When my friend SoulArty invited me to a local battle rap event last December, I had no idea what to expect. My exposure to battle rap was limited to movies like 8 Mile and internet memes. Having been introduced to beat battles only last year by my cousin, rap battles seemed like the logical next step. To wrap up Black History Month, I want to share what I learned with Dallas Weekly readers. The battle rap emcees of Dallas and beyond are carrying forward a Black literary tradition that didn’t start with hip-hop and won’t end with it.

The Cartel Order, a DFW-based battle rap community, chose The 4th Floor Lounge in Oak Cliff as the venue for their last event of 2025. The space is known for artists and art lovers to vibe out with original music, poetry, comedy, and karaoke. The vibes were light and fun. Veterans and fans were welcoming of my camera and questions. 

Battle rap legend Hero (left) battling against Kvng Caution (right). Photo Credit: Imran Shakoor @98friction

Eliza Versa @eliza_versa

Soon after arriving, a soulful, Southern woman wearing a cowboy hat and boots invited me to join her.

Eliza Versa has been on the battle rap scene since she was 19. “I got into battle rap through my best friend– it was just another part of rap, and I just wanted to see where it would take me. And it took me far. Look where we are,” Eliza said in a melodic tone that echoes the style of her verses. She shouts out her boy Loud Mouf and The Cartel Order before extending an open invitation, “You know, this is battle rap baby. Come and join us– It ain’t gonna hurt you.” 

SoulArty GTH @soulartygth 

SoulArty Grind Trap Hustle, SoulArty GTH for short, laid down a foundation of rap history for me. Battle rap in Texas goes back at least two decades, with the Texas Battle League running things early on. “They’ve seen a really healthy revival,” he said. “Part of that revival is seeing this new draft class that’s out here now. We got new rookies coming in. So it’s not just the same dudes that’s been rapping for years. It’s some new dudes that are also dope.” He made sure to shout out Houston, where Houston Bar Code runs what might be the biggest battle rap league in Texas. 

As a hip-hop and visual artist himself, SoulArty shared some of what he appreciates about the art of battle rap. “”They got to come with new material every single time. And if it’s three rounds, that’s roughly 10 minutes of material minimum. So they have to write so much more, and they have to keep on coming with new clever [material]…So I think battle rap has a lot more difficulty on the writing side. I love seeing this.”

Loud Mouf @loudmouf12

The event organizer, Loud Mouf, was humble and confident. Before delving into his story, he made sure we knew about Dallas battle rap pioneer, Hero. 

“Hero is one of the founders of, if not the founder of Dallas battle rap. Building stone by stone, Hero went from starting at the bottom, just battling in regular places with nobody there– 10 people, to the big stages, to URL (Ultimate Rap League) smacking them.” 

Hero Miles (@yungh3r0), an Oak Cliff native, showed the metroplex what’s possible. And now Loud Mouf is part of that lineage. A lead organizer of The Cartel Order, Loud Mouf stood undefeated at 14-0 and was crowned Rookie of the Year for 2025. “There hasn’t been a live on Facebook within our group of battle rap, since April, that hasn’t mentioned The Cartel,” he said. “Good, bad, whatever. Just keep mentioning us.”

Loud Mouf came up making regular music, recording in studios, writing to beats. Battle rap, he says, is something else entirely. 

“When you’re writing a battle rap, it’s more spoken word like, more like poetry form,” he explained. “I don’t have a beat that I have to write to. I can tell you whatever I want, however I want it.” 

He laughed before sharing this: “Shakespeare was the first battle rapper– He used to hold events in the town square where people would have verbal jousts with words. [They would] talk about each other’s dirty clothes, their spouses. What does that sound like to you?” 

Battling a pro is not an easy feat, Loud Mouf reminds us. Critical elements of battle rap are strong delivery and audience reception. The best battle rappers are masters of flow, stage presence, quick comebacks, and crafting complex schemes. Only after several intense rounds of high-level performance is a winner decided by a panel of judges.

Mikul (left) battling against Tee Boogie (right). The female host at the center is known as Onyxx. Photo Credit: Imran Shakoor @98friction

K9 Jones

K9 Jones has been here since the beginning. Corpus Christi, then Dallas, then everywhere. “Texas Battle League was started by a dude named Jap[anese] Jesus. They basically found me through word of mouth. I used to just battle corner to corner all over my city–,” he said. “I say back like 2009, 2010 is when I first witnessed the whole battle thing, and I pretty much have been a part of it through every era.” He listed off the leagues like roll call: Texas Battle League, Texas Battle League University, Houston Bar Code, Live From The Block, Dallas Battle League. Texas Battle League was the umbrella, and everything else branched out from there.

K9 is happy to see the scene grow, noting how social media made battle rap more popular with the youth. “I think it’s going in a good direction,” he said. “We get young battle rappers, you know, they’re coming in younger and younger, and it looks like the culture is really spreading. So, you know, it’s a positive thing, giving everybody something to do on the weekends besides getting in trouble.”

Ehs Rat @ohehso

Ehs Rat came through after his warm-up round, energy still high. “Tonight I go against KDOG. It’s EHS Rat versus KDOG [Kasino]. We had a nice pre round– popped it off real swell. I got me winning, of course, 3 and 0.” He showed love to other artists battling that night—Younggod ATM, Drip Tarantino, Kobe and Banxx Tha God. “I love coming to events like this,” he iterated. “We put on for the city.”

5th Spirit (left) battling against Ayo Drayy (left), both in white t-shirts. Photo Credit: Imran Shakoor @98friction

Cynics of literary prowess beware: There is no experience quite like a battle rap showdown, trust me. When two emcees stand face-to-face, no instruments, no beats, no safety net—armed only with wit and rhyme. There’s disses that you can’t help but laugh at, or let out a long “Daaaamn”. The people I met aren’t just rappers. They’re historians, archivists, carriers of a tradition that stretches back further than any of us can trace. Like many things, battle rap is distinctly Black American, and also a growing global phenomenon. It is both modern, and antique. Yes, it’s competitive. Yes, it can be brutal. And at its core, it’s a positive creative outlet for the community.
If you’re sleeping on battle rap, you’re missing something real. Tap in with Dallas Cuttin Up Battle League and The Cartel Order. Check out the Prove Ya Worth 2 event coming up on March 28th.

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