I'm back. And damn does it feel good to be writing again.
I'm gonna be as upfront with y'all as possible. I'm an honest person. There were a few battles I wanted to review and I sat with my notes app open waiting to bless the battle rap blogging world and a nigga had writer's block.
Which is never good.
It's like shorty telling you you can smash if you put a condom on, then you put one on and she stops you and says: "I don't know you like that."
Anyways ... here we are.
The main event.
Hitman Holla. Well ... Here's the thing...
This is where y'all expect Majin to basically *Majin* and trash this nigga (believe me, I'm getting there) but even I have to admit this Epcot-Center-golfball-sized-forehead-having-ass nigga has RIDICULOUS promise.
He has bars. Not top-notch shit, but he can actually spew out a few gems every battle that even make his biggest haters respect it. But due to a lack of general consistency in his pen game, he relies HEAVILY on his ability to shuck and jive. But essentially y'all call it "performance."
He's virtually untouchable in that regard — what he lacks in consistent lyricism, he makes up for in performance. He can entertain the crowd and the viewers at home. The same fans of his that state that battlers need to step their bar game up, have given him MANY a pass. A few I can let rock, but most make you wanna smack the Pepsi they're drinking into the roof of their mouth.
That being said, he shows glimpses of the Hitman that beat Arsonal. THAT Hitman is DANGEROUS. I can easily say that. Does he reach that level? He can. We'll see if he does because if so, it could be a loooong night for Shotty.
Shotty Horroh. Hmmm.
I'd be lying if I said he wasn't one of my favorites. But that's not to say he doesn't have his flaws.
Now look, I have actually been to the U.K. and have seen enough Bond movies to know that if you run your mouth in London, niggas will smack tea and crumpets out your mouth. But I'm not buying into the gunplay bars he's spitting. Creative? Yes. But they don't fit, and it seems he's modifying his accent a bit to accommodate the fans who are too lazy to listen and TRY to understand him.
He doesn't need to do this. He's more understandable than Cee Major, Villun, Unanymous, Dialect, etc... But son needs to dial back the gun bars a bit. And the hand signal wordplay decipher he's been doing lately. I get it. Chill Shotty. You look like you're playing Jenga by yourself my nigga.
But that's enough of the background check. Let's get into this battle ... But before I do, here's the thing...
It's not really that good.
I'll be honest. With $10,000 on the line you'd think this battle would be a bit more innovative. It wasn't. At all. But let's dissect this and I'll show y'all why I feel the way I do about this battle.
RELATED: Check out the lyrics for this battle.
Round 1 - Hitman Holla
This round he came with it. Not gonna lie or front. Hitman did what he does best and came with one of the better first rounds I've seen from him in a long time.
He started with Shotty's slogan. The deuce deuce line was actually impressive and his build-ups are amazing. Just what you'd expect from a Hitman first round. You see glimpses of what he's known for, but he's not uncomfortable trying new things anymore and it shows. The "smack Stay" angle was pretty good, but there's a list of niggas Hitman should NOT be calling out and Pat Stay is one of them.
Then comes the fuck-up followed up by: "Yo, let me run that back." That usually means: "I forgot my shit" and it shows with that long-ass pause. Hitman gotta stop with this. You'd think with $10K on the line son would remember his lines. And another stop. But he recovers nicely with a basketball reference saying Shotty can't touch the net in a dunk contest. But here's where Hitman states that he KNEW he couldn't beat Shotty and I can't believe his fans didn't call betrayal on this long before now.
"This battle mean nothing my nigga / I'm a fucking vet, take this personal, y'all just a fuckin check."
I don't know about y'all, but when I hear bars like that I automatically assume son stepped in the ring knowing he could or would lose. Surf did this in an honest angle against Hollow, but they are basically saying: "You're probably gonna win but I'm still eating Red Lobster after this my nigga!" The can't-touch-the-net reference kinda loses steam to me after that because he basically admitted to Shotty that he would probably win the battle but that he was still gonna give it the old college try. Where's the confidence and conviction?
