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Its absolutely a pat on my back, in that Ive been around Atlanta battle rap for so long.
I was one of the first people to participate in battle rap.
Im one of the ones from the original era thats still around.
Its like a lifetime achievement.
How were you actually introduced to this Dr. Nira character?
Who arranged the battle?A few people were involved.
I got my homeboy Adam Ferrone, he goes by Rone.
Hes one of the more prominent battle rappers out there, everybody knows who he is.
He owns the league where we participated on, called BullPen Battles.
Showtime contacted him about me battling a … he said it would be a weird battle.
I would be battling a college professor.
So Im like, Okay, I guess we could do that.They paid me what I asked for.
It was so crazy, because they really play up to being a low-budget production.
They paid me in fives and ones, and they shorted me, like, four dollars.
Im definitely not mad at that at all.
He sent me a message, Bro, did you battle a Jewish guy last year?
I was like, What!!!![Laughs.]
I thought it was cool and dope.
Im a big fan of Sacha Baron Cohen.
But I watched the first episode and I got terrified.
I thought he was going to make me look crazy.
But I came out looking okay.
I approached it with my own style.
Im a sarcastic asshole.
People know me for being one of the more lyrical people out there.
I put my riffs together well.
They didnt show too much of what I actually do, but they showcased the sarcasm and humor.
I only had a day to prepare.
They didnt tell me that Sacha was gonna approach it as a freestyle.
In this era of battle rap, its all written.
I did freestyle it a lot, but I had some written stuff prepared as well.
So I put together a general verse the quintessential black versus white thing.
Thats a big trope of battle rap.
Thats one thing we accept, thats always a subject that we tackle.
Its never in bad taste.
They say if somebody cant rap, they cant freestyle, but thats not true.
Sachas freestyle ability is ridiculous.
Im listening to the references hes using.
Hes referring to actual cases they had back in the day for suffrage and all sorts of other things.
His words and vocabulary are ridiculous.
His freestyle is actually crazy!
Im like, Yo, this old Jewish man is very quick on his toes.But his rapping ability?
Im not gonna lie.
But his freestyle ability was through the roof.
What was the energy like in the crowd throughout the battle?
They didnt understand what was going on and werent giving him a reaction.
I didnt understand what was going on either.
He went first in the battle and I came in second.
When I came in, it was absolutely electric, but that crowd knows me.
Not Sacha Baron Cohen, but recognized he was from the left who wanted to explore battle rap.
I cooked you b!!!
@SachaBaronCohenLol salute “Nira”.
I shook his hand right before the battle, and he thanked me for doing the battle.
After it ended, I didnt have a chance to speak with him.
What I did notice was before the battle were his mannerisms I was so fooled by him.
His mannerisms were so genuine.
Its like he sat down to study somebody in their 50s for months.
Just to see how they walk and move and shake peoples hands.
How they say certain words.
It was so genuine.
After my friend told me it was Borat, I had to really think back in my mind.
This guy might be the greatest actor of all time.
Its a huge melting pot.
Its people of every culture and upbringing it’s possible for you to imagine.
Ive battled in London, Sweden, Australia, Africa, Canada.
We all know each other, we all talk, and were all cool with each other.
Were an actual family.
We met through battle rap and hes now one of my best friends.
I wouldnt understand certain things about white people if it wasnt for him.
My segment showed a part of that.
