[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjixbbWIUSc[/youtube]


Words By Darius Sinclair â„¢

Beef can get pretty boring with hip hop’s WWE mentality. Him vs. Him. Them vs. Them. It can all become annoying. That’s one of the reasons I never purchased nor watched the Beef series DVDs. After some persuasion from a few fans of the series, I decided to give the most recent one a try. And I must admit I wasn’t disappointed. Personally, some beefs can be comical, i.e. Lil Bow Wow vs. Lil Romeo or Trina vs. Jacki-O vs. Khia, while there are others that I am interested in, Ras Kass vs. The Game.

Beef 4 caught my attention immediately. The first segment was on Houston, and how the city was divided, North vs. South, ala Crips and Bloods. This was interesting actually. Being that I’m not an exclusive Houston hip hop fan (minus Geto Boys and UGK), I actually got some knowledge on how they united to take over rap. That union brought us the likes of Swisha House and what later became the Paul Wall/Chamillionare beef.

Even Jay-Z couldn’t escape Beef 4. They touched on the unexpected and highly publicized break up of the Roc, and Jay vs. Dame. Unfortunately, the resources in this segment are extremely one-sided, as Dame was the only one interviewed or able to speak his side of the matter (Video Clip). That wasn’t the only biased piece either. The Lupe Fiasco/Terry “TK” Kennedy skateboard beef was unevenly portrayed, as well as the Jamie Foxx/LL Cool J fight, further illustrating whose side Beef sticks too.

My favorite altercation from Beef 4, which helped add a dope t-shirt to my collection, was the Nycks/ENJ beef. Nycks and ENJ are both able to comment on the events that fateful day, and most stories lead to Nycks side. They break it down and explain the facts that lead to the hilarious and infamous punch. In the movie, Nycks and his crew go on to thank ENJ for the sucker punch, as it made his name spread, along with his catch phrase. We here at TSS would have to say “thank you” too. (Insert link to Vibe appearance)

The end of the feature gives an appreciated cover of the murder and dedication to Proof of D12 (Video Clip). The residents of Detroit interviewed were truly passionate about they way the felt and remember Proof. One goes on to says, “There will never be another [Proof]. He’s like Haley’s comet. It comes once in a lifetime; and if you ain’t there to see it or be apart of it, you fuckin’ missed out.”

Well said.

I’d really like to opinionate all of the beefs, but you’re better off getting the DVD and enjoying it yourself. It supervenes behind the scenes footage, Will Smith vs. Ethan Hawke, and the Game just popping off. So if you want an entertaining and informative documentary on hip hop’s top beefs, pick up a copy of Beef 4.

Beef 4 (10 Minute Clip)