This is DMV Hip Hop. Gritty, raw like the streets of DC but still delivered with a trademark swagger and lyrical finesse. As I watched the hottest local producers and rappers grace the stage, the only thing I could think was…this can’t be the last one! The 20th (and final) Beatdown and third stop on the Capitol City Music Tour did not disappoint.

The Capitol City Music Tour sponsored by Beam Up Entertainment, Studio 43, BetaRaz Entertainment and Inner Loop Records provides local producers and artists the opportunity to showcase their talents and interact with audiences in the DMV area in an intimate setting. Even as late November brings on the cold nights, the artists on the stage made sure to bring the fire. This installment of the Beatdown lands at Liv Nightclub off U Street and draws crowds from all over the DMV area. As you enter the upstairs area of Liv, your ears are instantly filled with hot hip hop tracks from the last decade spun by DJ Mark Infinit of Inner Loop Records. The Emcee for the night, J-Scrilla of Inner Loop Records, kept the crowd engaged and excited throughout the entire event.

The beatdown contenstants. Some of the hottest producers in the DMV area

The format of the Beatdown is unconventional with the producers seated at the back of the stage, laptops and electric drums at the ready, showcasing their beats in a merry-go-round manner. The producers in attendance included the likes of AB the Producer of Studio 43, DJ J-Butta and E-Minah of Inner Loop Records, Slim Kat 78 and Dunc. Each producer gets to run a 30-second beat of their choice each round. J-Scrilla pre-labeled each beat as ‘bangers’ and ‘medieval’ in which the producers backed it up with heavy crowd pleasers. As you scan the crowd, you see a montage of different types of people, but everyone is nodding their head and feeling the music in total synch.

X.O. performing some his latest tracks

K-Beta brought alot of intensity to the stage and it showed with the crowds reaction to his performance

Following the producer’s beat-down, we got to see the artists that are headlining this year’s Capitol City Music Tour. XO, Kingpen Slim, K-Beta and Angel Lola Luv each graced the stage with their stylings and emphatic performances of their recent mixtape tracks as well as some collaborative efforts with other DMV area artists in attendance. Each artist performed an entire stage set, demonstrating their endurance and ability to enthrall crowds for extended periods of time. Even though they were plagued by some technical difficulties, XO, Kingpen Slim and K-Beta used their own energy to feed the crowd. Angel Lola Luv stepped on the stage to also put her name out there as a serious DMV artist to watch for. If this is actually the last Beatdown, the Capitol City Music Tour made sure that they left the crowd pleased with their punishing beats and lyrics.

Angel Lola Luv brought down the house with her lyrics as well as her looks

If you missed this edition of the Capitol City Music Tour, you have three more opportunities to support your local DMV area artists and producers.

- Monday, Dec. 7 at Pure, 3126 U Street, N.W.
- Friday, Dec. 11 at Velocity 5, 8111 Lee Highway, Falls Church.
- Tuesday, Dec. 15 at Lotus, 1420 K Street, N.W

Check out DMV Unplugged for interviews and behind-the-scenes looks at other DMV artists and producers.