Stylin' on you...

By now I’m sure you’ve seen the snuff heard round the world. But this video is as significant as it is hilarious. Because at the exact same time, this video represents everything good and bad about the current landscape that Hip-Hop is in.


First off, let’s rewind. Who outside of their inner circles knew who ENJ or Nycks were before their (in)famous battle took place. No one had a clue and in an instant, they were both mini-celebrities. YouTube allowed this video to be sent to hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people in a matter of days and it was discussed everywhere. Without the internet, only those in attendance and the few people who would have thought to cop that one specific hood DVD would have seen it. Word of mouth would have taken it a short distance then it would have disappeared into obscurity. See that is the best part about the current landscape of Hip-Hop – accessibility. If you want to get your music out to the world, it has never been easier. If you wanted to be famous and get your 15 minutes, it can be accomplished in seconds.

Then… you have the fact that a Hip-Hop battle was known more for a guy getting punched than his punchlines. Once again rappers are being rewarded not for their skill but whether or not they are tough or live out their gangster lyrics. You have Nycks, who brought a gun to a rap battle (seriously though this is ridiculous). Then you have ENJ who punched a guy with a gun. Not sure who wins the “ super gangster” challenge here, but both were mediocre rappers at best so in many ways I should have never known about them. The truth is, somewhere at the same time, another battle with two guys probably put together a greater lyrical battle, but that’s not what got almost a million hits on the web. We get so caught up in all of the crap surrounding the music that we lose sight of the music itself.

Since that moment, neither ENJ nor Nycks has done anything worth noting but they had a chance to build on their relative fame.

Worst-case scenario, they will always be remembered for stylin’ too hard and then getting punched for it.

I guess its better to be remembered for something than to be never known at all…