Much of the discussion surrounding the BET Hip Hop Awards was around what BET coined #KendricksVerse. The TDE cypher had much of the audience’s attention due to what has perceived as a Kendrick Lamar shot towards Drake. While Kendrick Lamar’s verse was certainly a strong one and yet another example of K. Dot’s influence and prowess, other verses appeared in the various cyphers that were worthy of applause.
This week, the HipHopDX staff weighs in on their favorite Slept-On bars from the 2013 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cyphers.
A$AP Rocky
Starting his 2013 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher appearance with a sly double entendre about business class, A$AP Rocky continues delivering stellar lines throughout his appearance in the A$AP Mob’s cypher. The Harlem, New York rapper proceeds to drop a bevy of racial epithets before imagining civil rights leaders with guns blazing. His pop culture references continue arriving fast and furiously throughout his mic time, with Jimi Hendrix among those capping off a vivid verse filled with lively imagery and stellar wordplay. – Soren Baker (@SorenBaker)
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Watch A$AP Rocky in the A$AP Mob 2013 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher
Rapsody
I remember back in 2009 when Nicki Minaj spit her bars during her BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher. It was one of those defining moments in an artist’s career, when their innate talent truly shines. For Nicki, it was even more of a battle because she was the only female in her crew, tossing those bars around about learjets and making lefts at the clouds. She did her thing though. Why am I bringing up Nicki Minaj in my discussion about Rapsody? Well, sure you could say it’s about females in Hip Hop, but for Nicki her success was winning in spite of her gender. With Rapsody, gender isn’t even a factor. Rap raps, plain and simple. She doesn’t need to accent her flows with cutesy giggles or creepy facial expressions to get our attention. She’s just that good – and she could be standing with 20 dudes, 20 babies or 20 martians and she’ll stand out for her words not her womanhood. As she followed Wax’s verse in her respective cypher, Rapsody jumped in with the fire and gumption we’ve come to know her for. “10% diss, but I can give you 90 tonight,” she barks, sending a subtle shout out to predecessor MC Lyte. The Jamla jammer ran through a number of topics before sealing it with a nod to Kendrick Lamar: “Now they outta ‘Control’ like I said I’m the Queen of New York.” A job well done. – Kathy Iandoli (@kath3000)
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Wax
It’s not as if Wax needs anybody’s co-sign, as the rapper boldly states in his introductory bars to one of the standout cyphers of this year’s BET Hip Hop Awards. Still, it deserves its praise. Wax’s rhyme patterns and nonchalant delivery help his verse shine, providing him the arsenal needed when standing beside seasoned respected spitters like Rapsody and Jon Connor. His metaphors are clever. “I puked up the blue pill we were forced to eat,” Wax raps. “I’m intolerant to the lactose in the corporate teet / I’m starting not to want to participate or compete / Weren’t we meant to live a life more complete?” Wax follows this up well, speaking about global studies regarding happiness as he compares his raps to the Kardashian family’s success in public relations before asking those not in the know to type his name into search engines. That can still be done, but Wax’s verse alone acts as a proper introduction to those unaware of his skill. If they didn’t know before the BET Hip Hop Awards, this will certainly help. – Andres Tardio (@AndresWrites)
The cypher featuring Rapsody and Wax can be viewed below via YardieGoals.
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