If they weren’t Boston’s best lyricists, they were at least among the bravest.
Sixteen MCs prepped their best punchlines and subjected themselves to verbal abuse at Harpers Ferry on Friday night in a battle organized by Boston hip-hop promoter Edu Leedz, who said the rap war could become a twice-yearly event.
Rappers mocked fashion choices and physiques, and compared opponents to Soulja Boy over classic hip-hop beats.
Boston’s answer to “8 Mile” drew all types, from defending champ Grime Tha MC of local hip-hop group The Camp, to battle newcomers such as the Herald’s own hip-hop writer Chris Faraone - whose prep work helped him advance to the second round despite the visual handicap of a Mickey Mouse T-shirt - and Alex Smith, 21, of Jamaica Plain, who goes by the rap moniker Pause.
The Northeastern student has been rapping since age 7 and pushing out mix tapes as of late, but finally decided to step onto the rap battleground out of frustration.
“I’m just trying to get it in, get experience,” Smith said before suffering a questionable loss in the second round. “I’m trying to make moves, you know what I mean? Say I did it.”
Crowd members had little patience for weak rhymes as cheers came fast and boos even faster. Though five judges gave the official word, outcomes were already decided based on audience feedback, with a pack of stragglers hanging around to see New Hampshire MC @pe$h!t oust Grime in a heated final round.
Local MC M-Dot said battling is a waste of time because songs sell records and battles only draw “oohs” and “aahs.’
But possibly the biggest plus is that they level the playing field. Skills can get lost amid studio wizardry and marketing machines, but in live combat, everyone is transparent, and even the scrawniest, corniest-looking contender can rise to champion status.
Isaac Emmanuel, 20, a Tufts student from Albuquerque, N.M., looked more likely to be holed up in a computer lab than battling on a stage, but he advanced to the third round by handily mocking opponents in his fourth “legit” battle.
Emmanuel, who goes by the rap name Seven, said he grew up in a white, suburban neighborhood and knew nothing about rap until he heard a song by Jurassic 5 and “got obsessed.”
“I never really liked music before that, so I guess I was just waiting for hip-hop,” he said.
Emmanuel often gets called out for his appearance, but said he has trounced many a “jeweled-up” rapper and knows looks can be deceiving.
“What can I do?” he said. “If you can spit, you can spit. When it comes down to it, all that really matters is what you can do on the mike.”
Monday 16 June 2008