"Reminisce over you!" an enthusiastic fan shouted from the bar.
"Yeah, Reminisce!!" a group closer to the stage chimed in.
"You can wait on that one" CL Smooth said, waving a hand amid hundreds of cheers in a packed Reggie's Rock Club. Rapper, legend, and pole-bearer of the "Golden Age" of Hip Hop, CL knew when to withhold.
Smooth prefaced the classic joint, "They Reminisce Over You" - a Pete Rock produced track that in its twenty year career has yet fail on getting a b-boy on the floor - by running through a number of songs, both from new and revamped from his formative years. After the crowd rapped along with every word of CL's verses on "Down the King" and "Lot's Of Loving" , he slipped in something less familiar, a new banger produced locally in Chicago called "Dripped in Champagne". The MC got the entire crowd's hands waving with him, as he dismissed the rumor that great rappers lose something during their long careers. When he finally played the track the crowd had been waiting for, the house lost it. Everyone was jumping and screaming to the words as Mikkey and Rhymefest provided ad libs on either side of the stage. CL was utilizing to perfection the first rule of hype: give the crowd what they need and then what they want. The motto perfectly summarizes the event.
The crowd lined up for the opening round of the beat battle already looking ahead. Producer after producer had called in asking, pleading, for them not to go first. The only two that were okay with being in the first round were Jus Cuz, a late comer - entering the competition that day! - and Trifeckta, a dope producer making the trip down from St. Louis.
The crowd might have wanted more established acts to begin the festivities, as there were more than one call for "A-villa!", the April winner, and for "Da Odd Couple" two of the rawest beat-makers serving up tracks in the city. In the opening round Jus Cuz narrowly beat out the boy from the Lou after both moved the crowd with club-bangers.
Jus Cuz - who might have found his name when wondering if he should enter the battle - ended up the surprise winner of the competition, beating the Odd Couple in a razor close final round. The Odd Couple, although yet to win the event, are maybe its most impressive participants, reaching the final round on consecutive occasions. Still these were just two acts from a plethora of new and old talent showcased at the event, including A-Villa, Raul Sanchez, Grey Storm, and the Professional - (look out for these cats).
If the producers showed that Chicago would not soon run dry off hot beats, the performance during intermission illustrated that the mics in Chicago are blazing as ever. The new Chicago super-ground Blaxploitation (Mikkey, Rhymefest, Juice, Twone Gabz) previewed tracks from their upcoming album "Du Sable Museum". The newest track "Turn it Out" got off to a rocky start as Mikkey had to get the group in gear, playfully smacking Rhymefest when he miscued his verse. When they track got going, however, it took down the walls of the club, using their collective dynamism and each of their extraordinary lyrical talent. Twone's comedic punchlines - (all below the belt), Juice's butter smooth flow, and Rhymefest's controlled insanity all complemented Mikk's fast-paced wisdom: "....Burnin' ni#*as fricassee/ I know too much/That's why they wanna murder me/ Kennedy!".
The group stayed on stage to cheer on the producers in the final round. Although, many in the crowd might have come just to see the Blaxploitation premier, by the end of the night the theme had changed. The crowd realized they weren't just witnessing a great Hip Hop group, but the beginning of a great Hip Hop summer.
Big ups to all of The Mikkey Halsted Beat Battle sponsors: Mid West Live, 4Management, Fake Shore Drive, Sound Scape Studios, IndieHipHop.net and Clear Wire internet.
We are now accepting submissions for the July battle. For consideration send 2 tracks to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
