Beautiful Darkness by Maurice Mitchell (literature books to read TXT) 📖

probably had enough music to make a double album. Every day I went to Kev with a new verse, like “Son what you think about this?” That was it, he discovered my talent, and music would become my crutch. Music would guide me through all the dark corners I would soon be forced to turn in my life. It gave me an unbelievable feeling, a feeling I’d never experienced. It was therapeutic, gave me a sense of release and made me feel as if the dark days I’d experienced in the past weren’t in vain. The same feeling I got when I was younger, just on a different level. Creating music made me feel even better then listening to it. Made me feel like the same way other songs saved me and got me through tough times, I could now do that for somebody else. I was also enamored by the fact that when you create a song, minutes before you created it, that song didn’t exist. It made me feel like I was bringing something to the table that the world had never seen, I was. I tackled the art of rhyming over a beat quick, that came natural. The actual art of creating a hook and letting the beat talk to me would come later, but I was just happy to be recording. I wanted to record as often as I could. I became a fiend and Kev was on board with everything I wanted to do. He studied my rhymes and helped me make adjustments to become a better rapper. See the punch lines were natural, it was clear I had a mind like no other, but at that time I had no idea how to flow. Kev taught me about cadence, taught me how to flow. Showed me how to put my words together and let them come off naturally in an appealing sequence. We spent hours working on my music, and before you knew it we developed a bond that was indestructible. We became a team and decided we would tackle this music thing together. He came up with the name “Team Wreck” and decided that we would let that name define us. Little did we know we were forming a lot more then a team in music, we were forming a team in life. I kept spitting and L.B. kept teaching, before you knew it he created a monster, an artist was born. It was around this time we met another guy name Tayvon. He quickly became a part of the click and became just as close to me as Kev had became. We were like the three musketeers, we did everything together. Tayvon brought structure to the click, he brought happiness. You couldn’t be around that dude without laughing, I loved him for that. I needed that more then he would ever know. Tay loved my music just as much as Kev did and that gave me a fan base. More then anything it gave me confidence and motivated me. On top of being witty, I’ve always had a good sense of humor, Tay used to always talk to me about battling kids. At first it didn’t seem like such a great idea, but as time went by he eventually got the best of me. I saw kids battling in the school all the time and I felt like it was shameful, I could do so much better. Eventually word got around the school that I made music. Kev and Tay were passing tapes around and I became known more for my music then my basketball talents. It wouldn’t be long before I got my first challenge, somebody always wants to steal your light, in this case it was Gee. This dude was from GW, which was a school with a bad reputation, and their students were just supposed to be tougher then ours. I was in the lunch room one day when this dude decided to call me out, and that decision he would later regret. I remember feeling nervous before the battle, it was my first one and I wasn’t sure how it would turn out. I felt I had a lot on the line, a reputation was hard to earn in high school, but it only took a minute to lose it. I was nervous, all the way up until I heard Gee start rapping, the was the first and last time I would ever be nervous before a battle. Before I knew it, it was my turn and the lunch room became filled with kids from the school. So with the lunch room at capacity, and it still being as quite as a library, my heart creating its on beat pounding through my chest. A moment of silence went by, and then I started spitting. I quickly discovered another talent, I could freestyle, really well. Before I could even get through my fourth bar the lunch room went crazy! Kids were yelling and grabbing my shirt, it felt damn good, a moment I would cherish. Gee thought it was a fluke and wanted to go again, I obliged. The second round was worse then the first, I destroyed that man. From that point it was on, I was battling different kids every week. I felt like a star, I used to fill the lunch room up like it was a concert. I battled somebody different every Friday, and the school was well aware of that. It became so crazy we started doing it outside. The was a space in between the doors exiting the building of my high school and we called it the breezeway. When I battled in there you couldn’t move. I battled any and everybody, even went to different schools to bite heads off over there. I became a beast, and I battled dudes until there