Presentation, preparation, location, wittiness, and performance styles of Battle rap may have changed over the years. "80's" and "90's" rappers who've vigorously battled toe to toe in basements, street corners, and for minor crowds are entirely different from today's persona of the culture.
In this clip, Harlem's own Murda Mook explains his extreme "high hopes," expectations, and disapprovals of the highly anticipated battle between Hip Hop legend's, Fredro Starr and Keith Murray. Mook, who co-hosted the battle, says he's a fan of both Starr and Murray. He then goes on to explain that he believed Fredro Starr performed well but the event lost some steam as the rappers chose to rap over beats and was overshadowed by shenanigans on Murray's part - which Murray apologized for in a post-battle interview with VladTV.
Mook went on to discuss the lack of celebrities at the battle considering the two adversaries come from the Golden Era of hip-hop. While many stars did not attend, "I'm sure they watched it." He then commented on the heavy ridicule the battle recieved about negatively affecting the culture. "To the untrained eye [this matchup] is [bad for the culture]. But if you go deeper I believe it helps us - the idea helped us. I don't think the execution of the event - not the event as whole - the main performance was bad...It helps us as well because it brings more people in," explained the veteran battle rapper.
To hear Mook elaborate on where the event fell short and where it was helpful, check out the above clip.
