From A Fan's Perspective
From A Fan’s Perspective: Bwelta Balentong 3 Throwback
According to this fan, it’s one of FlipTop’s best events. Let’s take a look back at Bwelta Balentong 3.
Anonymous Battle Fan
August 21, 2024
It was the second FlipTop event that I watched live. The first one was the Dos Por Dos Semis in 2012. My expectations were high for Bwelta Balentong 3 since the Dos Por Dor Semis was such a historic night. I went to B-Side around 8 PM with my two college friends, who are also into battle rap. The year was 2016, so the events usually started around 10 PM. We hung out at the burger joint nearby (I forgot the name) and met some fellow fans. When we heard Anygma’s voice, we ran to the front of the stage. The venue was packed and we were all excited for the battles!
I’ll start off by saying Bwelta Balentong 3 is one of my favorite FlipTop events of ALL TIME. Not only because I saw it live but because it gave us lots of epic moments. Loonie vs Tipsy D is spectacular on video but trust me, seeing it in person is much more memorable. Standing in the front row, the intensity of each line was twice as devastating as it was on YouTube. The loud crowd definitely added to the experience as well. As for me and my buddies, we were literally in awe from beginning to end. Loonie and Tipsy D gave us one heck of a show. The same can be said about Smuggaz vs Rapido. They both held a rap clinic on the first two rounds but on the third, it was all Smugglaz. Like Loonie vs Tipsy D, it was way better witnessing it up-close. Smugg’s delivery and words are so powerful you could feel them piercing through you too.
We weren’t big fans of Mhot at this time so we were really surprised by his performance here. After his now famous 1 year scheme, we couldn’t help but cheer loudly for him. He was that good live! It’s funny because, after the event, we predicted he would be Isabuhay Champion soon. We were actually right! LilJohn (RIP) vs EJ Power is another favorite of mine. I personally feel like in the later years, it has been a bit overlooked by fans. For me, it’s a comedy classic, featuring different but equally effective styles of humor that never felt forced at any point of the battle. The charisma of LilJohn and EJ Power is also on full display, which certainly helped elevate their material further.
Target vs Thike was a hard-hitting brawl. They dropped some of their most brutal bars while showcasing impressive schemes and raw aggression. Romano vs Jonas and J-King vs Fangs were one-sided affairs because of emcee slip-ups but they still managed to entertain us. Both matches had an excellent mix of witty jokes and heavy bars. Lastly, if you thought J-Skeelz vs Juan Lazy was bad on screen, it was much worse going through it in person. We were literally cringing throughout and I believe I also shouted “TIME” together with the group beside us. It was simply a terrible battle. Enough said! Thankfully, because the other matches were top-notch, J-Skeelz vs Juan Lazy didn’t ruin our whole experience at all.
The success of Bwelta Balentong 3 urged me to go to more FlipTop events and I did just that. Since then, whenever I’m free, I make sure to watch an event of the league live. The most recent one I went to was Unibersikulo 12 and yes, it was another unforgettable night. I can’t wait for the uploads. FlipTop has also announced Bwelta Balentong 11 which will be held on September 21. It’s already the 11th event. How time flies! I will certainly be there together with the same group I went to the third one with. See you guys at Metrotent Convention Center! Congratulations to FlipTop for staying strong after all these years. I will forever be a fan.
