BET’s Rap City still stands as hip-hop’s longest-running TV show, airing for nearly 20 years and showcasing a wide array of rising rap stars. While the cable network canceled the show in 2008, Brooklyn collective Beast Coast decided to revive it for their new “Basement Freestyle,” complete with former Rap City host Big Tigger.
Beast Coast lets him kick things off, reflecting on the show’s legacy and (what would have been) its 30th birthday this year:
It’s been a minute, but ain’t a damn thing changed
I’m still Big Tigger, still doing big things
In the streets, they treating our culture dirty
‘Cause this year, Rap City would eventually turn 30
Joey Bada$$ hops in on the fifth verse to spit about his appreciation for women of a certain figure:
Big dick energy, I’m admitting it
If she got a fat ass, backstage pass, you know that I’m hitting it
I ain’t gotta flash cash, but you know that I’m getting it
These raps ain’t visions bitch, I’m already living it, yeah
Later on, CJ Fly raps about proving his doubters wrong:
Everybody that done doubted me gon’ eat they words for lunch
Try to hit me with some shit, but I had beat em to the punch
I was standing outside solo now my finger start to numb
Been a starving artist solo, now my ribs are starting to touch
Living on a dirty block, where they was dealing in the cut
Niggas rocking off a fifty like ‘We really in the cut’
Joey recently revealed that Beast Coast’s debut album is finished, and this morning, Beast coast announced its title and release date. Escape From New York is set to drop on May 24, featuring the group’s recent singles, “Left Hand” and “Coast/Clear.” Although Beast Coast has existed as an informal collective for years, they only came together as a true supergroup in 2019. Consisting of Pro Era, The Underachievers, and Flatbush Zombies, the group’s new album is hotly anticipated amongst fans and hip-hop purists.
The entire group recently stopped by Genius to break down “Left Hand”:
Watch the video above and read all the lyrics to Beast Coast’s “Basement Freestyle” on Genius now.
