For years, barbershops all over the world are filled with heavy & intense debates on who is the greatest of all time in a variety of athletic fields. I find that the hardest debates to have are the ones that include athletes from different eras. We will never know what a 6 foot 9, 250 pound amazing physical specimen-Lebron James would look like against a 7 foot monster in Bill Russell who won 8 NBA championships in a row out of 11 total. As much as I have heard the Montana/Brady debate, it will always be left as an unsettled debate between people who were impacted by both eras of the game.
This is why I love battle rap. Not only is it the greatest form of lyricism, poetry, and figurative language under the umbrella of hip hop. But it is also a sport in which two eras can collide and settle the debates that would normally be left up in the air. On Christmas day 2019, battle rap fans like myself, were excited about the most amazing gift that santa could have dropped through the chimney. All smack needed was a red suit and 300 more pounds and he would have gone down as the greatest santa ever. But that’s besides the point. I remember seeing my lovely Youtube Notification pop up. Just like I do with any other URL notification, I clicked it and saw “URL presents the press conference; Tsu Surf vs Loaded Lux”.
After my excitement, I couldn’t help but to think about the impact this battle will have on the culture. Not only do you have one of the greatest lyricists to ever live (lux) in the ring, but he is going against arguably the most brilliant mind in the culture (surf). Aside from the talent each of these MCs possess, it will be very difficult to find a matchup within the roster of battlers that will generate as much views as this one.
To point to my opening point, this is most certainly a battle between two battle giants from two different eras. Harlem native Loaded Lux comes from what I like to call “That Era”. The Smack DVD era was a special time in battle rap. We are talking names like Lux, Murda Mook, Young Miles, Jae Millz and so much more. This was an era that open the doors for battle rap as you know it. This culture cannot be spoken of without the mention of a lot of the talent that came from this dynamic and passionate time.
Tsu Surf on the other hand comes from what I like to call “The Golden Era” of the battle culture. An era that includes names like Hitman Holla, Aye verb, Charlie Clips, Hollow da don and many more. Following the dvd era, battle rap as we knew it became a business. As you could see in the faceoff, surf knew exactly what to say, when to say it, and how to say it. The golden era separates guys with bars and guys with brands. Tsu surf isn’t just a battle MC. He understands that he is a brand.
In part 2 of this article I will breakdown how I think this battle will go But we would be remised if we never appreciate the magnitude of this heavy weight match up. In 2020 we will witness the most impactful battle in recent history as 2 eras collide. Bottom line is, this will be and already is LEGENDARY! Thank You Smack!
