People do a lot of lip service about wanting to see new talent pushed without putting any action behind it. Empty vague tweets about the vets not being good, but not putting that passion and energy into the new talent directly. Docq and his Just Business imprint are the exact opposite of that. From who he manages to who is featured on his events, Docq backs up the words with actions. Creating an environment of matches that maybe aren’t blockbusters, but still have a level of feel and tension and stakes that most cards don’t. Putting together the matches that would make the culture stop and want to pay attention to these new stars. Just Business 2 might be even better than the first and so much of that goes to battlers but Docq deserves a ton of credit for his vision and I’m beyond happy for him.
K1NG Gets Crowned
Written by Q Moody
For a lot of his time being in the spotlight, there seemed to be pushback on K1NG’s status among the new stars. Of course, from fans, but notably from other battlers. The tone around K1NG was one of dismissiveness and exclusion.
Debates about the top of the class, lists on the best new punchers, routinely, K1NG would be left out, and it was rather baffling. He got credit for his highs like winning the tournament and the Danny Myers battle, but extra attention got paid to his “losses” like Cortez or his clear loss to Ave. For a guy who has been extremely competitive against vets and did great against his class, there wasn’t a ton of respect placed on K1NG’s name.
Going into the Yunus battle, he was counted out at every turn, with a lot of people saying he would get cleared. And for as amazing as Yunus is, I always thought that was an insane take.
Despite all of the doubt surrounding him, K1NG went out there and put up a career high. He could do no wrong. Everything was landing, and he had the perfect approach to oppose Yunus. He was blunt, punched harder and chose his spots better. He has a perfect blend of hard-hitting punches and is selective about when he chooses to show off his multisyllabic words. Moments, aggression, intensity. He was the total package, and there shouldn’t be any doubt about the conversations K1NG belongs in. And that is in the discussions for the best new battlers. Period.
Sheed Happens Was The Best Performer On The Card.
Written by Q Moody
And this isn’t a debate. Roll the Dice on Sheed, and you’ll come out with winning results. Pun intended if you know.
Sheed needs to be on a marquee event. When he is on, there aren’t many guys who have his skill set. With how effortlessly he builds to his bombs, the weaving in and out of different pockets so smoothly, the unique vocal inflections and comedic timing, and his ability to switch on a dime to something heartfelt and introspective. Sheed is an elite talent.
Sheed has gotten close many times and has seen the momentum dissipate. And I won’t act as if Sheed hasn’t gotten big names and left more to be desired. But at his best, this is one of the most talented battle rappers to debut in the last 7 years. We’ve seen him leave with rounds and battles of the year; the only thing he hasn’t gotten is a solo battle at a big event. Sheed sounded frustrated and motivated to prove a point in the press conference before the event. And the level of dominance he displayed against Premee is the type of statement win that makes a guy undeniable. Flawless performance from Sheed and one that reminds the culture how high his ceiling truly is.
Yunus Isn’t Perfect, And That’s Okay
Written by Q Moody & Titus
For as special as I believe Yunus to be (you have to be pretty damn special to do as well on NOME and Summer Madness as he did), there’s still a lot of room to grow. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
Yunus is great in the K1NG battle, with his 2nd being one of his best rounds to date. He was electric a lot of the time, and he didn’t lose this battle from lack of effort or a skill gap. There’s just some fine-tuning of his style and approach that needs to be done. Especially when he is favored going into these matchups.
At a certain skill level in battle rap, anybody can lose to anybody. It’s not always clear-cut if the “better” guy wins. There’s a lot of context and factors to how a battle will ultimately go. But Yunus does seem to be missing something when he’s going into a battle as the heavy favorite.
Hansel
Franchise
Pass
Los Premee
K1NG
The reality is that 4 out of 5 of these are fantastic battles, so it feels weird to look at these results and be negative about them. But with the amount of eyes that are on Yunus’ every move and the way he does get critiqued, great battles aren’t always enough when you’re as divisive as he seems to be. Obviously, Yunus is a special talent, and the K1NG battle absolutely doesn’t change that, but the pattern exists here.
