Beat This! Beat This! Competition - September 24-25, 2025

  • beat this! voting starts in...

Fade

The Beat Strangler
Administrator
illest o.g.
I have many unredeemed favours in the bank, just saying.
Dah oyster GIF
 

attila

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 101
Out of 14 entries, they all seem to me to be of high quality. I don't know which ones are truly similar to Kendrick Lamar's style and which ones are not. However, I insist on this controversy: since the quality level, no matter how high, the whole bunch seems similar, I could say that at least 10 out of these 14 beats could have been made by the same person. So, in my opinion, the fact of indicating a style to imitate effectively has a homogenizing effect. Great honor to that one beat that is truly different and even contrary to every strategy. I would have liked to reward it, it's a very nice beat, but not my favorite, actually there are two or three that I think stand out. Lamar style? I had never listened to Kendrick Lamar before reading his name here, and I didn't get too passionate about him, in short: I haven't become a fan. It seems to me, however, that even if we can't call him eclectic, the productions he raps on embrace a rather wide spectrum, from the half-commercial idiocy of 'Not Like Us' to jazzy pieces, to more experimental layers. A mistake that many of us made, myself included, is that we focused less on what makes him different and more on what makes him the same. However, of course, it seems to me that the beatmakers here have proven to know their shit. Well done, I would say practically all of you.
 
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Iron Keys

ILLIEN MBAPPÉ
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 829
Out of 14 entries, they all seem to me to be of high quality. I don't know which ones are truly similar to Kendrick Lamar's style and which ones are not. However, I insist on this controversy: since the quality level, no matter how high, the whole brunch seems similar, I could say that at least 10 out of these 14 beats could have been made by the same person. So, in my opinion, the fact of indicating a style to imitate effectively has a homogenizing effect. Great honor to that one beat that is truly different and even contrary to every strategy. I would have liked to reward it, it's a very nice beat, but not my favorite, actually there are two or three that I think stand out. Lamar style? I had never listened to Kendrick Lamar before reading his name here, and I didn't get too passionate about him, in short: I haven't become a fan. It seems to me, however, that even if we can't call him eclectic, the productions he raps on embrace a rather wide spectrum, from the half-commercial idiocy of 'Not Like Us' to jazzy pieces, to more experimental layers. A mistake that many of us made, myself included, is that we focused less on what makes him different and more on what makes him the same. However, of course, it seems to me that the beatmakers here have proven to know their shit. Well done, I would say practically all of you.
great comment
 

JECHO

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 70
Some dope beats—some whack ones.

Someone really pushing the limit of this:

**Vocal Snippets Allowed?: YES
** VOCAL SNIPPETS ALLOWED?
This means you can have vocal snippets in your beat (very short vocal parts, for example). This is where you can also have an intro with talking (like from a movie).

I would say good luck to everyone but I'm in battle mode so fuck y'all. I'm working overtime now since points can now be exchanged for sexual favors from Fade.

LFG!

f u middle finger GIF by Midland
 

JECHO

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 70
Out of 14 entries, they all seem to me to be of high quality. I don't know which ones are truly similar to Kendrick Lamar's style and which ones are not. However, I insist on this controversy: since the quality level, no matter how high, the whole bunch seems similar, I could say that at least 10 out of these 14 beats could have been made by the same person. So, in my opinion, the fact of indicating a style to imitate effectively has a homogenizing effect. Great honor to that one beat that is truly different and even contrary to every strategy. I would have liked to reward it, it's a very nice beat, but not my favorite, actually there are two or three that I think stand out. Lamar style? I had never listened to Kendrick Lamar before reading his name here, and I didn't get too passionate about him, in short: I haven't become a fan. It seems to me, however, that even if we can't call him eclectic, the productions he raps on embrace a rather wide spectrum, from the half-commercial idiocy of 'Not Like Us' to jazzy pieces, to more experimental layers. A mistake that many of us made, myself included, is that we focused less on what makes him different and more on what makes him the same. However, of course, it seems to me that the beatmakers here have proven to know their shit. Well done, I would say practically all of you.
"Type" beats are always tough—particularly someone as versatile as Kendrick. For a battle, I guess it's kinda 'good' that it sounds similar because then you can listen closely to see who/which you could really see Kendrick on. But agree that it compromises creativity.

Overall I thought most were pretty good. None really stood out as a "that's def a Kendrick beat"—but I tried voting based on which I think I could hear him most on + quality production.

Nice to see some new faces in the forums/submitting too. I haven't really battled in a while so I'm looking forward to facing off against y'all. Until of course @K-waz comes along and fucking knocks me out (love your beats bro). Looking feisty in that new profile pic too.
 

attila

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 101
I am a fan of Kendrick. I think the beats are quite diverse. I couldn't enter but there are some dope entries.
Maybe I was too harsh. Let's say that no, I'm not a fan, but I appreciate some things like the use of jazz improvisation and the layering of original samples that I've heard in various tracks, and probably also a conscious and aware stance. But let's set aside the stance (maybe a pose) and the quality of the rhymes - regarding the quality of alliterations, rhetorical figures, and other linguistic nuances, my English doesn't allow me to appreciate them, but I believe it: he won't be considered the best rapper of his generation for nothing, I hope. Just the beats. As @JECHO pointed, I think it is tricky to make a def Kendrick beat, cuz if someone had made a beat like 'Not Like Us' before it came out, we would have said, 'oh, sure, this is a beat that KL could definitely rap on' or rather, 'nah, not the jazzy/progressive beat in his style'?
 

attila

ILLIEN
Battle Points: 101
Some dope beats—some whack ones.

Someone really pushing the limit of this:

**Vocal Snippets Allowed?: YES
** VOCAL SNIPPETS ALLOWED?
This means you can have vocal snippets in your beat (very short vocal parts, for example). This is where you can also have an intro with talking (like from a movie).

I would say good luck to everyone but I'm in battle mode so fuck y'all. I'm working overtime now since points can now be exchanged for sexual favors from Fade.

LFG!
If people think that rule has been violated, they won't vote for that beat. And then it's just a game, where the real win is improving, not recognition, am I wrong?
 
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