BET Awards Cypher: Mos Def, BlackThought and Eminem (Video) Posted by Nathan S. on 10/28/09 | Filed under Videos

In preparation for this weekend's BET Awards the channel is dropping a series of dope cyphers featuring some of the best emcees alive, including Eminem, Mos Def, BlackThought, Joe Budden, Wale, Nipsey Hussle and more. Turns out BET can actually promote quality hip-hop when it wants to. Here's the most recent release, featuring a line-up that will have lyrical heads drooling (hopefully not literally)...

2009 BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher #2 - Eminem, Black Thought, Mos Def


The Refined Take:

Mos Def - Holy shit, it turns out Mos can still spit an ill verse when he feels properly inspired. I can't decide if this makes me more or less angry about all the experimental rock stuff he's been doing lately. I'm not trying to drag the man back to the Black on Both Sides days, but why can't we get more like this from the man.

BlackThought - There's no underrated and under-appreciated rapper alive than Thought, a fact he acknowledges in a raspier than usual flow. It's probably because he's considered too "artsy" for some, but the truth is that 99% of the rappers out there would be scared to step to him.

Eminem - Yeah, Em's back. There's a reason they let him close the set, he absolutely f**king killed that. I guarantee you there are elite rappers sitting on their tour bus rewinding that verse and trying to write it all down. Here's what I need to have happen - I need Eminem and Lil Wayne on a track together. It's the only way we're going to settle the the debate about who's better. Right now Weezy's got the title mostly because Slim Shady's been so absent, but a head-to-head battle could be dam close. I guarantee whoever puts them both on the same track is going to make some serious cash, and if it happens, I want a cut.

As an added bonus, here's the previous cypher. Stay tuned for more.

2009 BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher #1 - Nicki Minaj, Joe Budden, Buckshot, Crown Royyal & DJ Premier