King of the Dot

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King Of The Dot Entertainment
IndustryBattle rap
FoundedAugust 8, 2008
FoundersOrganik, RyanPVP
HeadquartersToronto, Ontario, Canada
Key people
  • Organik
  • King Fly
  • Aspektz
  • Gully TK
  • J-Pro
  • Rego
  • Chubbs McForty
  • Nate Sosa
  • Copasetic
BrandsKOTD, GZ Battles, PY Battles
DivisionsToronto, Vancouver, Detroit, California, Arizona, East Coast USA, UK
WebsiteKOTDTV.com

King of The Dot Entertainment, also known as KOTD, is a Canadian rap battle league founded in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 2008. The company's HQ is based in Toronto, from which it gets its name. Successful battlers such as Pat Stay, Dizaster, Head Ice, Rone, Arsonal, Charron, Math Hoffa, Madchild, and many more have battled in King of the Dot.

About[edit]

King of the Dot is hosted by its founder Organik. Past co-hosts have included various hip hop artists, including Drake, Method Man, Raekwon, The Alchemist, MC Hammer, Too $hort, E-40, DJ Skee, Sticky Fingaz, Spider Loc, Reef the Lost Cauze, Slaine, Sabac Red, Sid Wilson, Jus Allah, and more. The league began in August 2008 in an alleyway near Toronto Eaton Centre,[1] and now features over 150 emcees, battling in Toronto, California, United Kingdom, Arizona, Michigan, Massachusetts and Vancouver.[2]

Primarily featuring Canadians and Americans, emcees from countries such as England, Scotland, Australia, Sweden, Norway, Philippines, South Africa, and Russia have all battled in King of the Dot's annual World Domination event. The influence of King of the Dot has spread globally, inspiring the creation of other battle leagues such as FlipTop in the Philippines, Dissneeland in Vietnam, and Versus Battle in Russia.[1]

King of the Dot has three leagues — PY Battles (Try-Outs); GZ Battles (North American stand alone smaller league); and KOTD (worldwide big league).[3]

King of the Dot events have featured all elements of hip hop culture, including a cappella emcee battles, freestyle battles over instrumentals, live performances by hip hop artists, beatboxing, graffiti exhibits, DJing, and breaking.[4]

Origins[edit]

Travis Fleetwood, a.k.a. Organik, built a reputation as one of Canada's elite battle emcees, winning title after title, including 4 wins at the well known Toronto-based freestyle competition Proud 2B Eh Battle MC,[5][6] where he met a local producer/DJ by the name of RyanPVP. The two put together the first event which was initially intended to be a flash mob style event at Yonge-Dundas Square in downtown Toronto. However, the police presence and private security at the location forced the event to move down the road to an alley beside radio station Flow 93.5.[7][8] After a few events at that location, they were unable to accommodate the growing crowds, so Organik opted to re-locate to Alexandra Park for the wide open space and gritty location. The crisp visuals and production value, as well as local celebrity guest judges contributed to King of the Dot's rise.[9]

Format[edit]

The King Of The Dot battle is usually a set of three rounds. There are varying round times, between 60 seconds and 3 minutes. The rules are not overall that strict and rappers are frequently allowed to stretch beyond the time limits, as was showcased in Dizaster's battle with DNA, co-hosted by Drake.[10]

Magazine[edit]

KOTD magazine is available to be read online on the official King of the Dot Entertainment website. There is also an option to order the magazine in hard copy. There have been six issues released to date. The magazine has articles discussing past events, interviews with various rappers and much more.[11]

Past events[edit]

In 2010, King of the Dot hosted its first Grand Prix.[12] Kid Twist was the first King of the Dot Champion.[1]

Several major battles events have been hosted by King of the Dot, including World Domination II in August 2011.[13] American rapper Illmaculate defeated Bender during this event,[14] which was featured in Forbes.[13]

On November 5, 2011, King of the Dot hosted Flatline (2011), which featured a battle between rappers Dizaster and DNA. This promo event was co-hosted by Canadian hip hop artist Drake, who put up $3000 of his own money for both rappers .[10][15]

On July 9, 2012, King Of The Dot hosted Vendetta, which was headlined by the mainstream rapper Canibus battling Dizaster. The battle spurred minor controversy in the Hip-Hop community, when Canibus appeared to forget his lines and pulled out a notepad to read his lyrics from.

Blackout 3 took place on January 26, 2013 and was located at The Guvernment Nightclub in Toronto. Hosted by Organik, Gully T.K., Lush One, Maestro Fresh Wes, Scott Jackson and Drake, KOTD sold out club that night with over 1400 patrons. Dizaster, from Los Angeles, California, was facing Arcane from Hamilton, Ontario, in the title match. This battle was judged by Dax Flow, Yas DCS, Adam Bomb, Knamelis and Shotty Horroh. Sponsors for this event were: Bke Technology, Metro News, Pound for Pound, 682 Records, Guerilla Printing, Marketing Kings, Urbanology Magazine, Think Don't Shoot, Guvernment Nightclub, and Trevor D Custom Jewellery.[16]

Blackout 4 took place on January 25 & 26, 2014. It was the first time that the matches other than the main events, were not released to the public.[17][18] Instead just the names of the battlers involved were released to the public. Each battler had a custom made introduction played on a big screen to bring them to the stage with.[19] It was at this event that Pat Stay made his first successful title defense against Dizaster to remain KOTD Champion.

