With battle rap continuing to move at a blistering pace, and with more battles happening now than ever before, it’s getting rarer for individual matches to actually matter. That’s not the case with the match-up between Rum Nitty and Tay Roc, going down at URL’s “Night Of Main Events 6” at Irving Plaza in New York City this Sunday (November 20).
Few match-ups have as much on the line as this one — a battle dubbed the “Gun Line King vs. Gun Bar King” — with an established top tier veteran taking on a rising star on battle rap’s biggest stage.
Despite Nitty calling out Roc in recent years, it’s a clash that seemed unlikely to ever happen even a year ago. But since transitioning to URL from KOTD, the Phoenix, Arizona battler has taken massive strides in the New York scene to put him within shooting range of the Baltimore veteran.
So far in 2016, Nitty has what most URL viewers consider the battle of the year against Ave, a pretty clear bodybag over Charlie Clips, and solid showings against Ill Will and 2015 Battler Of The Year candidate Danja Zone. He’s done enough to put him in Battler Of The Year contention for this year, and a clear win over Smack’s gunner Tay Roc could lock that down for many followers of the culture.
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That said, this will be the largest and most volatile crowd Nitty has faced, probably ever. Irving regularly packs in upwards of 1,000 diehard fans, and for $75 a ticket, they expect to get their money’s worth. This also being the first large-scale URL event since March — a delay caused partly because of the Troy Ave shooting that happened in the same venue — fans will be hungry for some excitement.
The Irving Plaza stage is practically Tay Roc’s second home. Over the years, he’s picked up one of the longest streaks as a URL favorite, and his straightforward content and well-rehearsed delivery are always well received. He’s been as active as Nitty this year, keeping his buzz high as half of one of the most impressive performances of the year, teaming up with superstar Tsu Surf in a doubles battle against DNA and K-Shine (and taking them on again in a rematch months later). He also made his first non-URL appearances in years, taking on his first female opponent, C3, at a Queen Of The Ring event in February and venturing into the lair of the beast with a battle against Arsonal on U Dubb in New Jersey.
A couple of Twitter polls are leaning toward Roc’s experience over Nitty’s momentum.
What, I gotta put it in meme-titles or something?
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Elsewhere on the card, Brizz Rawsteen and T-Top are two names in a similar position to Nitty. The two North Carolinians have been putting in work on URL over the last couple of years, building their fan bases with each performance. Their hard work is being rewarded with their biggest looks to date, with Top getting Tsu Surf and Brizz taking on Arsonal, who’s been off URL for a minute but has strung together a series of strong performances elsewhere after announcing his impending retirement earlier this year.
Daylyt will also be making his big-stage URL debut against DNA. Day is always a wildcard, and with a packed schedule touring with Hopsin and battling for King Of The Dot last week, it’s possible he’ll make up for a lack of material and/or preparation with some theatrics.
Finally, in an almost unheard of case where he’s at the bottom of a card, legendary battler and new Wild ‘N Out cast member Charlie Clips will face Ill Will, who put on a hot showing against Rum Nitty in his return to URL a few months ago. Both Clips and Will have a looseness to their performance and are expert freestylers, which could lead to some interesting spontaneous moments if they’re in their bag.
Tickets are available ahead of time and at the door. Check the trailer below and BattleRap.com for additional coverage.
