Let the rap battles commence

The new hip-hop battle event will feature a
record-breaking rapper

The organisers have touted the event as Cardiff’s first live rap battle. (Photograph: Ulisses Barbosa)

A new rap battle event is starting in Cardiff this weekend to serve the city’s vibrant hip-hop community.

The battles will commence on Saturday 26 November at new underground club 48 Below in the city centre. Organiser Epic Bars have billed the event as the first live rap battle in Cardiff and said it would be first of many. Cardiff-based rapper and world record holder for longest rap Ruffstylz will headline the event.

The Cardiff rap scene has taken off in recent years. Ruffstylz said, “There’s a golden era feel in Cardiff right now. I wouldn’t wanna live anywhere else.”

There will also be hip-hop performances, DJ sets and beatbox battles. The event will be filmed and uploaded on YouTube.

Epic Bars presents City Clashes at 48 Below

Tickets cost £5 on the door and the event runs from 4pm to 4am. The battles start at 6pm.

Lineup:

Ruffstylz v Tenchoo
Gambit Mugraw v Adolf Spitler
Stowaway v Odie
Unique v Shinobi

Ruffstylz

Cardiff-based rapper Ruffstylz is headlining the event. (Photograph: Alex Mills)

Ruffstylz is a Cardiff-based rapper and world record holder for longest rap. He set the record at the old Toucan Club in Cardiff in October 2003, clocking ten hours and 34 minutes. He broke his own record at an Oxjam Cardiff event in 2009, adding over six hours to the record. Watch Ruffstylz freestyle a 17-minute verse:

[vimeo width=”236″ height=”200″]http://vimeo.com/2680651[/vimeo]

Ruffstlyz has supported such rap legends as Prince Paul, Taskforce and Rahzel as well as Rhys Ifans’s band The Peth. He co-founded Cardiff-based record label Associated Minds in 2004 and his latest single, Pain Into Fire featuring American rapper Chino XL, was released last month. Listen to it here.

Featured image: Walt Jabsco