It's T-minus 24 hours until Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion AKA Snoopzilla AKA Uncle Snoop's "Gladiator School" event and the battle rap community is still a bit bewildered about exactly what's going on.
Snoop, in association with Harlem battle legend Murda Mook, burst onto the scene in late July with a series of cryptic Instagram posts and tweets hinting at rap battles at the BET Hip Hop Awards. As the smoke cleared and details became more apparent, we learned that the battles are happening in Atlanta on Friday, Sept. 19 as part of the award weekend's festivities.
Tickets are going for between $100 and $500, so the crowd should be a combination of VIPs, high rollers, press and battle fans. Atlanta becomes the capital of industry hip-hop for the awards this weekend so you can bet there will be celebrities in attendance and that battlers will bring their A game in hopes of impressing them.
The venue, Masquerade, is a nightclub with three separate rooms, two of which have a stage. DJ Drama and DJ Premier will keep the party moving between battles.
The battlers on the card represent a grab bag of styles, levels of experience and genders, cobbled together amid a massively busy fall season. Regardless, most of them are certified top tier elites. In our interview with Mook, he said the battles could be between one and three rounds and that the time limits would vary.
Male Battles
Tsu Surf vs. Daylyt
This clash has actually already happened, and the footage is supposed to air during the event. Everyone involved is keeping their lips sealed about the specifics, but Surf described the battle as "damn-near an experiment" in an interview with AngryFans Radio. There were also pictures of the two battlers in front of a green screen. If the final product comes close to matching the wizardry of Day’s Dragonball Z battle, we should be in for a treat.
Hitman Holla vs. Calicoe
Hitman described this battle as "a little warm-up" on AngryFans Radio recently. It marks Calicoe's return to the ring after mopping up Tsu Surf at High Stakes in January (though the footage remains unreleased). This is Cal's chance to chalk up another big win since Hitman Holla could be focusing on his own headline battle with Surf at URL’s “Summer Madness 4.” Still, with Hitman’s ability to control a crowd and this only being a one-round battle, it’s unlikely Calicoe will be able to build enough momentum to really run away with it.
Arsonal vs. John John Da Don
Arsonal backed out of his SM4 battle against Ill Will but kept this one on his schedule, which makes us think he’s gunning hard for John John in order to impress whichever industry people are in the building. As the most-viewed American battler on YouTube, Ars is a prime candidate for being the next to face an industry rapper.
At Total Slaughter in July, the spotlight clearly motivated him as he put on arguably the best performance of the night with only about a week to prepare.
John John’s still a threat though, with his confidence at an all-time high after a decisive victory over Reed “It’s In The Car” Dollaz.
B Magic vs. Young B
This will be Magic’s first of three battles in the next three weeks. If he saves his heaviest punches for Conceited and Bigg K, there’s a good chance he’ll get steamrolled by Moreno Valley’s Young B.
Though he’s the least known emcee on the card, Young B is also the funniest. He’s caught our attention several times before with hilarious and highly charismatic performances on GZ Battles and AHAT. A strong showing against fan favorite B Magic could launch his career into orbit.
T-Rex vs. Rum Nitty
This battle is Rum Nitty’s biggest yet; plus he’ll be looking to make up for an uneven performance against O-Red at KOTD’s “Battle of LA 5.” Nitty’s intricate style could be a tough sell in front of a crowd that may not be particularly well-versed in catching complex wordplay, especially against Rex’s directness.
It also serves as a warm-up to each of their next, bigger match-ups, with T-Rex facing Charlie Clips at SM4 and Nitty squaring off against Arsonal at “Duel In The Desert” in Phoenix.
Female Battles
The card also highlights some of the best female emcees in the game, most of whom are regulars on Queen Of The Ring, who had a hand in setting up the matches.
Phara Funeral vs. Couture
When this battle was first announced, Couture's opponent was Jaz The Rapper. The subsequent switch prompted some outcry from fans (and a few snarky tweets from Jaz), but from what we can tell, details have yet to emerge on exactly what happened. There's a chance one of these emcees will use the platform to air out some dirty laundry.
Ms. Murk vs. Chayna Ashley
After trading shots with Ms. Hustle over two cancelled battles, Chayna Ashley will finally get her first actual opponent since last year. She'll face Ms. Murk from Memphis, who might be able to swing the Southern crowd to her side for a homefield advantage.
E Hart vs. O’fficial
E Hart has been with QOTR since her first battle in 2010, and most recently outlasted Gattas at the league's "No Holds Barred" event in June.
New Orleans emcee O'fficial continues to battle top notch competition in 2014, going up against E Hart after facing a murderers' row including C3, Daylyt and Couture.
The Contest
A few weeks ahead of the event, Snoop announced a contest where the winner would get a chance to compete on the stage. Dozens of aspiring (and some established) battlers entered, but we have yet to see a winner declared. This week, there's been some chatter about a last-minute freestyle tournament too. BattleRap.com spoke with a couple of sources with knowledge of the event late Wednesday, who said some of the finer details are still up in the air but should land soon.
Live Coverage
As to where (and whether) fans at home will be able to watch the battles live is also still unclear. The awards themselves don't air until mid-October, so it could be that something similar will happen with the battles.
There were initial plans for a livestream and Mook told us they were looking to partner with a platform to put out the battles, but as of writing nothing has been officially confirmed. Without an 11th-hour deal, you’ll just have to be there in person or keep your eyes on BattleRap.com for live Twitter coverage and a full recap in the days to follow.
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