garage rap #1

What better way to kick-off a series of garage rap clips than God's Gift's hectic homage to the first division of UKG MCs?

Praising a pantheon that's just about to be eclipsed by the upstarts of grime, he expertly imitates their catchphrases and signature mouth-music FX.

There are about four or five other versions of "Mic Tribute" on YouTube but they all sound wrong to me. because this version (taped off an unknown pirate radio station, summer 2002) is the one I heard first. This -  God's Gift riding a breakneck UKG-meets-D&B hybrid track built by Teebone - is the one that's burned into my brain, that I love to the bone.

The other (earlier?) versions are all 2step and much slower, with GG twisting his flow around Dem 2-like pretzel grooves. So you don't get the same thrilling rush of rapid-fire impressionism  - 32 MCs in a little over four minutes.