Some battles are just made for small rooms, and this might be one of them. Cortez is a veteran on this front, having built his name off battles in intimate settings like his Lionz Den clash versus Head I.C.E, and his recent Cyssero battle shows that his small-room skills haven't gone anywhere.
As for Chilla, he's half of one of the most acclaimed small-room one-offs of all time: against JC at the legendary (but now-defunct) Black Star venue. Despite the obvious main stage capabilities of both emcees, the smaller and more seasoned audience expected at URL's "Born Legacy 2" in Brooklyn on March 6 should be able to effectively process the undoubtedly bar-heavy material, which only seems right.
Despite the size of the venue in which they'll be facing off, this battle could still be a gateway to URL's bigger stages like NOME and Summer Madness. After bodying Prep at "Redemption" and edging Th3 Saga at "A Perfect Day To Die," Chilla clearly aims to become part of Smack's go-to major event roster with a clear W.
It's common knowledge that Cor's URL battles have a way of disappearing before ever hitting YouTube, usually as a result of his opponents dropping the ball. His last two URL battles (against Cyssero and Uno Lavoz) nearly suffered this fate too; Cyssero showed potential but kept letting crowd reaction throw him off, and Uno Lavoz struggled with a hostile crowd too, though last we heard the battle is still apparently dropping. A win over Chilla (especially a high-quality Chilla performance) will be a major stride in shedding Cor's "Vault God" title, which was never really his fault in the first place.
By now, these are two internationally respected vets, but they certainly won't let you believe that about each other. In Chilla's pre-battle blog, for example, he makes a smart move in flat-out downplaying Cortez as an opponent.
This is a nice preemptory strike, because Cor has clowned opponents in similar positions to Chilla into oblivion before (see his Danny Myers battle for a somewhat recent example).
Not surprisingly, Cor clowns Chilla right back in his blog, assuring fans that he's determined to body him and that he couldn't care less who will and won't appreciate his performance.
Sounds like a fight.
Being that this is going down in his home borough of Brooklyn, Cor has reason to be confident. Still, Chilla has had no trouble with New York crowds since his DNA battle, and there's reason to believe his prep might actually be superior here. Cor has been taking a lot of battles lately, having just faced Charron at KOTD's "Blackout 6" and Jai at U Dubb's "Revolution," and he's set to battle Chilla this weekend, then Aye Verb & Yung Ill with Math Hoffa at URL's "Double Impact" (that's four battles in about a month). He's proven himself susceptible to choking in the past, reportedly as recently as his Jai battle, so this could make a difference. Still, it's not like Chilla hasn't been busy lately too, and this battle is obviously a priority for both.
You may have noticed how little ink I've used to analyze how these emcees' pens will match up against each other (#wordplay). That's because I think it's essentially a crapshoot; Chilla is inarguably one of the best technical writers in the game, and Cor's pen, specifically his ability to write complex material around personal information, has been phenomenal for years. That said, the defining factor may boil down to the finesse with which they're each able to deliver their unquestionably fire material. For that reason alone, I'm edging it to the possibly better-prepared Chilla.
There you have it. KingPen 2-1 in a classic.
URL's "Born Legacy 2" goes down Sunday, March 6 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Tickets are on a first-come, first-served basis at the door. There's also a PG event going down on Saturday at 875 Dekalb Ave. in Brooklyn, N.Y. starting at 1:00 p.m. Tickets are $30.
Thoughts? Predictions? Let me know in the comments below.
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