(This event recap was published on Facebook on December 18, 2016. There was another revised & more polished version of this in collaboration with Apoc’s RAW Clothing, but that version no longer exists and I don’t have any backup of that.)
I haven’t gone to a FlipTop event in a really long time due to time and money issues, but I knew I couldn’t miss out on this one, especially after missing out on the wildly successful Bwelta Balentong 3. I even brought friends along because I wanted them to experience the wonders of live events (minus the exhausting amount of time standing and the lingering smell of cigarettes). I gotta say, this was the most fun event I’ve attended in a long time, and I hope my friends feel the same way. Anyway, straight to the recaps. Borrowing RAW’s review format for this one. Warning: this recap is shamelessly biased.
DAY 1 RECAP
Tatz Maven vs Poison 13
Although I was initially biased towards Tatz, he didn’t come fully prepared while Poison 13 was on point throughout the battle. Tatz had some pretty good material but choked for two rounds. Sayang. They both have what it takes to hang with the heavyweights in my opinion, but it looks like Poison 13 will be heading there first.
Personal judgement per round: Poison 13 3-0, maybe 2-1 if I give Tatz the second round where he was really cooking.
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Poison 13
Ilaya vs Righteous1
R1 had moments of good rapping, but yet again, he slips into the sympathy angle and plays it out until it’s no longer effective. Ilaya was so good, it’s a shame how seldom he battles. He’s vastly improved his delivery, has few punches yet very painful lines and angles, and he’s back with the hair-raising third round storytelling. One thing that Ilaya got wrong, though, is that R1’s recent album was actually pretty good. LOL.
Personal judgement per round: Ilaya 3-0
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Ilaya
Kregga vs Asser
We were late in getting back to the venue so we missed their first rounds entirely. However, I gave the second and third rounds to Kregga. Asser had a good performance like he always does, but Kregga was just really in the zone throughout the battle. Definitely one of the more loved lyricists in the league.
Personal judgement per round: Kregga 2-0 (missed the first round)
Judges’ vote: 3-2 for Kregga
Lanzeta/Invictuz vs Cripli/Towpher
Prior to this event, si Lanzeta lang ang talagang sinusubaybayan ko sa kanilang apat, but now all four of them have won me over. This battle was so insane that it caught nearly everyone by surprise. It was back-and-forth every round, with both teams having completely flawless performances, but Cripli/Towpher were dominant in terms of crowd control, and it wasn’t until the third round that Lanzeta/Invictuz finally won the crowd over. A classic style clash with one team (Cripli/Towpher) having an insane start that gradually declined versus a team (Lanz/Invictuz) that started slow but gradually built up momentum, I feel that this battle is more debatable than it seems, and people will realize that in the future.
Personal judgement per round: 2-1 eitherway
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Cripli/Towpher
Dello vs Thike (SECRET FREESTYLE BATTLE)
A great addition to the lineup. It was a very fun battle for everyone who saw it as both of them were on point with their freestyles. I don’t know how to properly break down freestyle battles, but by preference, flow is a big factor to me since it’s on beats, and Dello’s flow was largely better for me. But I guess Thike was more consistent with the punches throughout and that won the judges’ favor.
Personal judgement per round: Dello 2-1
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Thike
Frooz vs Tweng
I feel a lot of peeps will be surprised at how good this battle actually is. Frooz returned to form with his performance here, and Tweng took a massive step up with his: more emphasis on actual lines and disses, with the props now only supporting his performance and serving as a setup to his heavier lines. Frooz also used props to creatively diss Tweng, so this was an overall fun battle that really comes down to preference on who you think won. Many will say that Tweng’s style is nonsensical and missing the point of battle rap entirely, but over time I’ve grown to accept his style as an artist and treat it as a part of his battle performance, and I gotta say, this is the best balance he’s ever had between rapping, lyricism and showmanship. Twengstyle!
Personal judgement per round: Tweng 2-1
Judges’ vote: 3-2 for Frooz
M Zhayt vs EJ Power
This was a pretty neck and neck style clash between the crowd-pleasing performer EJ Power and the cut-throat, straightforward battler M Zhayt. I had them winning one round each until Round 3, where M Zhayt’s material suddenly took a step down. I didn’t know EJ Power’s joke about M Zhayt’s house burning down was real until he acknowledged it on his third round, so props to Zhayt for an incredible showing despite that, but my vote goes to EJ Power.
Personal judgement per round: EJ Power 2-1
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for EJ Power
Zaito vs Liljohn
Zaito showed glimpses of the same serious, profound style he used against Smugglaz, and had a really clever double entendre in the second round, but halfway through he started freestyling and… you know the rest. Liljohn came prepared and had impeccable crowd control as always. Liljohn calling out the fact that M Zhayt had a great showing despite his real life problems really set the pressure on Zaito to show up all three rounds, that by the moment he slipped into freestyle, the battle was already decided.