The underlying thing for Yunus I think that hurts him is how dismissive the support for him can be towards some of his opponents and that doesn’t do him any favors. To have all the dialogue a Yunus battle usually does and then have a battles where he might have lost, it’s under a more intense magnifying glass in large part because of how some of that community speaks about his opponents coming in. There’s no shame in losing to Franchise or Pass, but it then becomes more of a stain when there’s people saying Yunus is going to smoke respectable names like those two who have been around for awhile and seen and beat high level comp. It’s great he has such a passionate and supportive group he’s cultivated, but sometimes I wonder if it does more harm than good in these matchups.
Hansel and Oppa Stole The Show
Written by Q Moody
My most anticipated battle coming into this event was actually Hansel vs Oppa. On paper this was a fascinating matchup and one that felt like it had major implications. Hansel is a guy breaking through and has a lot of support and Oppa has been off to a stellar start to his URL career. Two dudes with heavy momentum coming in and I think they had the battle of the night.
Oppa doesn’t get discussed this way, but he’s one of the best writers in the game. He doesn’t opt to use his pen for stacking entendres and schemes. Instead, he’s ridiculously clever, one of the best anglers in the game, genuinely funny, and can structure rhyme segments that leave you in awe. All while not being long winded or taking too long to get to a point. Oppa’s super power is being concise; there isn’t anyone in battle rap who’s better at not wasting a single word.
This was also one of Hansel’s best performances to date. Hansel really has a knack for creating a few bar of the year contenders, and he does it several times here. The All Star Weekend bar is ridiculous, so is “R3/started to click”. His 3rd rounds in 2026 have been high level work. And his counter writing in the 2nd round here, having a freestyle that blends perfectly into his round, is masterclass stuff. I know sometimes it can feel like I or others are giving Hansel a hard time, but he really is super talented, and I want to see him succeed. When he’s on, there really aren’t many better. He’s a walking highlight reel.
Crossroads for Los Premee
Written by Titus
Being a gifted and shining new talent in battle cry rap has a few phases. The first phase is the coming-out party, where you put on a performance that signals your presence to the culture. Phase 2 is the building phase, where you seize your newfound spotlight and the game embraces you, tuning in to every showing you have with vested interest. Phase 3 growth and doubt, opponents get tougher, maybe you take a loss or have some debates, people start to say things like “overrated.” The flaws they overlooked early start to stand out more, and people are looking for more from you; the star is starting to fade. Phase 4: Sink or Swim, and this is where we talk about Los Premee.
Los Premee has done some impressive things in the game, including the eye-opening showing against Danny, the back-and-forth against Chef Trez, and stopping Oppa’s record-breaking reign as champion in Ibattle. Beating Yunus and having a really good battle vs K1ng. He’s shown us he can hang and create incredible moments. He has also shown improvement and has tapped into more bags than just being a puncher.
2026 hasn’t been a great year for Los. Let’s be honest, the Rum Nitty battle, which should’ve been a major look for him, turned into a dud, chokes and stumbles on both sides, the Klutz battle was a clear loss, and now this Sheed battle follows a similar path. Los Premee isn’t bad, but his opponents are just showing so much versatility while also being 100% clean, no stumbles or anything. Losing is going to happen; it’s battle rap, everyone has bad nights, but how you lose is important, and Los doesn’t lose in a normal fashion. He looks overpowered, overmatched, and almost like he doesn’t belong in the talks he’s been involved in.
Here’s the thing: I don’t believe Los was overrated or undeserving of any of the attention he received. He is absolutely in the upper echelon of new talent, but he is now at a crossroads. He has to evolve every aspect of his game if he wants to maintain the level he’s established for himself. From delivery to angles to punches, everything has to evolve for him to see success against the increased level of competition he’s facing. This isn’t to say if he doesn’t change, he’ll never win again, but if he wants to be one of the best, to continue being one of the leading faces of new school, then he has to take a hard look in the mirror and retool his game. Athletes often use the offseason to focus on their weaknesses, studying film to see how opponents are trying to stop them. Battle rap doesn’t have a real offseason, obviously, but I do think Los should take some time off, study the game tapes, and come back better than ever. His next move has to be his best move.
A Formula in Motion: MUUU WOP’s Continued Progression
Written by France
MUUU WOP’s performance over the weekend feels like the natural result of steady, intentional growth. Someone who’s in the lab watching game tapes and focused on finding their ceiling. In his last battle while signed to The Trenches, he had a subpar battle with Clone, which seemed to be a step back from the dominating performances against J-Morr and Oppa. But since his departure, he’s taken to stepping outside his comfort zone, traveling more, and facing opponents who often have advantages in experience, crowd familiarity, or platform. And it’s been sharpening him.
