The Deadman: Out here, dudes
like The Saurus and Illmaculate
were — and are — looked at the
way East Coast dudes looked
at Murda Mook and Loaded
Lux. Battle rap wasn’t as big in
Cali to the everyday person, but
the few of us that did watch it
watched everything — all styles,
all regions, all nationalities. We
looked at Mook and Lux the
same way [East Coast fans] did,
but they never looked at our top
dudes — Saurus, Illmac, OK,
Pass, Dirtbag — the same way
we did. Besides Grind Time, it
was very hard for West Coast
battlers to get on big East Coast
cards, for a long time. Shoutout
to my n***as Poison Pen, PH,
34
and Sara Kana. Nowadays I see
major improvement between
West and East Coast relations.
One big part of that I believe
is KOTD having a Fresh Coast
division and putting Dizaster
at the forefront of their league.
And then you have a n***a like
Daylyt from Watts in the news
every other week while battling
all over the planet. And with
KOTD putting on classic event
after classic event in Cali, it was
only a matter of time before the
West started getting its shine.
I always tell n***as, s**t is like
Death Row Records in the ‘90s.
If y’all don’t give us our respect,
then we gon’ take it.
PeeBee: You had a battle in Africa;
what was that experience like for
you ?
The Deadman: Life-changing.
The people out there were very
hospitable. They made us feel
like we were natives and since
I was with Ness Lee and Lexx
Luthor, two of us looked like
natives. (The Deadman laughs) We
never needed to ask for anything
and they took us all over to show
us how they do out there. No
matter where you’re at in the
world, some s**t is just universal. The battle fans out there
were lit — the livest and most
respectful crowd I’ve ever battled
in front of. All they watch is