Last week I had the opportunity to throw down a battle set at Nationals Park for Ink Fest Live. The event was sponsored by Monster DJ, WATC Sports, and the Beat Refinery. Battle rules were as follows: One 30 second scratch round followed by three, two minute, head-to-head rounds. I went head to head against DJ Slice from Virginia. Much respect goes out to Slice and the OG set he threw down on all vinyl! I put together a hybrid of DMC meets Threestyle battle set. I wanted to be able to show some skill while at the same time play songs that people recognized. For the scratch round I used Red Cafe’s “I’m Ill” instrumental. Round 1: I started with a beat juggle of the Glitch Mob’s remix of Wale’s “Freaxxx” then went into Mac Miller’s Smile back, chopping up “Fuck you what you need” and “Pittsburgh let me show the world just where my city at”. I also dropped D-Pryde’s “No Sleep”, Saigon’s “Clap”, and ended the battle with a juggle and cut routine to Skrillex’s “Fucking Die”. I won the scratch round and final round, but Slice took the other 3. Hats off to Slice, his set was extremely clean and showmanship was definitely on point. I gathered enough points to qualify for the next round in Atlanta. I am extremely nervous but have plenty of time to put something dope together. Overall it was a great experience, I have never been a part of a battle of this format. I have learned so much and made great connections down DC, hopefully I will be back there someday. I know what to bring next time, so my next set will be much better. Keep posted for more to come! Also, shout out to my dude Tiny Tim for tagging along for the trip and taking pictures! Thanks for reading!
Bamboo
