you feel like the responsibility is
on the newcomers to build new
opportunities for themselves?
It’s on them. It’s not on the vets.
No one gave Rex a break. No one
gave Math a break. They just
put out the work and as time
went on they continued to feed
the streets and get better with
it. The guys that ar e coming
up in the PGs are not owed
anything. The only thing you
are owed is that you owe it to
yourself to promote yourself
and get busy. [The PGs] have
more of an advantage, because
they have a lot more outlets; the
game is a lot bigger now. Smack
is the NBA — you literally have
the number one organization
putting you out. It’s really up
to your work ethic and how
seriously you take your craft.
Thats why I’m very proud of
guys like John John da Don
and B magic, because I set the
play for them, [but] it was up to
them to go for that next level.
It was up to them to go for that
next level and I truly respect
John John da don and B magic
for taking the opportunity and
becoming stars. It made me
proud. It’s almost like, you know
— you plant the seed and you
watch it grow. [Because] all I can
do is set the stage for you; you
have to capitalize off of that. So
the onus is not on [the Vets], to
be honest with you. You owe it
to yourself to work hard, take
your craft seriously and put your
A-game out.
Some battle rap fans feel as if all of
the newfound attention that battle
10
rap has been receiving is watering
down the culture. Do you feel like
larger exposure is going to help or
hurt the culture in the long run?
At the end of the day, I don’t
think all attention is good
attention and I don’t think that
everybody has good intentions.
I feel as if a lot of people don’t
want to put the full work in,
but they want to cherry-pick
from the top. Having said that, I
believe — with the UFF — BET
really allowed us to do what we
want. If you really watch Season
2, it’s pretty uncut and raw —
it’s a Smack battle. The only
thing [different] is that it’s on
TV.
I can’t speak on what those guys
are doing. What [the URL] is
doing, we’re keeping the realness
— in what we’re doing — alive
and in everything we do, we’re
going to continue to do that.
And this is just the tip of the
iceberg for the URL. In terms of
what these other guys are doing,
I don’t pay that any mind. I’m
not affiliated with them.
I know what myself, Smack,
Beasley, Chico — I know
what we’re doing. I know we’re
preserving the culture and
we’re going to continue to
put out great product. If you
watch Season 2 so far, it’s been
amazing. I love the fact that
when I’m walking in the street
and fans stop me and tell how
much they appreciate it and love
it. So, in terms of what we’re
doing, I think it’s great. You are
always going to have naysayers
that say, “Oh, it’s on TV.”
I mean, at the end of the day
you have to grow. You want
to be able to set the stage and
feed families. I believe we’re
preserving the culture and we’re
still staying true to what we do
and what we believe. In terms of
everyone else, I can’t speak for
those guys. I just can’t.
What is your take on the pop-up
leagues? Do you think they hurt
the game by taking marquee
battles away from moreestablished leagues or is the
competition making for better
cards?
You can’t compete when you’re
doing the same thing as the
originator. And I don’t call
them leagues, I call them “event
throwers” — to be honest
with you — because a league
is something that has grass
roots and has an original feel
and roster. When you see these
guys on URL, the first thing
that comes to your mind is
Smack and that’s their identity,
regardless if they want it or not.
But you can’t put the onus solely
on on these so-called leagues,
because at the end of the day,
you also have to put it on these
artists. Are they putting out their
best performance or are they just
being greedy? It’s a tough call.
Some might say, “Oh, they have
to feed their families.” I work a
9-to-5 job. I have no shame in
doing what I have to do to feed
my family.
So, I feel like a lot of people
give them passes and I’m not
going to give the artists passes,