while losing the 3rd because it was too short. Still, credit to both Surf and Con for putting on a great show.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “What you about to say, Jersey lost the Nets?, good nigga, the best shooters still in my hood nigga!”

Tsu Surf defeats Brixx Belvy

by

Recap: If you’re going to travel all the way to the opposite coast for a one-round rap battle, you might as make it worth your while. And Tsu Surf does so here, combining aggressive wordplay, hitting subtitles (“You look like a horse jockey, take that in consideration [take that and consider racing]”) and witty bars to bring back a win to Jersey.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Tus Surf – “Boy I will trend everybody in your family, I get them pounds poppin’, and if I don’t make it out, them homies gonna be like Sacramento and San Fran, how they surround Stockton”

Tsu Surf defeats Big T

by

 

Synopsis: I don’t know if I’d call this a great battle or a classic, but it was a pretty good nonetheless because of the fact that both Surf and Big T came with it during all three rounds, therefore making it close throughout. Yet the overall edge here goes to Surf for these reasons: while Big T had some great lines (the set up for the Keenan Ivory Wayans scheme in round 3 was dope), alomng the way he hurt himself quite a bit with filler. On the other hand Surf was more consistently hard (esp. in round a brazen, punch/wordplay-heavy and classic round 3) and aggressive. Then too, while rounds 1 and 3 were debatable, I thought Surf clearly won round 2 with better personals, jokes and clever bars, while Big T repeated a couple of lame schemes towards the end of rounds that he might have won. I didn’t like Surf talking a bit of smack during Big T’s round, but Jersey still got this one.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Best line: Tsu Surf – “What female would want to put her face between these knees?, that friction could only give off a ranch dressing smell or cream cheese, bagel things!”

Tsu Surf defeats K Shine

by

Recap: Crazy, dope and classic first round by K-Shine, piling up points with ease via a plethora of hitting personals, wild storytelling bars and nice (“Free my brother Surf on that strapped charge, but two months later he’s on a Smack card, talking about I’m back y’all, now either that’s odd or that’s the fastest three-and-a-half I’ve ever seen for a gat charge!”) anecdotes on Tsu Surf’s resume in and outside the battle ring. Yet, Shine’s early lead gets overtaken by Surf’s continuous onslaught of Dot Mobb (“Rex you’ll haul ass before you ever get a bruise on you, heard you ain’t wake up til Friday, when Ice put the cubes on you”!) jokes/personals, sizzling performance bars and gritty (“All my guns from Atlanta, low prices I get more for less, aim it at that bright pink and yellow jackets with these Georgia tek’s”) street talk. So while it’s Shine who comes away with the most memorable round, Surf”s rampant execution throughout and Shine’s way-too-short 3rd, leaves the kid from Jersey with what’s most important and that’s the win.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Favorite line: K Shine – “Tsunami Surf?!? [hmmph] Nigga, ain’t nutin’ wavy about you!”

Tsu Surf defeats X-Factor

by

Synopsis: A biased crowd and Suge proving to be a dope hypeman could easily cause one to give this matchup to Surf. But upon closer inspection, this battle was pretty close throughout with Surf (“What do you think of X?, ‘Oh’ hugs and kisses!”) and X-Factor clearly splitting the first two rounds. Round 3 being the deciding factor, give Surf the edge for staying consistent while slightly better overall bars. X-Factor was funny throughout tho and definitely represented for the Midwest.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1

Best line: X-Factor – “Stop all this fictional shit about your glock-9, how you whipping the rock and seen more pots than a nigga dyslexic staring at stop sign”

DNA defeats Tsu Surf

by

Round 2 Round 3
Synopsis: I could see some people saying this one was one for DNA. esp. with his first round getting so many points for performance alone. Yet, the bars Tsu Surf was spitting here, IMO, don’t get enough credit for how they landed or appreciated for all the subliminals (“that whole Grind Time team? Bring ’em all over ‘cuz they good over there, but Bryon Russell with the crossover”) he dished out–it was just his delivery that needed a lot of workThat said, DNA’s personals, rebuttals, bars and all-round aggression gave him teh win, but not a bodybag.

Verdict: DNA (W) 2-1

Best line: Tsu Surf – “Where da goons lurk, you don’t get love nigga, on every bitch heels, you an UGG nigga”

Tsu Surf defeats Yung Ill

by

Round 2 Round 3  

Synopsis: Head Ice’s reactions alone are the reasons to watch this battle. That said, Surf’s first round is an incredible barfest with consistent performance and swag to match–indeed, the “You a Ray-J fan and an Aye Verb lover, toughest nigga in the Midwest is Aye Verb’s mother!” quip doesn’t become an instant classic without Surf’s sick, on-point delivery. And while Ill was nice too in round one, a couple of bars were just flat-out corny. Surf’s round 2 was just full beast-mode and over-the-top hilarious, but Ill sorf of made it debatable with some hefty bars and that “she top me off so much, the bitch memorize the sound of my zipper” line. Surf obviously gave away the last round and Ill and his belt took advantage of it. Still overall, Surf’s first two rounds edged Yung Ill’s for the win.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 2-1  

Best line: Tsu Surf- “Dwyane Wade, 3 from my heat, a drop 30”

Tsu Surf defeats Regular Weez

by

Recap: Regular Weez’s slow, methodical flow makes for some humorous moments, but an aggressive and guns-a-blazing Tsu Surf, who wasn’t altogether on his A-game bar-wise, is still able to get an easy vic over his opponent’s mostly pedestrian raps.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “I’m like a sniper, just give me a clean shot, then that thing shot, don’t jump for this Juice, that’s the thing that got Raheem shot!”

Tsu Surf defeats Torch

by

Recap: My guess is that Tsu Surf was onto something when after this battle he said ‘it was over when we got here’ as Surf’s rapid braggadocio bars and explicit gun lines easily took down the second-rate linguistics of Torch.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “All on that dash, I’m high off the hash, shoot ya in the future, push your brain to the past!”