Liam Graham | WhatTheHYPE
The GTHA is attracting more underground rap icons to Canadian streets. This past weekend BeastModeBattles hosted a free event at The Boat Lounge in Kensington market, downtown Toronto.
Hosted from 7-10 p.m., the event was titled “Joey Gambello vs DNA” and served as a promotional event for BeastMode to gain more followers and showcase local and international talent. Those invited were encouraged to battle, as it would help promote the event due to the fact that it had been originally scheduled to happen many months before. Local battle emcees Bartone and AJ offered to contribute a one-round battle to the event card as well, but aside from them nobody else committed.
BeastMode owner and host Kriss Cain was relieved to finally see it go through. “The relief of just getting this battle done with, Joey has missed three or four battles in a row now, people just duck him,” said Cain. “This DNA battle is really good for him to bounce back . . . Even if it’s a free event, it’s still support and that is what this game is all about.”
Despite having only two battles scheduled, the event received a great turnout. Local icons and musicians attended to show support for the emcees and league. King of the Dot Entertainment host and owner Organik was present, as well as King of the Dot Ground Zero host Gully TK.
DNA arrived with fellow battle rapper and friend, Charlie Clips. Both emcees live in the United States, so their attendance and contribution served as a very good show of support to BeastMode.
Match Breakdown | Joey Gambello versus DNA
The tension rises
GKTV Photography
Gambello is a local battle rap emcee from Toronto, Ontario. He is considered a veteran due to the amount of time he has put into his craft and has been loyal to the league since BeastMode volume two.
Throughout rounds one and two, Gambello displayed consistent vigorous energy and animation that complemented his punches on stage. He utilized aggressive vocal delivery and demonstrated good technique, spicing up the usual gang slang shown in regular battles with double entendres, metaphors and multi-syllable breakdowns.
Towards the end of round three his flow was interupted momentarily but he still managed to catch himself and finish on a strong note. Despite not going for as long as he did in his first and second rounds, his third remained strong due to the early finish.
Gambello seemed confident about his performance and enjoyed the battle.
“It was a great battle, I’m happy DNA showed up and actually did his thing,” said Gambello. “I did what I had to do too, and I’m happy a the end of the day . . . I feel it’s a classic, and I just want it to drop already so you can all enjoy it.”
DNA is a renowned battle rap icon coming from Queens, New York. He is well known for coming up with his material off the top of his head and has battled in many leagues such as King of the Dot and BeastMode. His battles date back to 2009 on his VerseTracker profile so it is evident he has been in the battle rap circuit for quite some time.
Gambello gets personal
GKTV Photography
DNA displayed consistency with his strength and flow throughout all of his rounds. He seemed to save his aggression for different intervals in the round, which added emphasis to the relevant punches but in turn damaged his own stage control. His metaphors and schemes were well thought out, dropping local references to “The 6ix” and rap emcee Drake, as well as describing Gambello as a less intimidating version of the notorious battle emcee, Dizaster.
DNA was very happy with the battle as well and thinks Joey’s material could be used outside the stage as well.
“I thought it was a good battle, I feel like I won, but I like Joey, I think he’s nice,” said DNA. “He has some good material but the stuff he says is hotter for a cypher, or a song because it’s real shit . . . I don’t really figure it for a battle but it’s hot, he’s good with it.”
Match Breakdown | AJ versus Bartone
The battle begins | GKTV Photography
AJ is native to the Toronto area as well. Battling with BeastMode for the past three years, AJ has not been shy to accept challenges.
He demonstrated confidence on stage against Bartone, targeting his opponent as a, “has-been,” while displaying good structure in his schemes. Utilizing references to hockey, his life growing up and his opponent’s career he laid down some solid punches on the former King of the Dot veteran.
Aj was very pleased with his battle.
“For a match up that was confirmed just shy of a week before the event, I couldn’t be happier with the result,” said AJ. “I received a strong response from the crowd throughout the battle and received many compliments after the battle, I was also impressed by my opponent . . . my focus was getting out all of my material and I feel I accomplished that.”
Bartone is a notable figure in the Canadian battle rap scene. He has been heavily involved with King of the Dot in past years and his VerseTracker profile dates back to 2008.
Bartone lays it out
GKTV Photography
Bartone was focused throughout his round. Mocking his opponent with most of his material, he structured his round well in terms of comedic value. Targeting AJ’s lisp and making references to when AJ made use of racial slurs, Bartone let the audience know he still remained sharp on his skills.
Bartone was also pleased with his battle, despite feeling like it was a style clash.
“We both had different angles,” said Bartone. “He came at me with the King of the Dot “has-been” material and family stuff, and I came at him with the lisp and racism references . . . We both have different mindsets and styles, but at the end of the day we killed it.”
The release date is to be announced for the battle footage but event footage of battles from BeastMode events can be found on their YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/BeastModeBattles and https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd8FFS4Lw-_cGiYf2bEDdbQ.
