One of battle rap’s biggest grudge matches is in the books, and, all said, it was fairly tame. No punches thrown, no pockets tapped, no real extra-ness. Just two veteran battlers facing off with well-prepared material and energetic performances.
The headline match between Hitman Holla and Shotgun Suge at U Dubb’s “High Stakes 2” went down January 22 after a years-long leadup and capped a long day of battles for the live crowd and a frustrating experience for anyone attempting to watch the unreliable live pay-per-view. Thankfully, the stream issues had mostly been resolved by the time the main event happened.
The general consensus immediately after the battle was that either Hitman clearly won, Suge clearly won, or that the battle was debatable … Yes, that’s what it’s like in the world of unjudged rap battles.
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Those giving it to Suge are mostly pointing to his punch-heavy approach and his ability to connect with the crowd. He was aggressive but didn’t rely solely on his physicality, instead bringing a wealth of material and delivering it fluidly.
Hitman’s supporters are saying the crowd slept on his superior content and that his approach was more dynamic and more complex than Suge’s.
Here are some tweets from people who were in the building or watching at home.
I still cant really call Hitman and Suge. Either Hitman 1 and 3 or Suge 2 and 3 IMO. Thats off 1 watch live tho. I keep switching
— KingPen (@chillajones) January 23, 2017
Suge 21 or 30 depends on the first
— NoMercy | Trap NY (@NoMercyHarlem) January 23, 2017
Suge third ended a little flat and a little short, 2-1 Hitman. First and Third .. But very good battle, could be 2-1 Suge 1st and 2nd
— BattleRapDotCom (@battlerapdotcom) January 23, 2017
Ahhhh Suge you not slick with that ending! Hitman Holla 2-1 by the skin of his teeth
— Jackson Yates (@RedFlagNYC) January 23, 2017
okay.okay.i hate to do this, but the first rounds alone in Holla/Suge is more exciting than some of you battlers entire battles. like entire
— Blac Kellerman (@Jayblac1615) January 23, 2017
2-1 Suge
— Dre (@threeletterman3) January 23, 2017
RapGrid Result: Hitman Holla took the first round handily, but Shotgun Suge won the second and 3rd #HighStakes2
— Rap Grid (@rapgrid) January 23, 2017
Im actually in total shock that hitman didnt win those last 2 rounds smh.
— IG: Mickey.Factz (@MickeyFactz) January 23, 2017
Yea…debatable
— Blac Kellerman (@Jayblac1615) January 23, 2017
CLOSE BATTLE… GOTTA SEE AGAIN TO CHOOSE A WINNER OF HITMAN VS SUGE. S/O @UDuBBNetwork#HighStakes2
— LHS3 FEB 4TH (@ItsARP) January 23, 2017
Who did you have winning?
— BattleRapDotCom (@battlerapdotcom) January 23, 2017
Here are some video recaps from battle rap’s most popular bloggers too.