Personal judgement per round: Liljohn 2-1
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Liljohn
Smugglaz vs G-Clown
G Clown had a good performance, but was just totally outclassed in every single aspect by Smugglaz all three rounds. He had a lot of pressure to show up with good material or go toe-to-toe with Smugg in rapping, and he was able to do neither. Smugg was Smugg: beast performer, a healthy mix of everything in his content, and another rap clinic that’s music to the ears.
Personal judgement per round: Smugg 3-0
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Smugglaz
Shehyee vs Sinio
Sinio’s absolute best performance by far, and Shehyee made the fatal mistake of not coming as prepared. Longtime fans acknowledge Shehyee’s fearsome ability to do character assassinations, and we were expecting him to do something that would somehow diffuse Sinio’s stage presence and snowballing momentum, but he fell really short. His performance, material and angles just weren’t resonating with the crowd. Meanwhile, Sinio came swinging with a perfect performance, angles that Shehyee could’ve negated in his battle plan but failed to, and haymakers that are technically jokes but hit as hard as any bar from your favourite serious lyrical emcee. Add to that some impressive rebuttals, and it’s a wrap.
Personal judgement per round: Sinio 3-0
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Sinio
Batas vs Price Tagg
The atmosphere in this battle was quiet and Calicoe vs Math Hoffa-level tense, just perfect for who these two emcees are and the context behind the battle. They both came with massive improvements: Batas on his delivery and flow, and Pricetagg on his content and performance. It was extremely close all three rounds, but Pricetagg’s style was ultimately more effective live. He was very comfortable with his performance, at times seeming like he was styling on Batas, which added to his stage presence for those who doubted whether he’d actually try to punk a fellow bully-type emcee. Batas came hard like always: punchline after punchline after punchline, but his style is just not as easy to absorb live compared to Pricetagg’s. I feel that this will be heavily debatable when the footage drops, but as for the actual results, Pricetagg gets a well-deserved W.
Personal judgement per round: 2-1 eitherway
Judges’ vote: 3-2 for Pricetagg
DAY 2 RECAP
Mikidee vs Sixth Threat
Had to rest for this battle due to post-Day 1 fatigue. Sorry fam. I was hearing some of the lines from the background and it seemed like Sixth Threat’s lines were landing better.
Personal judgement per round: N/A
Judges’ vote: 4-1 for Sixth Threat
Marshall Bonifacio vs Lhipkram
Still resting during this battle, but from what I could make out, Lhipkram did really well, building momentum as he clowned heavy on Marshall Bonifacio, but choked at the ends of both Round 1 and 2 which cost him the battle. Marshall Bonifacio was good and consistent as far as I can tell.
Personal judgement per round: N/A
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Marshall Bonifacio
Mhot vs Fangs
another unexpectedly good battle between rookies, they made the most of their chance to be in the Ahon stage and stole the spotlight for Battle of the Night, at least for me. They were both flawless with their performances, and while they’re both lyricists, their style of writing is vastly different which made for a very entertaining style clash for peeps who’re into that kind of thing. This was especially good for Fangs, after coming from a bad choke and a literal beatdown (with Anygma) in his last battle. By preference, I prefer Fangs’ style of writing, and I feel that he would have won if Mhot came just one or two haymakers short, but Mhot’s heavier and more effective punches and quantity of good lines just made him clearly more dominant. Y’all better watch out, we’re gonna have two new stars pretty soon!
Personal judgement per round: 2-1 Mhot
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Mhot
Romano vs Melchrist
Romano was so in the zone for this battle, I feel like whether Melchrist came fully prepared or not, he still would have lost, but since he choked all three rounds, it was just all the more painful.
Personal judgement per round: Romano 3-0
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Romano
(Note for this next section: this recap was published before Badang’s allegations of child molestation came up. The case has been dismissed since then, but Badang has still not publicly participated in FlipTop since then, and his public perception is still a polarizing and complicated topic to this day.)
Badang vs Rapido
I feel Badang has finally found a lane that’s unique to him and people will really love him for. Like an Aklas effect of sorts, the crowd has learned to embrace his hilariously absurd concepts, and we were absolutely loving it now that he’s doing it deliberately. Coupled with his piercing personals, he really dominated the stage with his presence. Rapido was also cooking in the first round, but choked at the second and third, which led to an irredeemable loss of momentum. Badang!
Personal judgement per round: Badang 2-1
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Badang
Shernan vs Lil Sisa
As I predicted, Shernan almost completely strayed away from the “bastos” approach you would expect for this kind of battle, but I didn’t expect he would pretty much concede all three rounds with his concept of choice. It wasn’t bad at all, but just opposite to what normally wins you battles. Props to him for making the battle very entertaining and for rocking that concept all the way to the end, but Sisa decisively took Rounds 2 and 3 and that’s what it is. Props to Sisa going back to straightforward battling before their Round 1 concept got played out.
Personal judgement per round: Lil Sisa 2-0 (not counting the compliment battle-like first round)
Judges’ vote: 4-1 for Lil Sisa
J-King vs Jonas
This was way closer than I had anticipated it to be, based on previous performances. J-King was on point like he always is, but Jonas was unexpectedly better and just slightly more dominant and well-rounded all three rounds, so Jonas.
