Battle rap

Battle rap has been developed into highly organized league events drawing in significant revenue and attention.

Mainstream artists such as Diddy, Busta Rhymes, Eminem, Machine Gun Kelly, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Joe Budden and Cassidy have attended or participated in battles to help increase their popularity.

It quickly spawned the MC and DJ Battles for World Supremacy – a fertile showcase for rappers and DJs to make a name for themselves.

From the late 1990s to the end of the 2000s, freestyle rapping became very popular, with many artists getting attention for new styles, charisma, and witty punchlines in battles such as Scribble Jam and Rocksteady.

[12] Following the resurgence of freestyle battling in the 21st century, competitions began to move to TV shows shown on HBO, BET, and MTV.

Starting in the early 2000s, Freestyle Friday is a watered-down battle segment on BET's popular show 106 & Park.

It is hosted by international P. A lot of the original rappers on there are now legendary in the battle rap game such as Arsonal, Jin and Hollow da don.

Jump Off TV's World Rap Championships premiered in London 2006, featuring American and British rappers.

[13] In Cuba, freestyle battles often follow organized concerts and juxtapose composed songs with ‘flowing’ lyrics that are relevant to the present situation.

Freestyle battles often turn political when artists incorporate perspectives on social disparities and issues plaguing the Cuban population.

Appointed judges have been used in formal contests, but even when no winner is announced, the rapper who receives the best audience response is viewed as the victor.

[17] These groups also serve as a way for messages about hip hop styles and knowledge to be spread, through word-of-mouth and encouraging trends in other battles.

However, the police presence and private security at the location forced the event to move down the road to an alley beside radio station Flow 93.5.

Although the battlers in question, Mark Grist and Blizzard, were not actually a student and a teacher, the narrative was enough to give the league a huge boost in exposure.