The BET Cyphers haven’t been the same since Kendrick Lamar burned them down in 2013. Seriously, there should have been a charity event for the families of all the rappers killed at once that night (we will never forget *praying hands*). But if you watched the Cyphers on Tuesday night, you might have noticed a very bold statement made. It was subtle, but important, especially if you were watching in North Carolina.
The North Clack was well represented this year, with impressive performances by Jackie Spade from Kinston, Rain910 from Fayetteville, T-Top of Fuquay-Varina, and Raleigh’s own King Mez. Unless you’ve only been paying attention to Drake for the past year, you know that the North Carolina Hip Hop scene has been on the rise. T-Top has been making waves on BET’s Ultimate Rap League, dismantling MCs in the battle circuit; and King Mez was heavily featured on Dr. Dre’s latest album “Compton.”
The Cyphers don’t have a good track record for creating stars individually, but the fact that the state was represented so extensively, shows that NC’s strength in the game is finally being appropriately recognized.
Check out this year’s Cyphers here:
http://www.bet.com/shows/hip-hop-awards/cypher.html