[Cuntoffs are Jumps]

was watching the best of Bangz (anyone fuck with that playboy x youtube channel?) and it struck me that a lot of battlers never get the opportunities they deserve.

Let's get grumpy...

+ why does battle rap still struggle to elevate (and sustain!) new talent or does it or something?

[RickyProehl]

New guys brought it on themselves with the copycat pg step cookie cutter nonsense

Original guys still get some shine imo

[Triptych]

SM7 fresh on our minds, sometimes (most times) it's the battler's own fault. Bangz had DNA on KOTD. On paper it could have been a good look, but we remember how that turned out.

I used to wonder the same thing about Dirt. Pen was second to none and he always delivered three clean, lethal rounds. But then you hear about how often he no-showed otherwise. Hated traveling. Apparently stole a lot of deposit money.

On the other hand, dudes like Geechi are on the come up because he's grabbing everything he can, being smart about it, and can back up the push he's been getting with his performances.

(Playboy X and Battlerap Haymakers though. Sometimes you just want to watch a good highlight reel. I've been meaning to make a thread on Battlers Making Fun of Themselves using videos from those two.)

[Cuntoffs are Jumps]

Originally Posted by RickyProehl

New guys brought it on themselves with the copycat pg step cookie cutter nonsense

Original guys still get some shine imo

But why if you’re on the come up one bad performance and you’re back to the doldrums?

I understand leagues wanna book Clips vs local talent x for example, but chances are you get a shitty performance from Clips with talent x usually having 3,000 times more material, but even if you get an okay Clips like vs Quill, I’m not sure anyone’s elevated.

Like how is Illipsis vs Pigsty not near-headlining a KOTD event for example? Where would Reverse, Fredo and EK be without BOTZ?

[Cuntoffs are Jumps]

Why is the test of new talent always vs a vet, and if they’re slightly sub-par they never get a shot again - I mean the SM7 choke fest I’m fairly certain none of those ‘elite’ battlers are going anywhere + maybe’s battling has got too regional again?

[Emancee]

Most young, new talent don't understand is how to play the game. They need a better business plan than:

Get some shine> Over-/ under-expose yourself> Take on big name too soon and not have enough material> Profit?

Honestly most would benefit from a good manager or a marketing course. Build anticipation for your battles, start beefs, make entertaining blogs, change something up and make that your 'niche' etc. Make us actually care...

[iamHBY]

First off for the person that started this post, I'd say Chef Trez is my Bangz, as far as someone that I feel like should be bigger than they actually are. That said, here's why I think it's so difficult for battle rap in general to elevate and sustain new talent.

There's however many number of battle rappers and leagues trying to come up, and from this newer crop of battle rappers, it's way easier to just watch what seems to be effective and copy that instead of trying to make a unique style. That's why you have so many newer names that sound like a cover version of Conceited, QP, B-Magic or Chilla Jones. There's always been forgettable names in any era of battle rap, but now it seems like there's more than ever due to how over saturated it's become.

As far as trying to sustain newer names, Bigg K had some great thoughts on this around the time Gjonaj lost to Dizaster. New names that stand out don't pop up often, or if they do, they don't last too long, so anyone with a shred of potential is going to be put on a pedestal way too early. You have guys like Geechi Gotti or T-Top in the last few years who have done well, but it's because they pick the right battles and are versatile enough to match up well against respectable names. I think fans put Chess on a pedestal too early when he still had stuff to work on, and everyone's acting surprised that it wasn't inevitable that he's now having to work his way back up after several performances where he didn't do well.

I know Nu Jerzey Twork's the big new name right now on URL, but if he keeps pulling the kind of shit he did with the Mr. Wavy and DNA battles, and then also taking way too many battles close to each other that he's subpar in, then he's basically going to be in the same spot Chess is at now. I guess what I'm saying is, there's newer names who do stand out and eventually elevate in battle rap, but it's gotta be a perfect balance of taking the right battles and consistently performing well.

In regard to Dirt, I thought Dirt's problem was that he couldn't leave the state of NY due to some probation thing. I mean, I think that's why his battle with Sno initially fell through before taking place in NY instead of CT, and also why Dirt vs. Prof-AC fell through for MASS2.

[grandgroove]

Originally Posted by Cuntoffs are Jumps

was watching the best of Bangz (anyone fuck with that playboy x youtube channel?) and it struck me that a lot of battlers never get the opportunities they deserve.

Let's get grumpy...

