Marth Vader: State your name and
where you’re from.
Aye Verb: Verb. St. Louis.
Vader: At this point, you have
definitely made a mark on battle
rap with 20 battles out right now.
What are the qualities it takes to
sustain a career like yours?
Verb: Well, I didn’t know I
had 20. I thought I had 19
(both laugh) — but I would say,
“personality.” You won’t just
keep getting booked for rapping
good. It has to be a personality
and character that people buy
into.
Vader: So what changes have you
seen in battle rap over the years?
Verb: It’s bigger now,
oversaturated — a lot of new
fans.
Vader: What do you mean
oversaturated?
Verb: It’s too many damn
rappers. Too many unoriginal
rappers. When we came out, all
of us were different. Now it’s so
many rappers coming out every
day; they’re just sounding like
us and it’s flooding the market.
Even though URL is still the
biggest brand, it’s becoming
oversaturated. A lot of these
n***as need to go get jobs or
something.
Vader: You were on the first season
of Eminem’s Total Slaughter,
which was a really big platform
for battle rap. How was that
experience for you?
Verb: Actually, it was very last
minute. They called us very
close to when they wanted to get
started with the idea. Sometimes
when they call you have to just
say, “Yeah, I’m going.” The
experience was very interesting;
it’s a lot of stuff y’all didn’t get
to see. I did have to get used to
the fact that cameras were on
us 16 hours a day — from the
time we wake up to the time we
shut down. You know, you got
cameras on the ceiling and we’re
mic’d up all day long. That was a
new experience.
Vader: What did you think of the
cast?
Verb: I thought everybody who
was in that room has put in a
lot of work. So it made sense
to me. Everybody has different
personalities and that’s what
made it exciting, because you’re
in a house with a bunch of weird
rappers. Like a lot of them are
weird, and living with them for
a week you’re like, “Man, these
n***as are strange.”
Vader: Total Slaughter brought
back judging, which we don’t get
to see anymore. What would you
aye verb
cover story
think about judging at Summer
Madness this year?
Verb: Judging is really stupid.
You can’t really judge a battle
in the moment. You have to go
back and watch it and analyze it,
because in the moment you can
be tricked. [I’ve been to] many
battles and events that I felt like
one person was going off and
then you watch it back and they
weren’t. So I think judging is
fine as long as they review it.
Vader: You’re going against John
John Da Don this year at Summer
Madness –
Verb: Oh Lord, please. Jesus; G*d
damn.
Vader: What can we expect from
you?
Verb: I’m just going to work
him. John John makes me sick,
man — makes my skin crawl —
because he’s so damn delusional,
man. It’s just like the boy’s living
in a whole other world where I
don’t know what the f**k wrong
with this boy. John John’s whole
career is based off stealing and
the fans accept it. It makes me
sick.
Vader: What’s something that
John John stole, or a bar he stole?
Verb: He steals everybody’s s**t.
What do vv mean? You don’t
watch John John? John John
steals everybody’s moves; he
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