Rap Kumite 3
The Blunt Brothers have a family feud.
I took my 20 favorite rappers and put them in head-to-head matchups to battle for their rank in Rap Kumite.
Last matchup, Wu icons Ghostface Killah and Raekwon stepped on the mat to battle for Rap Kumite 4, turning longtime partners in rhyme into rivals. Chef edged out the Wally Champ in a hotly contested rap battle that came down to a line-for-line dissection of their tracks. This was hip-hop’s version of Morales vs. Barrera . You didn’t want to see anyone lose. Rae came out of it with the “W”, causing a wild scene among Wu disciples from Shaolin to Kyoto. Well, we’re back on that bullshit for another round.
This time, hip-hop’s “Cheech and Chong”, the most prolific stoners on the mic outside of Cypress Hill, Method Man and Redman step onto the mat and rumble, a clash of THC titans. This duo had a more commercially successful stretch in the late 90s and early 2000s than most of their rap music peers. That includes Ghost and Rae. Even though they are different rappers in style, they were the perfect combination of street savvy and party guy spirit, and they moved between these on-mic personas like smoke in a gravity bong. They made albums together, were featured on other artist’s tracks together, starred in a movie and a spin-off TV show together, and now they go toe-to-toe in Rap Kumite 3.
Method Man
“In your Cross Colors clothes, you’ve crossed over/ Then got Totally Krossed Out and Kris Krossed/ Who the boss? Niggas get tossed to the side/ And I’m the dark side of the Force.”
One of the most recognizable voices in rap music when he jumps on a track, Method Man has always had that smooth delivery. It’s the yin to his buck wild yang. RZA knew what he was doing when he put Mr. Mef on the hook for “C.R.E.A.M.”. If he never spit another line of rap after that, Method Man would still have a spot enshrined in hip-hop history. That song that changed my life. I fell in love with Wu-Tang right there. Never heard anything in rap sound like that before, and I sure as hell had never heard a voice like Method Man’s.
His style is gritty, like New York street corners and pissy project staircases I imagine Method Man kicking freestyles in before he broke out with the Wu, but he moved away from that persona just long enough to create a more commercially successful character. I guess he’d always been Johnny Blaze, “ain’t a damn thing changed”, but when he linked up with Redman, we got his full-on Cheech to Reggie Noble’s version of Chong. It was a different side of Method Man that wasn’t given the space to feature on Wu-Tang records. The Clan is a lot of things to rap music and hip-hop culture, but it’s hard to label their music “fun”. They do their thing well, and Method Man always “gets his thang in action”.
Favorite Track
No question about this one. “Method Man” is the world’s proper introduction to Wu’s most iconic star, but “Bring The Pain” was the true neck snapper. I left off all his other verses on WTC albums because I wanted to keep the focus on his solo work — same shit I did with GZA, Ghost, and Rae — but it’s impossible not to include “Method Man” on a list of my favorite Method Man tracks.
He’s peppered his career with some outstanding solo tracks even though he’s never put together an outstanding solo album, and “Bring The Pain” is the absolute cream of this crop.
Redman
“Aggravated assault against an MCs/ Beat him down with the mic and all types of pedigrees/ It’s mad real in the Bricks, plus I roll thick/ You can quote this, I’m the Moby Dick of dopeness.”
Eminem, considered by many to be the greatest rapper of all time, named his top 5 MCs on “’Til I Collapse”, and he put Reggie Noble in his number 1 slot. Even with that type of co-sign, Redman hasn’t gotten enough credit for the creativity he’s brought to structuring a verse. His range in lyrical content shifts between hardcore street raps and silly stoner rhymes throughout an album, which isn’t far removed from what a lot of rappers rhyme about, but Redman portrays his personas with high-energy conviction. He has tracks like “Da Da Dahhh”, where he raps as three different versions of himself, and “Tonight’s Da Night”, where he attempts to spit smooth R&B type shit before he reverts to the sophomoric, explicit slang, and he has tracks with more hardcore, “Brick City” themed street shit. It feels authentic, and he portrays it with creative rhymes.
Even though Redman brings to his own sound, he’s never taken himself too seriously. He’s as braggadocios as the next rapper, often making general threats to “wack MCs” on record and asserting that he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty, but his music is fun. Since linking up with Redman, Method Man has been able to channel that same type of energy, and I have to believe this is a bit of Redman’s influence. Most times, Reggie Noble out raps Mr. Mef on the same track, but then what else would you expected from a top 5 rapper of all time?
Favorite Track
I was impressed by “80 Barz”, but I wasn’t surprised. When you have skills like Redman, hoping on a track and spitting fire is as easy as riding a bike. He proved on that track that he’s still got it, and he reminded us how dope he is by running through his career over 80 bars.
Redman has some bangers, and I especially like the unconventional rap track “Da Da Dahhh” because of the way he composes his narrative, starting the story as a bad ass toddler who made Bebe’s kids look like well-adjusted youth. Nothing gets me in that Redman frame of mind like “Rock Da Spot”, though.
There can only be ONE!
This is Rap Kumite 3, reserved for the 3rd spot in my “Top 10”. Styles matter in fighting and in hip-hop, and where Method Man falls short of Redman’s lyrical prowess, he makes up for with this tremendous steez. You know it as well as I do.
Method Man
Congratulations! The prize is a special place in my heart.
He’s the Lord of the Smoke Rings, the one true King of Potlandia, and in this moment we bend the knee. All hail the king!
RAP KUMITE
10. Evidence
09. GZA
08. Pusha-T
07. DMX
06. Nipsey Hussle
05. Kendrick Lamar
04. Raekwon
03. Method Man
Next in Rap Kumite 2, Queensbridge and Marcy Projects go to war for the City’s crown.
Previously in Rap Kumite 4…
