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CANIBUS VS LL COOL J - Aight, by now I think everybody is sick of this goddamn story, I know I am, I've told it like 20 000 freakin times! But I thought it should be included in this website, being a Canibus website and all. And before I get started, I just wanna say, this is how the story goes to the best of my knowledge. These aren't necessarily facts, it's just how I've heard it and how I believe it should be written. OK, here goes:
LL Cool J was planning his new album, Phenomenon. It was set to be a commercial hit with production coming from Puff Daddy and the Hitmen, and of course the Trackmasterz. In an effort to restore some much-needed street credibility, Uncle L assembled Redman, Method Man, DMX and Canibus for a track with production from Erick Sermon named 4,3,2,1. DMX was a little known rapper at the time, and Canibus had brought fame to his name with stellar performances on The Firm's "Desperados", and "Beasts From The East" with A+, and Redman on the Lost Boyz album, "Love, Peace and Nappiness".
While working on his album, LL met Canibus in a studio, they had a conversation about the large microphone tattoo on LL's arm. Canibus asked LL what he thought about Canibus getting a similar tattoo. LL said it would be fine with him as long as it was meant as a sign of respect, Canibus assured him it was.
When Redman, Meth, DMX and Canibus had layed down their verses for the track 4,3,2,1, LL was listening to the beginning of Canibus's verse:
"Meth, where the Gods at? / Reggie, where the Squad at? / LL, is that a mic on your arm? Lemme borrow that!
For some stupid-ass reason, LL Cool J takes offence to this. A young MC gives him props for a dope tattoo on his arm, and he goes crazy. So Cool J goes into the studio and records this verse:
When young sons fantasize of borrowing flows
tell little shorty with the big mouth the bank is closed (yeah, word up)
The symbol on my arm is off limits to challengers
You hold the rusty swords I swing the Excalibur
How dare you step up in my dimension?
Your little ass should be somewhere cryin on detention
Watch your mouth better yet hold your tongue
I'ma do this shit for free this time this one's for fun
Blow you to pieces, leave you covered in faeces
with one thesis ("LL Cool J is hard")
Every little boy wanna pick up the mic
and try to run with the big boys and live up to the real hype
But that's like pickin up a ball, playin with Mike
Swingin at Ken Griffey or challengin Roy to a fight
Snappin, you amateur MC's
Don't you know I'm like the Dream Team tourin overseas
For rappers in my circle I'm a deadly disease
Ringmaster, bringin a tiger cub to his knees (uhh)
In the history of rap they've never seen such prominence
Your naive confidence gets crushed by my dominance (word up)
Now let's get back to this mic on my arm
If it ever left my side it'd transform into a time bomb
You don't wanna borrow that, you wanna idolize
And you don't wanna make me mad nigga you wanna socalize
And I'm daring every MC in the game
to play yourself out position, and mention my name
I make a rhyme for every syllable in your name
Go platinum for every time your grimy ass was on the train
Watch your mouth don't ever step out of line
LL Cool J nigga, greatest of all time
Now that's a pretty heavy dis to Canibus there, especially considering he was trying to show LL respect. Then, Canibus is chillin down in LA, so I'm told, and he gets this message on his pager sayin he has to call LL Cool J. So he calls him, and Cool J says something like;
"Yo Canibus man, I got a problem with part of your verse right, come into the studio and change it or you're out of the cut aight? You change your verse and I'll change mine kid." That's how I know the story, although I have been told LL never said he would change his verse. LL just said that no-one would know he was talking about Canibus or something.
So anyway, Canibus does what he's asked, he goes in, changes it up, takes out the mic reference in the beginning and goes home. But the bitch-ass LL Cool J never took out his verse, hoping it would seem he burned this young gun Canibus.
Then Canibus hears this verse, infuriated with this slap in the face, he records the unforgettable "Second Round KO" with Mike Tyson on the intro, outro and breaks, and Wyclef Jean handling the production. In my opinion, the song was excellent, I loved it. There were too many lyrical gems to mention, but these are just two:
"So I'ma let the world know the truth / you don't want me to shine / You studied my rhyme, then you lays your vocals after mine / That's a bitch move / somethin that a homo rapper would do....."
"You walk around showin off your body cause it sells / Plus to avoid the fact that you ain't got skills / Mad at me cause I kick that shit real niggaz feel / While 99% of your fans wear high heels...."
Bottom line, Canibus burned LL Cool J. Period. LL Cool J answered back with "The Ripper Strikes Back", referring to his past hardcore hit "Jack The Ripper" In my opinion, this song had a nice beat, and the potential to be a considerable answer to Second Round KO. But, LL choked up pretty badly. Here's why:
* LL Cool J did exactly what he did on 4,3,2,1, meaning, he studied Canibus' rhyme, and then wrote an answer back to every point. This could have worked, but his punchlines were terrible. To the "While 99% of your fans wear high heels" line, LL Cool J replied "99% of your fans don't exist" What the hell is that?? It's something some little immature 8 year old kid would say, plus it doesn't make sense. How can someone have fans that don't exist??
* In Second Round KO, Canibus never mentioned LL Cool J's name, but in The Ripper Strikes Back, the hook is: "Can I bus? Yes you can!"
* LL Cool J also dissed Mike Tyson and Wyclef Jean in the track. Referring to Wyclef as a "Bob Marley imposter" and making comments about Iron Mike like "Heard that convicted rapist on the record too, straight out of jail ass cheeks still black and blue..." Now to the problems with those comments - Is it just me, or is the only way Wyclef and Bob Marley are in any way similar is because they both have dreads and both come from the Caribbean? Bob Marley never made any rap albums, and Wyclef does make some reggae, but he makes just about anything anyway. Now to Mike Tyson. When LL first heard Second Round KO, he said he was "deeply hurt" or some bullshit because he considered Tyson to be 'a close friend' So who says stuff like what LL said to Tyson to a close friend?
Anyway, after "The Ripper Strikes Back", Wyclef Jean released "What's Clef Got To Do With It?" Now I thought this one was severely underrated. It was damn funny, as Clef included insults about LL's receding hairline. Wyclef made his point clearly and quickly, with lines such as this one:
Every two records do scenarios
You get the best MC's there to rhyme first
Of course you rap last, B, to show off your skirt
I guess it didn't work on "4-3-2-1"
You got out done by Canibus the young gun
Another good thing about it was that Clef used a softer beat so he didn't front like a hardcore cat, because who can seriously picture Wyclef doin something like Dr. Dre's "Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat" or "G.O.D PTIII" by Mobb Deep? He kept it real, plus he got Naomi Campbell on the track sayin LL was wack. Not that hip-hop headz really look to Naomi Campbell for her opinions on who's wack and who's dope in the rap game, but it was a cool surprise anyway.
So after all that drama, it appears the beef has slowed down a little, which doesn't mean it's been squashed. To end this explanation, I just wanna say LL GOT RIPPED. It all backfired in his face. I guess it just proves that you can't test Canibus, like he said in "Making a name for ourselves" - "You niggaz need to stop testin me / coz you know you can't 'F' wit me / steppin to me wit insuperior weaponry"
If you have a different opinion to this story, or if you noticed an error or something, email me about it and I'll change the shit up if your source or facts or whatever are plausible.
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