was no one left. In the mist of battling I made friends and I made enemies, even ended up fighting a few competitors. The one thing I never did was lose and that’s when I knew my talents were serious. I no longer saw music as just a hobby, it became a lifestyle. Eventually Kev and I moved up in the world and left the karaoke machine behind. We started recording in his studio that his pops built in his basement. I finally had my music on CD, and before you knew it, I made a name for myself. The And 1 tour played a big part in that, that was my first taste of fame and I loved it. That And 1 players were in town and Benz was hosting a half time battle session. Benz was a well known rapper, he’d already made it, that’s where I wanted to be. I was going to the game but had no idea that there was a battle going on. I found out as soon as I arrived when I saw hundreds of people surrounding a stage. Benz was on stage and he was calling people out for the battle. Kev looked at me like “Son you got to do it.” I said “Hell no, I ain’t come here for that.” Quite honestly I was a little nervous but more so just wasn’t in the mind state to compete. I’d learn that this was one of my drawbacks and as a hip hop artist you have to be prepared to go to war on any given Sunday. I didn’t have that fire….Yet. So I told Kev I wouldn’t do it and went to the bathroom, when I came back he was on stage. I approached the stage thinking “what the hell is this dude doing,” he was being him. That’s the type friend he was, always willing to sacrifice for someone else. He battled some kid and won, I was proud to see how fearless he was. In the next round he battled somebody else and lost, but in the end he won every battle because he accomplished his mission. After losing to the second kid, he looked at Benz and said “Yo honestly I ain’t up here for me man, I got a cousin in the crowd that’s here right now and I guarantee he will rip anybody in this arena.” His point was made, before I knew it he was pointing at me and the people who were familiar with me in the crowd were chanting my name. I had no choice, it was showtime. I finally got on the stage and he put the first competitor in front of me, I destroyed him. Then he made me battle two more people, same result. I had the crowd going crazy, that feeling came back to me, but this time it was magnified. Before long 30 seconds wasn’t enough, I wanted to rhyme all night, I would get that chance. After I won the third battle, Benz told me he wanted me to rap at halftime at center court. He said I’d have to battle two contestants, each in a two round battle. I was with it, but then he told me I had to sit with the DJ and I couldn’t bring Kev with me. I told him “Yo if Kev ain’t coming, I ain’t coming.” He responded “Come on man I can only have the contestants down there and you could win a trip to New York, a thousand dollars and a record deal.” I told him I was from New York, and basically repeated myself, its all or none. He finally folded and let me bring Kev with me, we prepared for war. See Kev was more then like a brother, he was my mentor musically, it wasn’t the same and I just wasn’t motivated without him. So in my biggest battle on my biggest stage, I needed him there more then ever, period. Throughout the first half of the game I couldn’t even focus, I don’t think I saw one dunk. I was so focus on what was about to take place, I couldn’t watch the game. I just got a call that my family was coming and I knew this was time to shine. My parents knew I wrote, because my mother used to always see me walking around with my little notebook, but she had no idea how serious or how talented I was. Little did she know, she was bout to find out. When half time came Kev had me ready, I was prepared to rhyme all night. The spot light came on and they called my name. “From Brooklyn New York, Young Moe!” They introduced my competitor and it was time to battle. The first round came, I went in! The crowd went crazy. I remember being a little concerned before the battle began, I didn’t feel like since my first battle back in the lunch room. I wasn’t really nervous, just could tell I was on a different stage. I was in front of about 16,000 people, I’d say it was a little different. The butterflies didn’t last long though, as soon as I grabbed the Mic it all went away, I felt right at home. The crowd began cheering my name in sequence and it was at that moment I knew this was what I wanted to do forever. Before long it was time for the championship. It was some kid from Harlem, he wouldn’t make it. We battled the first two rounds and it was no contest, it was clear I was the winner. It was supposed to be over, but the weird thing was they made us battle two more rounds. By the fourth round I was running out of things to talk about, my material was fading. I held it together though and came out victorious. I’d come to learn that there may be no better feeling then 16,000 people screaming your name, its incredible. I spent the entire second half of the game being a celebrity,