Majin: OK. I know what you do.
You know what you do. Some of
the people might have a vague
understanding of what you do.
Can you fill the fans in?
Aspect OneKotd: I’m Aspect One,
West Coast President of KOTD.
I basically organize battle events
along with my team on the West.
Majin: You guys have risen pretty
quickly and have had some
amazing cards. Was the Vendetta
event the start?
Aspect OneKotd: Which Vendetta
are you referring to? We have
Vendetta 2 coming up, with Rum
Nitty and B Magic, but if you
were speaking about Vendetta
1 with Dizaster and Canibus,
that was a great and horrible
event for our team. (Aspect laughs)
We really had some of the best
matches on that card, but at
the same time we lost a lot of
money due to a series of things,
which took us a good minute to
recover from. Everyone thinks
that because Drake cosigns us,
he automatically gives us money
when we need it, which is far
from the truth.
Majin: That was something I
wondered but, realistically, knew
wasn’t the case. I have to ask, what
was going through your mind
as the legend known as Canibus
started collapsing?
Aspect OneKotd: Man, Canibus
was regarded to many as a great
rapper, but it wasn’t realistic
at all for him to win, from my
personal standpoint. To go
against Diz, who is arguably
one of the best to battle rap
in the last five years — it was
more than an uphill climb for
Canibus. Add the fact that he
lost badly against Eminem
on wax and it wasn’t really a
challenge. I know Organik
wanted to set that matchup
for the fans and for hip-hop.
Initially he wanted to book
“Canibus vs. Pat Stay”, but Diz
had more of a buzz at the time.
Majin: So tell the good people
what you look for in a battler
before booking even happens.
Aspect OneKotd: As far as
battlers go, I’m looking for
respectful talent. That means,
guys who know they have
the ability, yet they’re not
desperately begging for battles
and being disrespectful in order
to get a battle. We as a staff at
KOTD see everything so —
for the most part — we know
who you are and just because
we haven’t worked with you
doesn’t mean that we won’t. It
just means that as a company
we have more ideas in hand for
working with future talent. We
love this artform and want the
best for it.
Majin: Are there certain aspects of
battle rap you don’t like or could
do without?
aspect one
cover story
Aspect OneKotd: Yes.
Complaints, self entitlement
and these dudes asking for
a lot more money than they
think we have to book them.
Flights, hotels and paying for
the talent is expensive when it’s
for numerous cats on a card, yet
these guys all swear everyone
is ripping them off and make
up all these insane amounts of
money they think we’re making
as a company, when in reality
we aren’t. We do this for the love
of the sport, not the money that
comes with it. And the use of the
word “fa**ot”. It’s non-creative,
like the word “ni**a”. I have
no problem accepting anyone,
but in order for us to get bigger
sponsors who will invest more
money, we want to make sure
that we keep reigns on things
that alienate businessmen and
businesswomen.
Majin: The West has honestly
been ahead battle-wise. Do you
feel a lot of battles are made to
make that statement?
Aspect OneKotd: Well, I’m
competitive and want the best
for my coast. As someone who’s
been doing this for a long time
and who’s been the founder of
this acapella format on the West
Coast — before GrindTime — I
feel a lot is at stake when we
or I book battles. We can book
anyone, but every match has
it’s purpose though. I think
that me being a black person
has also something to do with
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