+ why does battle rap still struggle to elevate (and sustain!) new talent or does it or something?

Big supporter of Playboy X comps. His intro/outro work is fresh, too.

"Either everything is working, or you're working for everything." -Edo G (from 'Sayin' Something')

[rogermellie]

Originally Posted by iamHBY

I'd say Chef Trez is my Bangz

Adding this to my sig with no context.

[iamHBY]

Originally Posted by rogermellie

Adding this to my sig with no context.

Glad to provide a funny quote out of context.

[EchosMyron]

What's been going on with Saynt lately? I remember Geechi got the majority of the buzz of their battle together but I personally preferred Saynt's style.

Has he gotten any decent looks since then?

[iamHBY]

Originally Posted by EchosMyron

What's been going on with Saynt lately? I remember Geechi got the majority of the buzz of their battle together but I personally preferred Saynt's style.

Has he gotten any decent looks since then?

As far as I know, Saynt did two PG battles on URL this year, one of which where he choked in the 3rd against a guy named YD.

[peace]

battles in this era are unnecessarily long. shorten them to leave less room for choking and dry spots. twork, nitty, and chess are examples of rappers who have been worn thin or are getting worn thin due to how frequently they're putting on 10+ minute performances. the UFF format got plenty new guys over. it didn't expose flaws of potential stars and it didn't demand too much attention towards rappers we barely know. when they reach their peak in 2 minute round battles, move them up to 3-3.5. no one wants to see homie the god in a 20 minute battle.

also, smack and KOTD share the problem of having a bad eye for developing talent. the BL and SS cards this year were predictably terrible.

[mapleleaf]

One thing that I think weighs in a lot more than most people realize is a lot of battlers aren’t exactly the best people, and can tend to be difficult to deal with, unreasonable, or have self sabotaging tendencies. I’m not saying this goes for all battlers at all but from the limited behind the scenes stuff I’ve been privy too I’ve had a couple of “oh this kind of thing explains how a guy could go from promising upcomer to no name overnight” moments

[mapleleaf]

Originally Posted by mapleleaf

One thing that I think weighs in a lot more than most people realize is a lot of battlers aren’t exactly the best people, and can tend to be difficult to deal with, unreasonable, or have self sabotaging tendencies. I’m not saying this goes for all battlers at all but from the limited behind the scenes stuff I’ve been privy too I’ve had a couple of “oh this kind of thing explains how a guy could go from promising upcomer to no name overnight” moments

Conversely people wonder why DNA gets booked so often when he’s hardly ever one of the very top performances on the card, but from everything I’ve seen he’s super easy going, always shows up and I’d be willing to guess is super easy to work with. I think this kinda stuff factors into bookings a lot more than most people think.

[Emancee]

Originally Posted by mapleleaf

Conversely people wonder why DNA gets booked so often when he’s hardly ever one of the very top performances on the card, but from everything I’ve seen he’s super easy going, always shows up and I’d be willing to guess is super easy to work with. I think this kinda stuff factors into bookings a lot more than most people think.

Yeah, I think this is a bigger factor than people think. Whenever I hear that QP or Remy D should have bigger names, I think considering their records it is amazing they got the reps they did!

[mapleleaf]

Originally Posted by Emancee

Yeah, I think this is a bigger factor than people think. Whenever I hear that QP or Remy D should have bigger names, I think considering their records it is amazing they got the reps they did!

100%... And flaking especially is something that I don't think leagues forget as quick as the fans do. Lets say Qleen flakes on a battle in my league and it hurts his stock and my leagues rep. Well Qleen goes on URL and has a good performance 3 months later, and helps his rep, but mine is still hurt and I still don't feel any better about trying to book Qleen moving forward.

and tbh it's not always the guys like that who display that kind stuff publicly like no showing or choking often. There are some people out there that are good and perform pretty consistently in the ring but are kind of unlikeable in real life or just difficult to do business with and I'd say that definitely makes them less bookable.


And now that I think about it, particularly for up and coming dudes another big one is sometimes these guys get reached out to for offers, but they never respond back. If I'm a league I'm not trying to repeatedly beg someone to come battle for me. When it comes to my next event, is that person gonna be on my list of people to hit up? Probably not. Last time he wasn't fucking with me. Some of these dudes are incredibly flaky and/or poor with communication. You'd be surprised at how picky other up and comers can be too. These are all things I've come to realize that have made me respect how difficult it is to put together a solid card, and that's before you even consider any budget constraints.