The Review

Issue date: 4/24/07 Section: Mosaic

Media Credit: Matt Vietri The night's winner, Phame (left), battled PHY-sicks (right) Friday night in the Trabant University Center. [Click to enlarge]

A boxing ring encircled by caution tape that read "Danger" was the stage that held the rap battlers during the 6th annual Battle of the Emcees.

The rap battle, held Friday in the Trabant University Center, is, according to co-sponsor Fire Eye Entertainment's Web site, one of the nation's biggest competitions of its sort. The event's purpose is to test the MCs primarily on one element of Hip-hop - the freestyle.

Before the competitors took their place in the ring, they sat casually around the audience, talking to one another with camaraderie. The small talk wasn't as friendly as it seemed - it was more the rappers way of sizing up the competition and acquiring possible subject material that could be used as ammunition for the upcoming battle.

Eight battlers competed in three rounds of lyrical combat in a tournament style and were judged by the Randy, Simon and Paula of the night - Yung Texxus, Swanny Riverz and Erica Roane.

Swanny, the winner of last year's battle, looked to judge the battlers on three main aspects of freestyle.

"I judge on originality, clarity - I have to be able to hear them - and the sting," he says. "I'm looking at the crowd and if the crowd is 'oow'-ing and 'ahh'-ing and on their side, I'm looking at that, too."

As game time drew closer, the mood turned more serious and the rappers and the audience all sat, rhythmically bouncing their heads to the Notorious B.I.G., Lil' Wayne and Jim Jones' song, "I'm With Whatever," courtesy of DJ Big Easy.

Nick Boots, real name Nick States, is a rapper in the competition and a student at Delaware State University who says there is no real way to get ready for the competition. After rapping for six years, Boots used his experience to help him compete.

"I've been doing it for a while so I don't really prepare for this stuff," Boots says. "You're not suppose to prepare for it, but I just freestyle all the time and got used to it."

Continued...

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