Anyway, the Pilate cats line was slept on. The setup for it was impressive and as fans of setups like that I'm surprised the Toronto crowd didn't react. And of course, here comes Hitman's brother. With the most uncomfortable, awkward remix assist ... ever.
I'm getting a little sick and tired of this nigga yo. I get he's Hitman's brother. I get why he's there, but battle-wise ... WHY IS THIS NIGGA HERE YO? If he would've just did the "gimme my shotty back" line, I wouldn't have been mad at it. But it keeps going. And going. This was your-friend-hitting-his-girl-in-front-of-you awkward.
And time.
Round 1 - Shotty Horroh
Shotty comes with the slogan. The Paul White/Shawn Michaels line is dope. Look, I don't give a fuck how old you are, EVERY nigga out there knows the beef between Bret The Hitman Hart and Shawn Michaels. Shotty did not come to play games. But here's another long pause. Jesus. He recovers with the rest of the wrestling scheme but the pauses are a bit much. Why can't anyone remember their bars for this battle? The "morning hit like a wake and bake" line was dope.
This round is an exposure round and Shotty's multis hit hard but something's missing. I don't know what it is but something seems off in terms of bar impact for the most part. Could be everyone's thrown off by the brawl that just went down. And time. Shotty's round didn't seem like two minutes, but it evidently was and I can see where this was the most debatable round to most. I edged it to Shotty but I can see where niggas would give it to Hitman as well and can't be mad at it.
Round 2 - Hitman Holla
Now before this starts I'd like to point out that this is where Hitman is typically like a bowl of Rice Krispies yo. You pour the milk and you got the cereal talking that snap crackle pop shit. You're enjoying it. It's coming at you like "I'm good! Grab that spoon my nigga!" But as time goes on it loses its oomph and you're like "I can get a sausage McGriddle though. These Rice Krispies aren't as dope as they were at first."
Let's see if this happens.
So far, the Rice Krispies are popping still. He's going non-stop and ending strong. I'm surprised at this. The "I'll beat the shih tzu out ya man" punch hit pretty well. Damn.
The "you wouldn't raise your hand if you knew the answer" punch was interesting. Every so often Hitman delivers a line that is actually surprisingly good. If he spit lines like that consistently then he would be more of a threat. But his reliance on his performing capabilities ... Well, it's less like a reliance and more like a crutch. He's become hit-or-miss with his performance in his last three battles and he's losing his main strength. He needs BARS now.
Sorry for that tangent. It's just been irking me.
I'm having a problem here. Hitman's actually spitting some potent shit. I mean some cold shit. Not fond of the Trayvon/Mike Brown lines battlers are using to get more crowd control, but when Hitman said "the only U.K. shooters we know play basketball." I actually was impressed. So here's my problem.
Why are y'all sleeping on this round?
I literally have no complaints here. This round is some of the best material he's had in YEARS. Everyone gives his first round the most props but realistically he was a better spitter here. He came with emphasis on his punches and structured them nicely. There was less performance and more bars from him. AND he freestyles the Showwoutt bar. It was good to see. But can he consistently do that is my question. It's not his strongest shit.
That was for the people who think I don't know my shit. I hate to pat my own back but ... yeah.
Round 2 - Shotty Horroh
Shotty's opening bars were ... eh. I mean they were dope in their own right but we know Shotty starts strong so the setup didn't really surprise me. The multis are ridiculous, and this SMACK beef that Hitman had was exposed amazingly. "Did he fuck your bitch? Did he steal a stack? / No he took too long to drop the Conceited match." Jesus...
Then he went in on why Hitman never went to the NBA. Shotty's personals are ALWAYS vicious and it's making this round interesting.
That Frank Lucas line was ridiculous too. Damn.
This round was more personal and direct on Shotty's part. He went for Hitman's jugular and this got him the round for me. Hitman was dope, but lyrically and in some ways performance-wise Shotty got this round. No debating.
This round was slept on. Everyone praising the first round clearly hasn't paid attention to this.
