DMX says he wants all the smoke from JAY-Z in a Verzuz battle and now Swizz Beatz is reacting.
DMX recently claimed that he wanted to take on JAY-Z in a Verzuz battle on Instagram Live. The famous virtual battle is becoming increasingly popular and has features some iconic face-offs already, but why stop the nostalgic moments there? Although he’s made some poor mistakes in his career, this may be one of the smartest things X has ever suggested. Although it might appear that X is ambitious in his choice of competition, there was a time that he and Hov were label mates and later foes, so battling for them would be nothing new. Plus, having the billionaire rapper on the other end may also allow DMX and their history to get a jolt of attention.
X was doing an interview on the Drink Champs podcast when he was asked much like many other artists these days, who he would go head to head within a Verzuz battle. When questioned about a possible opponent, the seasoned Ruff Ryders rapper had a straightforward response. “Jay,” he said. Most likely appropriating the reaction of the viewers at home, the Drink Champs co-host were visibly stunned by X’s prompt response and even had to clarify just to ensure that their ears weren’t deceiving them. “Yeah, who you think?” DMX responded to the a co-host asking if he meant Jay-Z. “Who you think n***a?”
The New York rapper is, of course, one of the few still left standing today who has actually challenged Jay-Z a couple times before, but we can’t imagine it would go the same way now if the two were to go for a hit-for-hit style match. Maybe it’s his experience that has equipped him with the confidence to hold this certainty about wanting to face Hov. One thing is for sure, fans would certainly be here for it. During the interview DMX added, “That would be battle number three.”
The rivalry between JAY-Z and DMX goes a couple of decades back. In the ’90s, long before they were bandmates in the popular hip-hop group Murder, Inc. along with Ja Rule, and before they had a falling out, the popular MCs reportedly came face to face for what was more popularly referred to then as battle rap. The two rappers met up in the Bronx for a street style rap battle that unfortunately wasn’t adequately documented due to X complaining about his material not being copyright at the time.
While footage of Jay’s verses is available somewhere in cyberspace, only the lucky few who actually got to witness it in person could really judge who won. It sounded to be a split decision as the spectators went either way. More jabs came afterward when they continued to take shots at each other in their music after becoming two of Def Jam’s hottest artists at the time, and it wasn’t until decades later in 2016 that they finally settled their beef.
Swizz Beatz posted an old photo of DMX and JAY-Z where he called both of them game changers and his brother. Timbaland has yet to react to what X said.
With what would have been a historical rap music documentary botched, DMX could be on to something here in trying to rewrite history. Do you think Jay-Z would accept the challenge and face him in a Verzuz battle?