World Domination[edit]

Event Main event Countries competed
World Domination — Canada vs. The World (2010)[20] Pat Stay vs. Hollohan (Day 1)

The Saurus vs. Arcane (Day 2)

Canada United States England
World Domination 2 — North America vs. The World (2011)[21] Madchild vs. Dirtbag Dan

Kid Twist vs. 360 (Day 2)

Canada United States England Australia Norway Sweden Philippines
World Domination 3 — Global Supremacy (2012)[22] Pat Stay vs. Head ICE (Day 1)

PoRich vs. Dizaster (Day 2)

Canada United States England Australia Norway Sweden Philippines
World Domination 4 — The Olympics of Battle Rap (2013)[23] Dizaster vs. Arsonal (Day 1)

Arcane vs. Pat Stay (Day 2)

Canada United States England Australia South Africa Philippines
World Domination 5 — Global Supremacy (2015)[24] Shotty Horroh vs. Arsonal (Day 1)

Dizaster vs. Dumbfoundead (Day 1)

Iron Solomon vs. Daylyt (Day 2)

Illmaculate vs. Pat Stay (Day 2)

Canada United States England Scotland South Africa
World Domination 6 (2016)[25] Arsonal vs. Cortez (Day 1)

Iron Solomon vs. Charlie Clips (Day 1)

Pat Stay vs. Serius Jones (Day 2)

Rone vs. Caustic (Day 2)

Canada United States England South Africa Australia
World Domination 7 (2017)[26] Dizaster vs. Oxxxymiron (Day 1)

Iron Solomon vs. Illmaculate (Day 1)

Cortez vs. Head I.C.E. (Day 2)

Pat Stay vs. Charlie Clips (Day 2)

Canada Russia United States Australia England
World Domination 8 (2019) Head ICE vs Chilla Jones

Soul vs Arsonal

Canada United States England Scotland

Championship history[edit]

Key
  Indicates the current champion

King of the Dot World Title[edit]

Name From Event Won (Year) Successful Title Defenses
Kid Twist[27] Toronto, Ontario Canada KOTD Toronto Division, Vol. 5 (2009) Defeated Bartone to become inaugural champion
Hollohan[28][29] Dartmouth, Nova Scotia Canada KOTD Toronto Division, Vol. 8 (2009) 1 (vs. Jack Shitt)
The Saurus[30] Monterey, California United States KOTD Toronto Division, Vol. 14 (2010) 0
Arcane[31] Hamilton, Ontario Canada World Domination 1 (2010) 0
Bender[32] Ottawa, Ontario Canada Blackout (2011) 0
Sketch Menace[33] Calgary, Alberta Canada Doomsday (2011) 0
poRich[34][35] Whitby, Ontario Canada Blackout 2 (2012) 1 (vs. PH)
Dizaster[36] Los Angeles, California United States World Domination 3 (2012) 0
Arcane (2)[37] Hamilton, Ontario Canada Blackout 3 (2013) 0
Pat Stay[38][39][40][41] Dartmouth, Nova Scotia Canada World Domination 4 (2013) 3 (vs. Dizaster, Daylyt & Charron)
Illmaculate[42] Portland, Oregon United States World Domination 5 (2015) 0
Rone[43] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States Blackout 6ix (2016) 1 (vs. Caustic)
Head I.C.E.[44] Harlem, New York United States Blackout 7 (2017) 1 (vs. Cortez)
Chilla Jones[45] Boston, Massachusetts United States World Domination 8 (2019) 0
Real Deal[46] Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania United States Massacre 5 (2019) 3 (vs. Chilla Jones, Charron & Saynt LA)

KOTD tournament winners[edit]

Name Tournament Runner Up Prize
Arcane 2010 KOTD Grand Prix Loe Pesci $2,000, Grand Prix Trophy and title match
PoRich & Diaz 2011 KOTD 2 vs. 2 Grand Prix The Saurus & Illmaculate $5,000
Arcane 2012 KOTD Grand Prix Chedda Cheese $5,000 and title match
Dan Da Sick Spitta' 2013 Ground Zero Grand Prix Step Easy $1,500 and Ground Zero Championship Chain
Saynt LA 2020 KOTD Grand Prix Marv Won $50,000, Grand Prix Championship Belt and title match
Bill Collector KOTD Series 1 Pass $100,000

