For hip-hop kids here at UCSD, it is easy to feel part of the minority. The roughly forty people in Porter’s Pub for the Jan. 26 MC battle didn’t dispel any feelings of being marginalized, but it was quite refreshing to meet some students that actually listen to hip-hop and know about what they speak.
The MC battle didn’t begin until 11 p.m., but DJ Nocturnal (Adam Gould, a Thurgood Marshall College senior by day) began spinning around 9 p.m., filling Porter’s with classic hip-hop; he played everything from newer artists like Mos Def, Jurassic 5 and Nas, to more old school rap like Slick Rick, Eazy-E, LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out,” and even Rodney O. and Joe Cooley’s “Everlasting Bass.” Waiting two hours for the battle to start was made easier not only by Nocturnal’s beats, but also Swami G (AKA Krishna Katukota), an Earl Warren College senior and the evening’s master of ceremonies, who went from slow-flowing from his chair to pumping up the crowd to keep the audience entertained.
The Mickey’s models helped out in this area as well — without any on-campus sponsors, Gould and Katukota have had to turn to the malt liquor company and Red Bull for sponsorship — although you will never catch me rocking my free Mickey’s hat.
By the time the battle began, each participant had already shaken off the rust by busting a few flows, with reigning champion MC M.A.R.S.’s freestyle leading into the competition. M.A.R.S., a thirty-year-old non-affilliate, seemed to be the MC to beat, coming with a deliberate, smooth flow, spitting that he has “ill-type precision,” which was not belied by his performance. Unfortunately, M.A.R.S. was dethroned early in the competition by friend Philly B, who needed two battles to prove to Katukota that he deserved a pass to the second round.
Each contestant came with a unique style, and most weren’t overly confrontational or “8 Mile,” as Gould put it, deciding to put their lyrical skills to test rather than simply dissing each other.
Viet, the first person to put his neck out, had weighty lyrics that may have gone over the audience’s head at times, while other rappers like Steakhouse had a more aggressive, in-your-face style.
Another standout was Kiki, whose flow had the audience shouting “Chali 2na,” even though his content was much more in the vein of Too Short, including a hilarious line referencing the Mickey’s women.
After about 45 minutes of trading bars between the MCs, Katukota, with the help of the audience, narrowed it down to Philly B and Kiki for the title. The finalists were able to display their skills in a longer cipher, and Philly B brought his best verse yet, cleverly switching up his rhyme scheme to take the victory.
It became clear shortly after the finals that declaring the victor was not the ultimate goal of the session, as all of the MCs went back on stage again afterwards. All were gracious in defeat as well, particularly MC M.A.R.S., who declared that “it’s all about hip-hop” after his departure.
Referring to the freestyling at Porter’s as “battling” might give some the wrong impression, since it is hip-hop, not battling, that takes center stage. From the atmosphere before the contest to the diversity of the participants, the main force behind this was a profound love of hip-hop from all parties.
You don’t have to look too hard to find alternative, punk or indie culture at UCSD, but locating the hip-hop can often be a more trying task. UCSD’s hip-hoppers have nothing to complain about anymore, an outlet has been found, so come one, come all, and see what our college has to offer to the hip-hop world.
Next week’s MC Battle has been postponed. Keep your eyes out for notice of the next one in the upcoming weeks.
