We Got Next

After a bit, the usual Tom Cats crowd of hard rock and heavy metal fans exits the bar, and the rap fans and artists move inside. It's a dark, spacious room, filled to the rafters with a thick, choking cloud of smoke, much of it mentholated, blending with the saccharine smell of Swisher Sweets. Among the small crowd, Cord suddenly looks much younger than his age, as he shies away from a pair of girls who try to get him to dance to the Dirty South tunes that flow through a grouping of fuzzy, slightly blown-out speakers. A few of the other acts play pool or hang around in groups, swilling Corona to kill time.

Finally, the show starts. About 50 people—mainly the entourages and friends of the showcase acts—hurry out of their seats and to the front of the stage. Cordeezy is on second, and bounds onstage, clearly the young 'un in the room. The speakers crackle and come to life with the familiar drum refrain of "Wut Y'all Niggaz Doin'?" Cord, Cole and Junior High all share MC duties, but Cord is the centerpiece.

Everybody talkin' shit/But you ain't made no club hits/My niggaz leavin' tips cuz/My niggaz head ripped

Cord exhorts the crowd to throw their hands in the air. About a quarter do.

We stay real up in the streets/You stay thuggin' the Internet

A few booties bounce, including Freiburger's. Cord's confidence grows onstage.

We write the big checks/Hands go up in the air when I step up in the spot

Deborah's head nods in time, Cord churns his arm rhythmically. The song winds down to its refrain:

Wut y'all niggaz doin'?

Wut y'all niggaz doin'?

Wut y'all niggaz doin'?

And then it's over. The crowd claps more than politely but doesn't sustain the applause. Cordeezy has done fairly well, ratcheting up the energy in the room, showing that Steady Ballin' can hang. It all took about five minutes. The Steady Ballin' crew mills about for a minute or two, not quite knowing what to do, then turns back to the stage as another group starts up. Cordeezy is just one in a long list of acts to perform this night, and there are more to see. His brief moment in the spotlight fades; it was not what you'd call a moment of triumph, but it was solid and genuine. It's a start.