Round 3 - Hitman Holla
His opening line was good but he didn't get reaction. That's because you tried a Conceited line. I get you're trying new things but don't get greedy my nigga. Know your place and be you.
I'm getting real sick of this shit yo. Everyone is borrowing everyone else's style and no one is being themselves and instead relying on the next hot wave to get themselves battles. I'm tired of seeing battles between two battlers and seeing 10 other niggas' approaches/schemes/wordplay/associative wordplay/hyperbole/cadence/voice inflection/punchlines. There's using an influence here and there and there is straight biting. I'm tired of "battler that sounds like Aye Verb/B Magic/DNA/Goodz vs. battler that sounds like Chilla/Dizaster/JC and a hint of Tsu Surf."
Anyway...
I know I go off topic here and there, but this is what goes through my mind when I watch battles. Welcome to my perspective.
The lacrosse bar was nice, and I'm noticing something here. But we'll get to that later. I'ma learns you though.
Wow. Hitman hasn't lost his momentum yet. He's being the animal he needs to be. He even has more jokes. He's hitting right and his wrestling scheme was nice. Very nice. But his performance isn't where it usually it is. We're seeing a different Hitman here. Once again, we'll get to that later. But this time limit shit is getting annoying. You both knew it was two minutes. Either that or the time was changed at the last second so they'd have more time for the movie that was Charron vs. Pat Stay. Either way, Hitman was really good here aside from a few meh lines. Again, why is everyone on the first round's dick? It was the worst of the three.
Round 3 - Shotty Horroh
I can see where this round was the make or break for most people.
Shotty's opening line pretty much confirms what I'm thinking too. Hitman trying to be what he once was. I'm here for the Rogaine jokes.
The JFK line was insane. Questioning Hitman's street cred is something I don't see many battlers do. Aside from the Gerald college jokes, Shotty's going a different way about it and it's refreshing. The "if battle rap's a cappella, why are you always dancing to it" punch had me crying yo. Hitman and Yung Ill gotta stop dancing in battles.
Style breakdowns are always a good tactic IF you have the personals for it. I've seen style breakdowns collapse because it was either all over the place or not delivered well and lacked a punch.
This is a good one. He learned his lesson from the one he tried on Arsonal and failed. Going into detail about what Hitman WOULDN'T do and how his place in battling is overrated, which I agree with. Shotty seemed more personal here and he's gotten a lot better at it.
Final Thoughts
So that was Shotty vs. Hitman.
What am I still doing here?
What do you want from me? It's an above-average battle with amazing moments. But it didn't go where I felt it could've gone. And now I can tell you what I noticed.
Hitman is better on leagues other than URL.
He had more material to work with. More sports references, yes, but I think he KNEW he had to be more bar heavy on KOTD. Performance alone isn't enough in the other leagues and he wanted to come back to Toronto and left his comfort zone. Hitman was better here than he has been in the last three years in my honest opinion and he did his thing in this battle. I make my fair share of Hitman jokes, but even his biggest haters have to admit he came with it here.
Shotty was impressive, but he could've been better here. We've seen what he can do and many feel this should've been a body, but became more of a debatable in some weird way. I gave it to Shotty 2-1 because he did what I said he'd do. He outperformed Hitman and went for the heart instead of trying to impress the crowd. But when Hitman became more bar heavy, it set the tone and I think Shotty at one point felt this was gonna be a harder win than he thought.
It's not really that good, but it's not bad by any measure. This could be a classic, less for the hype that led to this match-up, but for the return of the old Hitman who can be deadly in his own right.
That should about cover everything. This was overdue as fuck but if you read it and enjoyed yourself, thank you. Seriously. I don't take time out to thank people who read my shit but I thank you. This is me giving back to the culture aside from going to events. If you're an Atlanta battle fan, come to the Don't Flop jawn in April. Chop it up. All that.
Well, I'm Majin ... And I'm out.
Peace.
Photos by Matt Lundy for BattleRap.com and Zach Macphoto and Dan Gibs for KOTD.
Thoughts? Let us know in the comment section below.
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