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Hip Hop Week: King of the Dot battle league reigns supreme | National Post". Arts.nationalpost.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  2. ^ "King of the Dot Gets International". AUX.TV. August 11, 2010. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  3. ^ "Fighting words aplenty at King of the Dot | Toronto Star". Thestar.com. September 9, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  4. ^ "Made for Entertainers Designed for Style - M.E.D.S." Medsbc.Com. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  5. ^ PROLIFIC VS. ORGANIK-"Proud 2B Eh Battle MC: Round 3"(Live In Toronto Jul/15/2006). GrizOnTheGrind. May 28, 2011. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ Proud To Be EH MC #5 Road to the Finals PT 2. dirtdick. May 22, 2007. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ "Home". FLOW 93-5. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  8. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Kid Twist vs Big Mac Part 1. King Of The Dot Entertainment. November 17, 2008. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ "KOTDTV". Kingofthedot.com. Archived from the original on November 15, 2015. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  10. ^ a b "KOTD - Rap Battle - Dizaster vs DNA *Co-Hosted by DRAKE*". YouTube. November 15, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  11. ^ "KOTDTV". Kingofthedot.com. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  12. ^ "King of the Dot to crown 1st Grand Prix Champion [Article/News] · HipHopCanada.com · Canadian Hip-Hop News, Rap Music". Hiphopcanada.com. June 12, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  13. ^ a b "Behind the Scenes at World Domination II, Part One". Forbes.com. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  14. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Illmaculate vs Bender | #WD2. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 22, 2011. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  15. ^ "Drake Comes To KOTD Event". Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved December 27, 2011.
  16. ^ "KOTD - Rap Battle - Dizaster vs Arcane (Title Match) *Co-Hosted By Drake*". YouTube. February 12, 2013. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  17. ^ Tardio, Andres (December 3, 2013). "KOTD Says "Blackout 4" Will Be Innovative". HipHopDX. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  18. ^ "King of the Dot announces new twist for Blackout 4 event Jan. 24-25 [News] · HipHopCanada.com · Canadian Hip-Hop News, Rap Music". Hiphopcanada.com. January 7, 2014. Archived from the original on August 24, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  19. ^ KOTD - Media - #BO4 Battlers Intros. KOTD Media. March 4, 2014. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  20. ^ "World Domination - King of the Dot | Battle Rap Event | VerseTracker". Archived from the original on March 16, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
  21. ^ "[*K.O.T.D.*] - [WORLD DOMINATION 2] - Ticket Combo Packs | Rapmusic.com". Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
  22. ^ "World Domination 3 - King of the Dot | Battle Rap Event | VerseTracker". Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
  23. ^ "World Domination 4 Preview For Day 1 | BattleFix". www.battlefix.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2014.
  24. ^ "World Domination 5 - King of the Dot | Battle Rap Event | VerseTracker". Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
  25. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  26. ^ KOTD - #WDVIILA - Oxxxymiron vs Dizaster (Trailer) | #WDVII. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 14, 2017. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  27. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Kid Twist vs Bartone (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. February 9, 2009. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  28. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Kid Twist vs Hollohan (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. June 8, 2009. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  29. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Hollohan vs Jack Shitt (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. December 11, 2009. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  30. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Hollohan vs The Saurus (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. March 15, 2010. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  31. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - The Saurus vs Arcane (Title Match) | #WD1. King Of The Dot Entertainment. August 23, 2010. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  32. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Arcane vs Bender (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. January 26, 2011. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  33. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Bender vs Sketch Menace (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. June 24, 2011. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  34. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Sketch Menace vs poRICH (Title Match - Co-hosted by RAEKWON). King Of The Dot Entertainment. February 5, 2012. Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  35. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - poRICH vs PH (Title Match). King Of The Dot Entertainment. July 7, 2012. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  36. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - poRICH vs Dizaster (Title Match) | #WD3. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 2, 2012. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  37. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Dizaster vs Arcane (Title Match) *Co-Hosted By Drake*. King Of The Dot Entertainment. February 12, 2013. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  38. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Arcane vs Pat Stay (Title Match) | #WD4. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 9, 2013. Archived from the original on November 19, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  39. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Pat Stay vs Dizaster (Title Match) | #Blackout4. King Of The Dot Entertainment. February 18, 2014. Archived from the original on August 29, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  40. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Pat Stay vs Daylyt (Title Match) | #Flatline3. King Of The Dot Entertainment. December 15, 2014. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  41. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Pat Stay vs Charron (Title Match) | #Blackout5. King Of The Dot Entertainment. March 3, 2015. Archived from the original on February 14, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  42. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Pat Stay vs Illmaculate (Title Match) | #WD5. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 14, 2015. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  43. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Illmaculate vs Rone (Title Match) | #BO6ix. King Of The Dot Entertainment. March 14, 2016. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  44. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Rone vs Head I.C.E. (Title Match) | #BO7. King Of The Dot Entertainment. May 1, 2017. Archived from the original on December 19, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  45. ^ KOTD - Chilla Jones vs Head I.C.E. (Title Match) | #WD8. King Of The Dot Entertainment. March 28, 2019. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.
  46. ^ KOTD - Rap Battle - Chilla Jones vs Real Deal II (Title Match) | #MAS5. King Of The Dot Entertainment. September 27, 2019. Archived from the original on July 5, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via YouTube.

External links[edit]

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