TZ– Whenever Christians do something different there is often harsh criticism and deep encouragement. Talk to us about some of the best encouragement you have received and some of the harshest critiques you have received.
AW-For every one person who has tried to discourage me, there has been 25 that have encouraged me. One of my favorite bits of encouragement came from the mother of one of the guys I battled. She sent me a message thanking me, and telling me that of course she’d never vote against her son, but that she really enjoyed my content and performance. Honestly, I haven’t really read too much into the critics. If I notice someone has a problem with what I do, and then realize that they’ve never met me, and probably have ZERO clue what else goes on besides the 30 min YouTube Video, then it really isn’t worth my time to entertain. I keep a solid accountability group and if anyone ever close to me that knows my heart had questions about it, then that would be a great time to sit down and talk. My friend told me, “You don’t take water to the sea, you take it to the desert.” I’m trusting in God that he’s breaking chains and working in people, as I continue to walk in the light and lane of which I feel he’s put me in.
TZ-How does your family feel about your battles? Did they understand off top or did it take some time for them to come around, if they ever did?
AW-They love the battles. My older brother, Cannon, has introduced me in a few battles and my little brother Roy (Ninety7) are both huge battle rap fans. My parents enjoy them as well, but at the same time they get apprehensive about people being in my face and the things they say. My parents both know that this mission is bigger than battle rap and they are super supportive.
TZ-One thing I respect about you is your loyalty to the battle league that gave you a shot. So much so you turned down a PG(Proving Ground) and took a battle on 10 hours notice!! What makes you so loyal to this particular league?
AW-I’ve been in Kansas City for 11 years now. I’m originally from Knoxville, TN and this city has been so supportive of me. Art, Ray, and Jarvis are like brothers now. They run their businesses with Integrity and have been a huge reason as to why I’m in the position I’m in. Loyalty is scarce these days. As Arsonal just said, “even the Verizon guy works for Spring now.” I pride myself on being the same guy I was when I was given the chance, and the friendships I’ve built with the Connects and the Loop KC are Genuine. Now, I didn’t necessarily turn down a PG battle. I was offered a PG battle by URL and I ended up having a shoulder surgery and had to back out of it, which in hindsight was the best thing that happened to me in my opinion. The 10 hour notice battle goes back to being “Ride or Die” for my league. The main event had someone back out. I felt the one guy who was supposed to battle deserved a shot, and I wanted to keep a complete card for our event therefore I jumped in.
TZ– One thing I have wondered is who determines or how is it determined who wins a rap battle?
AW-It’s all subjective. Sometimes when you watch a battle there is a clear winner, and sometimes there isn’t. Every battle is a tryout for a bigger battle. Myself and Franchise just had a Classic. We really both won in the grand scheme of things. Things like: Crowd Reaction, Clean Rebuttals, Angles, Diversity, Performance, and BARS are what are normally looked for when viewing a battle. I prefer a battler who can do it all at a high level rather than someone who stays in their comfort zone of just one attribute.
TZ– Has your participation in the World Domination 6 card opened up any new opportunities for you?
AW-I believe it has. I have already received a crazy amount of support through social media. You can purchase the PPV on www.kotd.tv and the people who have watched the battle thus far have raved about its results. KOTD was very very pleased with my performance and will be contacting me this week about the next steps.
TZ-Before we let you go, we gotta ask, what is next for A. Ward?
AW-Fantasy Football drafts & Tennessee Volunteers Football! Lol Honestly right now I’m just going to wait on KOTD to discuss options with them. My league in KC has an event in December that is a possibility as well. Not having a battle set up is very relaxing. I’m going to enjoy it for a few weeks and finally take my girlfriend on a date instead of making her watch me pace around the living room waving my hands in the air reciting bars over and over lol.
We appreciate you taking the time to do this interview and we wish you nothing but the best in your career as you love God, love people, and bar these other rappers’ lives away! God is good!
