Meek Mill just posted this image via Instagram. After the whole deal between him and Cassidy, it would be real dope to see Meek in the ring. They are probably just playing, but its a dope picture! Who do you guys think would win?
Battle Rap News
Business As (Un)usual
April 6, 2013, 8:35 pm
Five years ago, my lawyer said one simple sentence to me that I'll never forget, “Choose whether this is a business or hobby -- it can’t be both.”
From this time on, the powers that be in battle rap have been wracking their brains trying to figure out how to turn a hobby we are so passionate about into a successful business. For the record, I don’t necessarily agree with my lawyer’s statement, but I can see where it comes from. Maybe this is the psychology involved in preparing people to make tough business decisions, which brings me to an interesting question, is it right to turn battle rap into a business?
When I look at battle rap I see a gold mine, a potential multi-million dollar industry. I also see a bunch of individuals working hard creating leagues or micro managing business behind the scenes of this “industry” either not making money or barely breaking even. Then, I think about the fans. How would they feel if the videos they have been getting for free suddenly started costing money? Is there a compromise between the battle and business worlds outside of live events? Many people within the culture look to me for insight on this situation, but this is a topic that generally leaves me stumped. Then came Rap Grid.
At first, Rap Grid was a good idea, but lately its turned into a reality. After speaking with many excited leagues, we have decided to introduce the world of battle rap to On Demand and Pay Per View content. Think about the life cycle of movie distribution: theatres, dvd, media streaming services, paid cable subscriptions, and (maybe) basic cable. All these outlets exist to at least make sure primary investors see a return on the back end. Battle rap has no such structure. When I see people complaining about why millionaires don’t invest in battle rap, its because there is no guaranteed return on their investments; hence, we need a stronger business system. Of course, battle rap can’t have the same cycle as a movie (at least for now), but it has to grow from this non profitable system of “venue-to-youtube.”
On Demand and Pay Per View services will bring a better return to business investors and emcees not considered top tier will have an opportunity to be paid higher for their performances. This ultimately may mean a longer wait for free content, but would result in a raise in quality and faster turnaround times.
Lotta Zay vs Daylyt was the perfect battle to launch our On Demand service. It was close, the screenshot was intriguing, and fans are arguing over who rightfully won. We appreciate Logic and iBattle’s trust in our vision and all of the fan’s who have purchased the match. Both emcees are personal friends of mine that represent an entire wave of artists who don’t have the same opportunities as these “top tier” names. The result is top level performers being underpaid and the companies that struggle to fund these matches taking a loss. This is a chance for everything to change.
- Drect
Ness Lee Weighs In On His Battle With Shotty Horroh
March 14, 2013, 2:31 am
Often, after battle rappers give an underwhelming performance or don't meet crowd standards for a highly anticipated matchup, people assume they fell off or were busy dealing with personal issues during preparation. This isn't always the case - sometimes there are uncontrolable elements that take away from a battler's live performance, thus these elements spill over to the online crowd. RapGrid reached out to Ness Lee after his King Of The Dot battle with Shotty Horroh debuted to share some of this thoughts with battle fans. This is what he had to say:
"I woke up this morning like, “I’m never battling another white rapper b.” Someone has to say it ... some of the white battlers have certain fans that are the absolute worst. I’ve never gotten ONE intruding inbox, tweet, e-mail etc. from a black, or otherwise, battler’s fan. No racism...its just true. It happens every single time i battle one of the white homies. Some dummy hit me and cursed me out for robbing TheSaurus. Smh. Aside of all that though b, end day I’m trying to be the MLK of this rap game. I’ll continue to do what i please, battle who I please, and get high calibre match ups. Now on to this classic with my good friend, Shotty Horroh:
THE CROWD
I can’t call it b, I’m signing autographs all crazy. I signed shoes, hats, shirts, cleavage, forearms ... dawg, I signed a good 20 autographs so I’m in there on some kind of high thinking folks rock with me. Until they did an introduction reel on the jumbotron and nobody said anything on my part. I brushed it off and swagged my way through the building again.
THE BATTLE
Shotty and I entered the ring not even 10 seconds after KOTD announced that Drake was in the building. Seemed like there was a never ending buzz in the building from that point on. I figured I’d to the old “Apollo move”. Y’all youngins won’t get the reference, but back in the day on Apollo if you wore a Jesus shirt you got extra points and the crowd gave you more mercy. So Organik leads me in and i do my intro......”Ness Lee, I Am The South, ATLien Workshop.....and its OFFICIAL ... I SIGNED A RECORD DEAL!” Audience gives me nothing. Word to big bird the crowd bodied me worse than the house fire did. Organik leads Shotty in, and no jokes, Shotty said nothing, raised his arms and the building went coconuts. Word to my grandmoms couch my g, I saw 5 cheerleaders form a pyramid. At this point I was heated at the 20 autographees for not saying anything. I got a few reactions during my rounds but nothing like my previous visit. When I would end a verse folks would start screaming “SHOTTYYYY”. Tis what it tis, i’m a performer right?
MY THOUGHTS
Wrong. I let that intro take my soul. I battle everywhere solo. I only have 2 home battles out of 17. Five in new york. Three of those they weren’t messing witcha boy. But I got through my rounds and went through with it on some gladiator shit. No idea why on this night I let it get to me but it did and I underperformed as a result. Not getting any reaction for what i felt like was my meanest punchline had me thinking. If u know like I know, you never think in a battle. I choked and lost as a result. A lot of people still feel I won. Content-wise I do as well, my bars is cray. But this is a performance art. Its not boxing. Boxing is a sport. You can lose every round and knock that boy out in the end and emerge victorious. Not battling. If you choke you lose. Was there a bias? Clearly. I dont believe it was against me. I do believe it was for him. He has more fans period. Was the crowd turrible? Indeed. Its twice the crowd KOTD is used to and most of them aren't hard core battle fans. I’m sure Shotty was affected by the aura in the room as well. Why would we both underperform in front of one of our favorite artists? Had we seen the same Shotty that vs’d Arsonal i would have lost badly. Que sera sera. End day ... Shotty is one of the top 3 rappers in this whole thang and we have big respect for one another. My point you ask? New Ness song/video ft Shotty Horroh, Nino Bless, & Grafh coming soon heaux. And never depend on a crowd. A true performer goes in and performs as planned as if he were still in practice mode. A reaction is just an addition. This has been another installment of DontGetBodied.com.
severely yours
Bad Good Guy
#PhantomeDigital
#ATLienWorkshop
#EBA
#Indubitably"
