With everyone at attention, The Rapfest returns locked and loaded for the 6th installment of their exclusive cipher series, in collaboration with HipHopDX. The series in its entirety embodies an immaculate Hip-Hop platform, placing emphasis on every aspect of the genre’s musical genius. Simultaneously, that platform blends a talented array of lyricists and producers ranging from the seasoned vets to the gifted new arrivals. Since The Rapfest and HipHopDX joined forces, this series is numbered two out of a four-part collaborative sub-series. The Rapfest takes it from NYC to Philly to Miami all within this series cipher, captured by Chris Zino from the Exhibition Z Films.
Mickey Factz, hailing from the birthplace of Hip Hop, rips the beat to shreds and hands it off to Rapfest’s Up Next artist Maffew Ragazino, who is just a borough away. As soon as Ragazino is holds his own on the beat, he leaves it up Magic City’s wizard, Bizzy Crook, who murders the beat like no other. This cipher is a masterpiece all orchestrated by the productions of Philadelphia beatsmith Lavish. The drums provided a distinct baseline that knocks residually throughout the beat and the sample smoothly rounds it off to give the track an old school touch. Lavish admits that his keen attention to detail makes the production process lengthy, however perfection takes time. Lavish deemed the beat perfect for the East Coast, and the Bizzy, Mickey, Maffew line up proves him right.
It is extremely difficult to stand out in a series such as this one when you’re alongside such unmeasurable talent, but there is no proof of that struggle in this installment. Though The Rapfest is known to blend new comers and OG on a beat, Series 6 is a highlight of strictly young talent that’s beginning to surface. At the last knock of the drum in series 6, series 7 just seems too far away. Stay tuned for part three of the four-part Rapfest x Hip Hop DX cipher series set to be released March 2015.
