“There ain’t nothing between us but air and opportunity!”

WRONG! I mean in a rap battle, that sounds good but what do you do when the clock runs out and you still have bars on deck?  Does it influence how you judge a battle when an emcee continues passed the time limit?  What about when he or she stops abruptly and #Jersey

Let’s talk about it …

From a scientific perspective, space and time are joined at the hip.  In the battle rap universe (multi-verse not to be confused with MyVerse) space and time are two independent variables that can have career or life altering implications.  Remember Pauli’s exclusion principal?  No?  In short, two objects cannot occupy the same time and same space … and we’ve seen what happens when someone tries to put their fists through their opponent’s face.  Lights out in the venue and that league’s universe in the multi-verse is extinguished – sometimes eternally.  (Reference Fight Club rules 1-8)

There is a universal understanding that battle rap is a war of words only.  While the pen may not be literally mightier than the sword, it can cut deep – but only in a finite space.  Verbal combat is often compared to its physical counterparts (boxing, MMA, etc.), but more often than not it looks like the WWE.  What do they all have in common?  Time!  Each sport has its own empirical time limit that the fighter cannot exceed without penalty, fear of disqualification, or risk of unnecessary injury which may lead to an early retirement.  Subsequently, due to the physical nature of combat sports we all understand why limits are important. All sports have limits, with equally important rationale of maintaining them, not just combative sports.  Imagine if one personal on a team kept trying to score after the final buzzer … how crazy would that look?

Nick Young:  “Kobe. We get it. You scored 60-points. Can we just go home now?”

Kobe:  “You wasn’t with me shooting in the gym!”

Nick Young:  “Ummm … yes I was and I’m still here.  I’m hungry bro, let’s gooooooo …”

Contributing Factors

It’s not only the emcee that contributes to the length of a battle.  Nowadays, excessive crowd reaction also plays a part in an emcee’s total stage time causing some battles to become fatiguing; in-turn decreasing the battle’s replay value over time.  Sure, the emcee plays a huge role in the amount of crowd reaction he or she receives but that should not directly influence the amount of stage time an emcee has over their opponent. (Stay tuned for the BARS “Crowd Control” BLOG)

On the other hand; what happens when an emcee obviously stops rapping sooner than expected? Recently BiggK was criticized on his battle with Cortez because he only rapped for approximately 48-seconds in the third round of a scheduled 90-second per round battle.  The general consensus from fans and bloggers was one of two causes:  1) He choked  Or 2) He wasn’t prepared.  Only BiggK knows the actual reason but it only leaves the audience in limbo?  Whose fault is it?  I will yet again channel my inner Tsu Surf and say, “it’s like basketball … if Kawhi Leonard quit playing in the middle of the third quarter, and Durant still in the game, it doesn’t matter if Kawhi is defensive player of the year … because Durant is going to keep shooting! The clock still running … I mean #Jersey.  Bottom line, whether it’s in-person or watching on YouTube the fans feel cheated. I probably should reference BiggK here but I may get blocked.

Over the past 5-years, several notable battles have been scrutinized because of time. In certain instances, emcees were vehemently criticized by fans or their opponent for exceeding the “agreed” upon time allotted within each round.  The rationale?  More time rapping equals more content (bars) which results in a swayed opinion in the mind of the observer.  Stand out cases include Lux vs Cal and BDot vs Myers.  Some fans and respected bloggers view both battles as classics; however, highly contested [debated] on who won and who lost based on the observed [measured] content differential between each emcee.

Notable Battles Where Time Played a Positive/Negative Role

Calicoe vs Loaded
Arsonal vs Dizaster
BDot vs Danny Myers
Daylyt vs QP
Cortez vs T-Rex
BiggK vs Cortez
QP vs Chilla Jones
Loaded Lux vs Hollow Da Don
Hollow Da Don vs Joe Budden (Stop my time! Forgive me … scratch this off the list.  Sheesh!)

The Solution … Transparent Clock Management

There are very successful battles that strictly enforced a time clock and were very well received by the battle rap community.  Most notably was URL’s Ultimate Freestyle Friday battle.  No longer were emcees rocking over beats in front of Terrance and Roxy for 30 seconds.  Emcees were given two-minutes to spit in front of an interactive, yet captive audience; but their content did not disappoint.  Hardcore fans still talk about the Prez Mafia vs. TyLaw, Danny Myers vs. Ahdi Boom, T-Top vs. The Saga, and Brizz Rawsteen vs. DOT.

Until there’s an established standard we will continue this cycle … so how can we fix it?

To help manage fan expectations and emcees performance, leagues/platforms should adopt the BattleRapStats.com emcee time and space continuum.  Just a fancy set of words for posting a clock … no really – ain’t no more to it.  Well, maybe a little more, let me explain.

1. Expressly write and publicize the length of the battle (Cost $0$)
2. Invest in a digital countdown timer that the fans and emcees can see during the battle ($199-299)
3. Institute a running clock with a time bank (minimum/maximum grace period)

Advantages of a Running Clock

Posting a running clock allows an emcee to better manage their delivery and crowd reaction.  This will also help better manage the expectations of the consumer (fan).  Commonly battle rappers and fans conflate time rapping and stage time.  Loosly defined, rapping time equals the literal amount of time when an emcee is actually rapping minus the crowd’s reaction until the emcee stops or the host yells “TIME!”  Stage time is the amount of time an emcee is given to perform their material – this includes crowd reaction/interaction.  Stopping and starting the timer creates a paradigm wherein a scheduled three round/three minute battle quickly transforms into a 58-minute and 36 second mini-move with intermission.

Posting the contracted times with a visible stopwatch assists with managing the expectations of fans and allows emcees to better prepare for their performance.  It also assists the league manage the clock and crowd simultaneously, which ultimately will result in a better product.

What do the Numbers Really Say?

If you have time, re-watch two battles:  Loaded Lux vs. Calicoe and ShowOff vs. BiggK. After you’ve digested the footage, take a look at their respective breakdowns.  Were you swayed by the amount of time and material that the emcees rapped?  Did you focus on the content, performance and their ability to keep your interest (it-factor)?  If so, then you’ll want to really dig deep into RETINA and how it assists you with objectively assessing the battle.  RETINA will give you the opportunity to level the playing field by balancing the amount of time each emcee rapped – think handicaps in golf because it’s a very similar concept.

In future blogs we will go through these battles (and others) using RETINA to give you those interested a better understanding of how RETINA works.

 

 Time’s Up!

If you’ve made it this far you obviously have too much time on your hands.  Don’t waste it, get involved!  Become a member of the RETINA test group and help shape battle rap’s future.  Simply send an email to testgroup@battlerapstats.com and tell us why you should be a part of the alpha test group that’s going to change the game.  All you have to be is 18-years and older, willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement and a fan of battle rap.  That’s it!  I mean it’s like Luigi running up on King Kupa and #JERSEY