The Crux Artist Collective was bustin' rhymes and blasting beats Friday night with the Crux Groove 2, an event that featured 11 aspiring emcees vying to win a $100 top prize.
The Crux opted to take a peaceful approach referring to the contest as a "groove" rather than calling it a battle.
The house was packed with people of all ages and musical preferences, ready to listen to the contestants compete. Several of the contestants participated in the September groove, including Hot Sauce 10, the winner of the last groove.
The event started at 9 p.m. with a freestyle session while DJs Filthie Rich and Split D provided background tracks of old and new hip-hop.
Then contestants' names were pulled at random to see who would compete against each other in the four-round competition.
Each contestant was given two 30-second rounds to battle it out with another contestant. Winners were decided by the DJs and in the case of a tie, the vote went to the audience.
The first round showcased some true underground talent as Nick B and Chris K took the stage, followed by Bustin' Hymens and Ty Box.
After three extra rounds, Bustin' Hymens defeated Ty Box to continue to round two. Tsunami and Underrated, along with newcomers DMJ and Chris K, also made it to the second round.
DMJ and Chris K were first to battle in the second round, and they used their friendship outside the ring as fuel for their onstage rhyming. In the end Chris K was the crowd favorite, allowing him to move on with Bustin' Hymen and Tsunami to round three.
To make the competition even, DJ Filthie Rich and DJ Split D opted to bring back another contestant, picking Underrated as the one to return.
But Bustin' Hymens' previous win didn't help him, leaving Tsunami and Underrated as the final competitors in Crux Groove 2.
In the end, Tsunami's lyrical jabs at Underrated, including calling him "another pretend emcee," couldn't win him the competition, and Underrated walked away with the $100 prize.
Ty Gorton, studio member and co-director of the Crux, said the next Crux Groove will be sometime in January when students return from winter vacation.
"This is something that we feel is a special event, and we want the anticipation to build within the community," Gorton said. "With the Crux Groove we are able to use our venue as an obvious need and want in the community, and I'm just glad that we can give a place to do that."
Video footage of Crux Groove 2 and the first groove can be viewed at the Crux Web site at www.cruxarts.com as well as its MySpace page.
Amber Morley can be reached at amorley@theorion.com
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