When Crooked I looks forward to tomorrow's Total Slaughter event, which he was involved in creating, he says it means a lot to him.
"It means everything, man," Crooked I says to BattleRap, "because we got a chance to put a bigger spotlight on Battle Rap as a whole culture and the TV show is Road To Total Slaughter. It’s on FuseTV. It airs Wednesdays at midnight and then it repeats throughout the week. It’s basically eight of the top battle rappers came together and lived under one roof in New York and they all competed in a tournament to be the undercard to one of the greatest battle events on July 12. It’s a crazy battle [event] ‘cause you got Murda Mook and Loaded Lux, two of the O.G.s in this battle shit. They’re going to headline it along with Joe Budden who is the wildcard because, why is he battling? He’s a reality star. He’s signed to a mainstream label. He has to reason to go and try to get into that fucking arena, but he’s just showing people he’s an emcee and a gladiator. It’s so dope to have that event going down and it’s all centered around our TV show [Road To] Total Slaughter so it’s just a great thing. Slaughterhouse, we produced it along with Eminem, and it’s a beautiful opportunity for Hip Hop as a whole and we’re just blessed to be part of it."
Crooked I's involvement with the reality series allowed him to see several emcees compete for nearly everything, he says.
"To me some of the best footage is inside the house, not even the battles that took place in the tournament,"Crooked I says. "The battles in the house were so entertaining because it was spontaneous. When you put battle rappers together under one roof somebody might have to battle for somebody’s bed. Somebody might want the last bottle of Hennessy. We’re battling for everything and that’s what makes it so dope so just tune in, please. Watch it, it’s something brand new for the culture. It’s bananas. I love it.
With Joe Budden joining the event, as Crooked I said, some have wondered if Crook might throw his hat in the ring.
However, Crook says he wouldn't want to battle "because I see doing business as something that I want to continue to do. I’d rather put together a mean sixteen and marketing scheme than a mean, you know what I mean. As far as in that arena, like that’s where I fight my fights at, in the business side of music."
That hasn't stopped others, including Smack, the host of Ultimate Rap League's battles, from asking Crooked I and other Slaughterhouse members to battle URL's best.
"I respect Smack and what he’s put down for Battle Rap period," Crook says. "Like let’s not never get that fucked up. But you know, he’s a betting guy, so he said, ‘Hey, I got some people who will kill Slaughterhouse.’ So my whole thing was, 'Alright, cool, but come into our arena this time. Joe is in your arena, he’s doing an acapella battle. This time, bring your four guys to our arena, we’re going to get on a beat all together, everybody gets twenty-four bars and then give the song up for free and let the people decide who got who on this beat. But I guess, Smack, he wasn’t feeling that ‘cause he never even hit me back on that. So I ain’t even tripping on that no more, I’m off that."
Total Slaughter is set to take place tomorrow (July 12) in New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. The event is slated to be available via pay-per-view.
For more of BattleRap's Total Slaughter coverage, check out:
Everything You Need to Know Before Total Slaughter
Hollow Da Don, Kid Capri, Arsonal & Big T Predict Total Slaughter Winners
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