Lin-Manuel Miranda, Renee Elise Goldsberry, Daveed Diggs & Black Thought Perform in 2015 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher [VIDEO]
The act of rapping is practiced by many, yet mastered by few, but Lin-Manuel Miranda, Renee Elise Goldsberry, Daveed Diggs and Black Thought make it look easy in the BET Hip Hop Awards cypher Tuesday night (Oct. 13).
Black Thought may be two decades deep in the game, but he's not above kicking flows with stars of the Broadway play Hamilton. Just check out his solid appearance in the cypher.
The Washington Heights section of Manhattan receives a big look when Lin-Manuel Miranda spit a few lines while Questlove manned the 1s and 2s during the BET cypher. Using a rapid-fire flow to get his point across, the delivery leans more toward poetic than aggressive, but he also tosses in a dose of braggadoccio with the line, "Somebody show me the way to the Oscars" and brings a pleasant change of pace.
Renee Elise Goldsberry of Harlem provides her bubbly charm to the cypher, but the content is far from forgiving. Controversial lines like, "Me and Pocahontas giving smallpox to white folks" and invoking the name of monumental woman of the past with "Ain't I a woman like Sojourner, I'm the truth" make for a great freestyle and keep things lighthearted, but on point.
Daveed Diggs brings a West Coast perspective during his time on the mic. "Hitting the block like a hammer hitting a nail" and other edgy street references are made while he pays homage to his Oakland stomping grounds. Not to be outdone, he lands a hell of a haymaker with the line, "Mortal Kombat, moratalize rappers, finish him" before making way for the main event that is Black Thought.
The Roots member doesn't hold back on his skill set. "I turned to a new black like the color orange" and "'Cause I ain't even come to bicker, complain / I feel the bigger the name, the bigger game are just light jabs compared to the uppercut / I'm a 6 million man dressed a rap god / Test my religion, get baptized," prove Black Thought can still smoke your favorite MC with ease.
For more information about the show, visit the BET Hip Hop Awards online here.
See 2015 BET Hip Hop Red Carpet Photos