The recent announcement that Arsonal was dropping out of his "Summer Madness 4" battle against Pontiac rapper Ill Will has set off a ton of speculation over who the new opponent will be. The mystery is set to be revealed the day of the event, when the battler takes the stage.
But who could it be with only a few weeks' notice? It seems like every top tier battler's schedule is already jam-packed these days. BattleRap.com has gone through the list of rumored opponents for Ill Will to find the most likely candidate.
So far everyone involved has been tight-lipped about the opponent, though there are a few clues that have helped us narrow down the options.
The Clues
In an interview on "The War Report" a couple of weeks ago, URL rep Beasley shed some light on the opponent.
“That announcement is gonna happen on the Summer Madness stage,” he explained. “So if you appear at Summer Madness, you will know who Ill Will is battling when his opponent walks out on to the stage. All I can say is that he’s an ill opponent [and] it’s gonna be dope. It’s somebody official and it’s gonna be a bar festival, man. We are truly excited about it.”
Ill Will also called AngryFans Radio last week where he said: "I got the biggest opponent and biggest event coming up right now," later adding: "He’s a black man. He’s from the ghetto."
The Candidates
Jaz The Rapper
As an artist managed by URL rep Norbes, it's not out of the question that she would be added to the card. Still, the match-up would mark a lot of firsts for URL: first male vs. female battle on the main stage, first time Jaz battled a guy, and first time Ill Will battled a woman. With the amount of novelty there, we'd expect URL would want to hype it a lot more.
Also, both Beasley and Ill Will have referred to the mystery opponent as a "he" so unless they're on some Illuminati level of secrecy, we think it's safe to say it won't be Jaz.
Probability: Unlikely
Daylyt
Daylyt was the first to claim that he was the mystery opponent. He's also a notorious troll with a talent for capitalizing on news that doesn't actually involve him.
Day's schedule is packed as of late, with high profile battles against Aye Verb last weekend and Real Deal in Arizona the week after SM4. Then again, weekly battles are nothing new to him.
It would be a huge moment if Daylyt were to make his URL debut as a surprise, but something tells us it won't happen at this event.
Probability: Unlikely
Serius Jones
The New Jersey rapper has taken a step back from battling again since he got clocked by Math Hoffa at URL's "Summer Madness 3" in September 2013. Since then he's been steadily releasing music and doing whatever it is Serius Jones does when he's not battling. A return isn't out of the question, but we expect he'd want a higher-profile opponent than Will.
Probability: Unlikely
Math Hoffa
URL was pretty vocal about Math Hoffa being banned from the league for punching Serius Jones. Beasley also spoke out against violence in battle rap in the first SM4 trailer. Has enough time passed to let him in from the cold? The New York crowd would probably go for it, but URL would have to spin Math's return carefully to avoid sending mixed messages.
That being said, Math doesn't have any other battles scheduled in the near future so this could be the perfect time to jump back in the scene.
Probability: Possible
Bill Collector
Since the Norristown, Pa. emcee was recently released from prison, Bill Collector fans have been calling for the unorthodox rapper's return. He's made it clear that he's ready to battle and is sitting on enough verses that a short notice clash wouldn't be a big deal. It would also allow him a warm-up battle for the rumored match-up against Daylyt.
Probability: Possible
Calicoe
So far in 2014, Cal has only faced Tsu Surf (in January), and Hitman Holla in a one-rounder last week at Snoop Dogg's "Gladiator School." He was impressive in both, emerging on the right end of completely one-sided clashes.
He doesn't have any other battles lined up, so should have enough time to prep for Ill Will on a few weeks' notice.
He's also a black man from the ghetto and would be Ill Will's biggest opponent to date so he fits all the clues. Both emcees spit raw, aggressive lyrics and have a talent for painting authentic street imagery, making this a natural match-up. It even has an added "Battle for Michigan" spin to it with Cal being from Detroit and Ill Will hailing from Pontiac.
We have no proof that Calicoe will be the opponent, but he's the one we at BattleRap.com are hoping to see.
Probability: Possible
Someone else
Of course it could just as easily be someone we left out too. Cortez? Charron? Jin? Time will tell.
Who do you want it to be? Who do you think it will be? Let us know in the comments below.
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