There were a few high-profile, one-sided battles in 2013 – Pass/DNA, O-Red/T-Rex and Shuffle T/Anton Murphy all struck us as clear 3-0s (at least). But decisive wins aren’t enough to make this year’s Biggest Bodybags list. We’re not focusing on how well the winner won, but how badly the loser lost. This list is reserved for performances so dismal that the opposing battler could’ve just stood there laughing and still won. Continue reading
Remember October? Neither do we. Here’s our (late) take on the best battles to watch.
This battle was our personal favourite from the WD4 event. The footage… less so. The audio isn’t great, but it is representative of how the battle went down in the venue. It happened around the time the crowd was at its worst, and it speaks to the quality of the performances and content that both battlers were able to reignite the energy in the venue.
Continue reading
The West is back.
King of the Dot is bringing back Battle of the Bay, the long-dormant series of events still seen by many as the best in battle rap’s history. With BOTB5, many believed the culture had reached its apex, but with the return, KOTD hopes to prove that the West is just getting warmed up.
After the massive success of the World Domination 4 event this summer in Toronto, the league is looking to keep up its momentum with an event that already has the culture buzzing. BOTB6 pits West Coast all-stars against their counterparts from the rest of the United States.
With a deep talent pool of Cali legends and a new crop of impressive up-and-comers to draw from, it shouldn’t be long before the West reclaims its national crown. And with their scene’s reputation on the line, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
This text is from the official KOTD program we wrote for the event in collaboration with KBomb. We’ll be in the building for both Day 1 and 2. Follow us on Twitter for live updates, on Facebook for next-day recaps and on Instagram for photos. For our Day 1 preview, click here.
_____________________
Dizaster
Los Angeles, California
Dizaster: the name conjures up images of chaos, mayhem and destruction – all terms that could be applied to the MC himself. One of the best-known battle rappers in the world, Dizaster has separated himself from the pack by being one of the most versatile, unpredictable, and intense MCs in the game. Coming up in the GrindTime era, Dizaster has battled fellow Fresh Coasters The Saurus and Illmaculate, and has since gone on to jump in the ring with Arsonal, T-Rex, and even Canibus. One of the hottest commodities around, the Los Angeles based rapper has traveled worldwide to battle, including visits to England’s Don’t Flop, Australia’s Got Beef?, and Sweden’s O-Zone. With his unique style, Dizaster picks apart his opponents with his incredible freestyle ability and energetic performance. Up against one of his toughest challengers to date, Dizaster will have his hands full in this main event against Aye Verb.
Aye Verb
St. Louis, Missouri
A discussion on the greatest battlers of all time would be remiss without including Aye Verb’s name. One of the key players in putting the St. Louis scene on the map, Verb not only holds one of the greatest battle legacies, but also founded the Word War league, which has produced its fair share of classics. Aye Verb first caught people’s attention after an amazing performance against SB in New York, and was soon challenging the likes of Hollow Da Don, Marv Won, and Math Hoffa, each time proving his reputation as a killer is well-deserved. This battle against Dizaster is Verb’s KOTD debut and has massive potential to be a classic.
Battle rap events are filled with funny people. Sometimes the best lines of the night come outside of the battles with fans or rappers just chopping it up in the venue. Here’s a collection of (absolutely true) snippets of conversation overheard at WD4:
Dizaster, to Aspire: “Holy fuck… IT’S YOU. You’re a legend!”
Deffinition on Dizaster: “Man. these are like 48 bar setups, man. Did he just say he’s a battle rap magician? A BATTLE RAP MAGICIAN? i thinks that’s en- *trips over lighting* I think that’s enough for me.”
After storming the rap world with their “bad bars” battle, Shuffle T and Marlo are back again in the always-entertaining compliment format. Their opponents Big J and Lefty must know what they’re getting themselves into when they insist on going first. This is the kind of content that Don’t Flop does better than anyone else - funny, clever, likeable, accessible. Forget DNA vs Arsonal, this is the Don’t Flop classic you need to watch.
Continue reading
Every battle fan can think of dream match-ups they’d like to see go down. Here at TOBattleBlog, we’re no different. Here’s our pitch for five dream battles we’d love to watch. We’ve called this post “Part One” because we plan to make this an ongoing series. As the scene evolves – and as new MCs emerge – we’d like to campaign on behalf of great match-ups, and hopefully convince the battlers (and leagues) in question to make the occasional suggestion come to fruition.
Caustic wants a big battle before he goes on hiatus (or retires). Pat Stay desperately needs to prove himself on American soil and wants a battle in California. The solution is obvious: book a battle between the two at KOTD’s next Fresh Coast event. Here’s why: