At Summer Jam last night, the long awaited "beat battle" between Swizz Beatz and Timbaland finally came to a head. Being closer to home field advantage than the Virginia based Timbaland, Swizz Beatz brought the New York spirit to neighboring New Jersey. No doubt, the spillover led to plenty of New York fans in attendance, which surely led to an emboldened and truly riled up Swizzy.
Yet the public's love for Timbaland is not to be underestimated; the man is legend, with a deep repertoire boasting bangers with Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, The Game, Fabolous, Jadakiss, Drake and more. Though many seemed to lean toward Swizz as an early favorite, Timbo proved a worthy competitor throughout the tilt.
Unfortunately, the lack of an intimate venue made this one feel decidedly more anticlimactic than the Swizz vs. Just Blaze battle from a few years back. The stadium, while giving an inherent sense of grandiosity, proved simply too "epic" for a competition of this nature. The lack of rappers passing by for a gander, especially the always animated Busta Rhymes, was also deeply felt; one might hope a smaller scale rematch might be in the works, as this one simply failed to live up to the hype of its predecessor.
Either way, very idea that Timbaland and Swizz Beatz actually linked up for battle is a historical moment in hip-hop history.
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