What stands out is the visible progression. Each appearance shows a clearer sense of identity. He’s not just rapping better, he’s understanding how to WIN or leave with rounds that have a lasting impression. In his Justise performance, you can see traces of what worked in earlier battles, like his first round vs. NXT or the full three-round showing vs. XP, now being refined into something more repeatable. That’s the key: he’s honing his formula.
While the battle itself remained competitive, his second round in particular became the round of the battle, in my opinion. And it’s him leaving with a major quotable, a resonating round or moment within these battles that you can freeze frame and add to his highlights. While I don’t think this was his best performance to date, and you could always find something to nitpick between some of his bars that could be questionable, or maybe you’d like to see a bit more variety in his style. But he knows how to make that connection through the screen with someone watching him.
While he’s finding that formula, what’s equally important is the response. Even though I feel it is a close battle, the majority of media polls from LTBR and HHIR, as well as the Twitch polls from the event, are leaning heavily in his favor. That says less about the margin of victory and more about the investment people have in his trajectory. Fans aren’t just watching Muuu, they’re rooting for him. There’s a sense that he’s doing this on his own terms, building something independently, and that authenticity resonates. The fans that support the Muuu World Order are growing with each battle.
He hasn’t hit his absolute peak yet, and it still feels like there’s more room for his game to grow and elevate, but that’s almost the point. The journey with him is just as rewarding as the destination, and the foundation is getting stronger.
It will be interesting to see which other leagues or platforms he touches in the near future, because he’s been betting on himself, and it’s paying off.
What’s Next For Justise?
Written by Q Moody
After building momentum for a while, culminating in a very dominant 2025 that saw him win Rookie Of The Year from Champion, Justise appeared to have hit a wall.
The Oppa battle in Initiation 3 was a very good performance by Justise, but the reaction was that Oppa clearly won. The Drugz battle after that is an even better showing and closer to debatable, but a lot of media heads have him losing there as well. And it started to raise some eyebrows.
The performance against Muuuwop should silence some of that doubt for a while. A very strong performance from Justise here, weaving in and out of flow pockets, changing the pace, some comedy, and haymakers as always. I left super impressed by him, but the Twitter poll we posted seemed to give Muuuwop that battle. I can speak for myself, and I personally had Justise winning, but I wonder if there’s a larger concern of there being a disconnect between Justise’s talent level and his perception as he becomes more and more known.
Welcome Back, Rich Fetti
Written by Q Moody & Tai Tai
If you were tapped into the newer battlers in 2022-2023, you would have been familiar with Rich Fetti. At that time, Rich was undeniably one of the most talked about names not on URL. In the same conversations with guys like Yunus, Kapo Bravado, Woosaah, and Dice, who we recognize as the 2023 top 6. Without a doubt, Rich was on a trajectory to be part of that class.
Unfortunately, he got derailed by a case and situation that, even when it was wrapped up, made it hard for him to want to return to battle rap.
As understandable as all of those feelings are, I feel confident in saying that everyone who watched Just Business 2 is ecstatic to have someone as talented as Rich back in the culture. Even with it only being one round, his performance against Mazi was one of the highlights of the whole event and exemplifies what Rich has to offer. Getting back into 3-round form is the next step, but Rich Fetti is primed to capture the culture again if he wants to.
FETTI GETTING BUSY...GLAD TO SEE HIM OUTSIDE!#JustBusiness2
— Tai Tai(LTBR) (@TaiTaiFavored1) April 18, 2026
V Gotti and Riq LaFlare Set the tone - V Gotti has a good April in Battle
Written by France
V Gotti and Riq LaFlare set the tone for the night as the opening battle should be competitive and set a standard for what followed. It was a solid back-and-forth for both. Riq had his strongest round to close out the battle in his 3rd. However, for V Gotti in particular, this performance gives him some extra XP points towards leveling up. Coming off a strong showing against Fate earlier this month on Straight Drop’s Cook Up card, another event where he also opened the show. He’s now put together back-to-back quality performances on live-streamed events in two weeks.
That kind of consistency is what builds real traction, and you can see his stock and his respect steadily rising because of it. These are the signs of someone positioning themselves for bigger opportunities moving forward.