Personal judgement per round: Jonas 3-0
Judges’ vote: 5-0 for Jonas
Pistolero vs Range
I had to get a shut-eye for a moment ‘cuz I was really tired, so I wasn’t able to listen to this battle too closely. Sorry fam. This battle got pushed way behind schedule due to Pistolero being late, but he still managed to get the W.
Personal judgement per round: N/A
Judges’ vote: 4-1 for Pistolero
Apekz vs Apoc
The other Battle of the Night candidate, this was as good and as close as everyone had expected. Props to both for living up to the hype. Apoc had massively improved his delivery, material and flow compared to his Smugg battle, and Apekz came just as strongly as he did in the Shernan battle, which was arguably his best showing. Their angles were equally hurtful, so between Apekz’s more polished and well-rounded performance and higher quantity of punches, versus Apoc’s better flow and better-crafted punchlines, it’s a debatable classic. I preferred Apoc’s material, but if we’re talking who had the more complete package, Apekz gets the edge.
Personal judgement per round: 2-1 eitherway
Judges’ vote: 4-1 for Apekz
Abra vs Damsa
Damsa has gone a long way from his initial 2010 showings. This was a very close battle as expected, and who won will differ based on how you looked at the battle. Abra did not go toe-to-toe with Damsa’s rapping exhibitions, but he didn’t have to, and so he chose to have a more well-rounded performance and picked angles that would show it’s effectiveness once Damsa stopped the rap clinic. Damsa’s performance in Round 1 was untouchable, so I gave him that round by default, but just like Abra pointed out, his next two rounds started falling flat after he stopped double timing. Abra decisively won Round 3, so it’s a toss up depending on who you think won Round 2. I’m not too hard on slip-ups, but since Abra’s was very significant (he tripped up early into the part where he was supposed to “show” Damsa how to put up a rap clinic), that was major minus points for me, which made me give Round 2 to Damsa since his second round was also fairly good.
Personal judgement per round: Damsa 2-1 just barely
Judges’ vote: 3-2 for Damsa
Loonie vs Plazma
Between my ultimate long-time idol and my favourite dark horse who I’ve been eagerly waiting for to show his true potential to doubters and haters, it was nearly impossible for me to choose a side in this battle. And I gotta say, it was way closer than people realized, which will show on the video. On one side, you have Loonie whose material was way lighter than what he brought against Tipsy D (which is pretty hard to beat, considering it’s his absolute best showing), yet built momentum by clowning heavy on Plaz and overall being very comfortable with his performance. On the other hand, you have Plaz who took a massive level up from his previous three battles performance-wise, and brought his best material in the Filipino conference to date. Off of content alone, I would give this battle to Plazma, but the thing with Loonie is that even when his material declines, his performance is still pretty much untouchable. So with the fair edge of Plazma in content (not too big ‘cuz Loonie’s punches were still pretty spot on, hilarious and higher in quantity) but major edge of Loonie in stage presence and overall performance, Loonie gets the W.
Personal judgement per round: 2-1 eitherway
Judges’ vote: 9-0 for Loonie
Event Highlights
BEST BATTLES: Invictuz/Lanzeta vs Cripli/Towpher, Mhot vs Fangs, Apekz vs Apoc
BEST PERFORMANCE: Sinio
UNDERRATED BATTLES: Kregga vs Asser, Batas vs Pricetagg, J-King vs Jonas
BREAKOUT PERFORMANCES: Mhot, Fangs, Poison 13, and the tandems Cripli/Towpher and Invictuz/Lanzeta
Other highlight moments:
- Nearly every emcee putting up a rapping exhibition at some point in their rounds. Flow is officially the new trend, and coupled with better understanding of good bars and a returning appreciation for jokes, the league is now more balanced, and everyone has a chance to shine if they do well enough. #ThankYouBasedDamsa
- Almost all of the rookies putting up solid performances. FlipTop’s future is in good hands.
- The addition of the freestyle battle between Dello and Thike to the lineup. It was well-received and entertaining, I hope we see more of it soon.
- The impressive 2v2 battle, giving us all a renewed interest for dos por dos matchups. Set it up!
- DJ, beatboxing, graffiti and breakdancing sets during breaks. The elements of hip hop were alive and well during Ahon Seven!
Things to improve:
- May portion nung venue na basa at hindi maupuan dahil tumatagas ‘yung tubig galing sa AC/ventilation. May nadulas nga dun eh, buti walang nakakita. LOL.
- The location of the drinks. Nakakatraffic sa hagdan kapag maraming nakapila para bumili ng tubig/beer.
- The audio was a bit inaudible on the center side. Left side pinaka clear.
- I know everyone who was in the card deserved to be in it, but the amount of battles really need to be cut down para hindi drained of energy ‘yung crowd, especially sa Day 2.
Rayneman's Terms 