It's Time for the GOAT Debate
 

Who y'all got? And what factors go into your decision??

GOAT on letsbeef, in battle rap in general, or among hip hop/rap artists?

Shoulda been more specific lol I meant Letsbeef.

I have a tie between RULE/Revan and Lockhart/Reiper/Jimmy Hoffa.

Jason or RealTalk

DaDDio to me is GOAT. UNKNOWN ARTIST is second.

None of those ppl yall named can actually spit it tho besides Lock. Jason and real talk was superb in audio and text

I can't really speak on who's the GOAT of Letsbeef because I was never one of those people who went and read all the battles of the greats. I mostly read battles that were contemporary with the times when I was active, and even then, it was mostly just the ones I was asked to vote on or as part of my duties running a tournament or the FVC. I didn't go out of my way to read whoever was considered a legend.
With that being said, I think the criteria for deciding the GOAT should include those who are dope at audio, text, AND tracks. That narrows down the list pretty well because very few people were good at all 3. Even a lot of the people who could do both text and audio weren't great at tracks and they mostly did acapella audio battles where mostly punchlines matter. Riding a beat well and making something you could actually bump is something different.
Some of the names that come to mind on terms of people I did check out are Real Talk, Conceited, SWAVY, ERUPT, Ticket, Grizzeat, Swissha (Mikey Deniro) and a few others I can't think of at the moment.
Now there are people who are better than some of the names I just mentioned in audio and tracks...guys like stricc and Phil Banks, but their text battling wasn't as deep. There are also guys who are as strong (if not stronger) in both text and audio battling (guys like UNKNOWN ARTIST/YOU WISH and RULE), but their tracks didn't impress me as much. If we consider legacy and influence on LB battle culture, then these guys would definitely be there. But I think strictly speaking, the GOAT conversation should start at who has mastered all 3 (text, audio, tracks).

Thats a good perspective, @NOBLE.

There is a small handful who are great at all three. Punks certainly in there to, imo.

Even though we've had our differences, I'm surprised there's no mention of Seul anywhere in there if we're talking about text and audio. I understand being a 3-headed monster should be the criteria, but still surprised there wasn't a mention.

I think longevity is also something to consider as well as how dominant they were in their era. I hate to say it, but someone dominating in an era when there were hundreds of active members...carries more weight than someone dominating or winning a GC when there are only like 28 active members. I say I hate to say it because it's not their fault that the site is so dead and it also doesn't mean they wouldn't have also dominated when the site was super active, but nevertheless the greats from years past still carry more weight in my eyes than the newer greats for that reason.