Friday May 16th was a milestone for me. It was a show to celebrate my 10 years of promoting and contributing to the Rhode Island Hip Hop scene. It was also a benchmark to my relationship with the community. I am about to say something that will not come as a shock to anyone. People involved in this local hip hop scene act funny. I was fully prepared to write a scathing article calling out people who I thought were being more dumb than usual. But you know what? All promotions are good promotions, so instead I will just give my love and respect to those who went out of their way to help this event be a success. Those who rose to the occasion and became champions for the night. Those that helped make this night special. So Here I go:

Marshall Law. Since he is the current UNDISPUTED battle champion, it made the most sense to me that I start with him. You may love Marshall, you may hate him, but you can’t ignore him. He brought a lot of hype and attention to this show. Marshall and his squad were in the building. Their fans came early and stayed late. He came in and smashed Sneaky in a two round battle. Marshall let Sneaky dictate stipulations and he battled Sneaky at his own game and won clean. Marshall’s buzz has come about rather quickly, I look forward to see where he goes from here. Battle rappers don’t usually put out quality material. Hopefully Marshall can break the mold.

Sneaky Pete. You may be wondering why someone who clearly lost the battle would be considered a Champion. How could someone who got his ass handed to him be on this list? Sneaky really did it BIG on the promotions for this event. He came thru several times for flyers and was always down to go put in work on some street team shenanigans. Also the battle between Sneaky and Marshall was basically a marketing tactic that was conceived by Sneaky. Sneaky set it in motion. It was just as big a draw as either of the headliners. So big up to Sneaky Pete for being able to have a good time and bettering someone else’s operation at his own expense. I respect your hustle.

Sterbyrock. Sterby “Mutha Phuckin” Rock!! Sterby and I have been cool since the Tone Capone days at Liquid Lounge. I have always held Sterby in high regards, but after his performance at the show, he has been escalated to man god status in my eyes. First one to show up. Last one to leave. He even set off the show by announcing the first act. With out his proactive behavior, the show may have been cut short later on in the night. He also held it down during Vast Aire’s set like a … well … like a champ. One would expect the Headliner to have a DJ to spin their set. I thought Vast and C-Rayz would have DJs. I told Sterby they had DJs, yet they didn’t. Sterby manned up and did the damn thing. No fuss. I am still in awe.

Keebla. Some may not know who Keebla is. It seems our community dies out and is reborn every few years like the mythical firey bird, the Phoenix. The majority of the current roster of RI Hip Hop Superstars have been around for about two years or so. That being said I guess it could be excusable for them not to know Keebla. But I for one believe there are a few names that any hip hopper for RI should know: DJ Buck, DJ Kurty Kutt, Wiz Art, Vase, Manhunt, Afta Maf, Kwest, Sage, and Keebla! Keebla is a pioneer of the RI B-Boy scene. Once a memebr of the POAM B-Boys, then the founder of the Ground FX crew, he has proven himself to be the number one B-Boy in RI. Keebla volunteered his time to run the door and and handle the guest list for the event. This is the absolute worst job to have at an event, but he did it … like a champ. I’m looking forward to his upcoming. Hopefully he will allow me to help him as much as he helped me.

19Ninty7. Yes sir. Our first ever “Artist on The Rise”. 19Ninty7 came thru and provided the CD player for the event. Every artist that performed that night owes a small bit of thanks to 97. He also laced me with a butter LRG Hoody. We had a discussion at the battle last month, about how we were both fans of the LRG clothing line. He mentioned a clothing store around his way that always has LRG hoodies on clearance and that 97 personally had too many and would bless me with one. Well I totally forgot the convo, but Ninty7 did not. When he showed up with the CD player, he also had the hoody. Thats a hook up. Respect. I’ll see what I can do to return the favor.

Vast Aire. One of my favorite Emcees of the current generation. I would go as far as to say he is in my top 5. He killed it. He performed one of my favorite joints, Raspberry Fields. It’s a shame he and C-Rayz didn’t rock my absolute favorite “The Battle for Asgard”. My son and his best friend Shamar wanted to meet Vast. I was very surprised to see how good Vast was with young fans. He really spent a lot of time with them, and had actual conversations with them. It was awesome to see. He could have just been like “what’s up guys” and they would have been happy, but he took time and built with them. WORD. The Children are the future.

C-Rayz Walz. Another of my top 5 emcees of the last decade. C-Rayz is amazing. He is an emcee who does not need a DJ or a hype man and can still smash a show. He sounds the same as he does on CD and that is something not every emcee can pull off. Actually hardly any recording artist can pull that off. He also mentioned Me and Basement Flavor in his freestyles. Dopeness. C-Rayz was a true professional. Very easy to work with and easy to please. I look forward to working with him in the future.

DJ Janks. Janks held it down on the DJ tip for C-Rayz during his set. This gave Sterby a much needed and deserved break. Janks did his thing. Big up and respect to him. Janks also came out and help with the promotions for the event. I dig his work ethic.

Gibran. My dude. Gibran (in case you don’t know) is one of the co-founders of Labeless Illtelligence and the producer behind St. Art and The IF?. Gibran (or SkricLee as I know him) and I have become very good friends over the past seven months, since the release of Halo 3. We have built almost daily via XBOX Live and are about to embark on our new career as professional gamers. He broke his 2 year self imposed hiatus from attending shows just to come out and support my celebration. That in my humble opinion made this event a success. Watching someone who is an artist and STILL a fan enjoy a showcase I put together was reward enuff for me. Hopefully I can put together another event that will motivate him to attend.

Thats all I got for now. If I forgot to mention you and you feel you went out of your way to make this the best show of the year, I apologize. If you attended the show I would love to hear any and all feedback. Positive or negative. I wont catch feeling like some. (well at least I wont let you see me cry)

P.S. I couldn’t have done it without the wife. She is my queen. The most powerful piece on the board.