Ooh, an Epic Rap Battle about painters! This should be fun.
Special Effects and Costumes
Sam: It doesn’t seem like costumes for this Battle would be that hard to make. I mean, there wasn’t anything really distinguished about how either of these two dressed. The make-up and facial hair was all great, Bob Ross’s beard was done well and Picasso’s eyes looked truly beady, which was pretty cool.
The backgrounds were actually more real feeling this time. It seemed like Picasso was standing in a real room and not just in front of a green screen. Ross’ backgrounds were pretty cool (he was standing in his own painting) and the Rap Battle just looked good overall.
Greg: Sam, maybe you’re too young to remember, but Bob Ross DEFINITELY had a distinctive look. It wasn’t just the beard and the ‘fro, either. My memories are foggy (we used to watch portions of Bob Ross in Kindergarten when the school librarian was setting up the VCR so we could watch Care Bears or other cartoons, which I’m just realizing now was incredibly weird), but that partially-opened shirt looks pretty familiar. As for Picasso, I’m more familiar with his paintings than his own appearance, so I can’t speak much to that.
And I know nothing about make-up so I’ll take your word for it that it’s done well.
Verse #1
Sam: I really loved this verse, and for many reasons. The flow of the rhymes are nice, a mix of speeds and techniques. The rhymes themselves are pretty great as well. I loved lines like: “I melt faces, call me MC Dali!” and “You made millions teaching people how to suck at painting.” Epic Lloyd’s portrayal of Picasso is great and the delivery of the raps is well-done and subtle.
Greg:
You and I clearly have very different definitions of “subtle,” Sam. But it’s just fine that Picasso’s first verse has as much bravado and outlandish claims just about any rapper, because it’s pretty well documented that Picasso was a narcissistic jerk (which, much like some rappers, isn’t to say that he wasn’t talented). If Picasso was a rapper, he would totally be starting beefs with other painters, dropping diss tracks about MC Dali.
Love that middle finger Picasso painting!
Verse #2
Sam: As Greg pointed out, I don’t have a great idea of what Bob Ross was like, but from what I do know, Nice Peter seems to have nailed his personality. A good mix of disses and self-compliments makes this verse entertaining and fun to watch. I especially enjoyed the reference to Jackson Pollock and Picasso’s Blue Period.
Greg: I love how, in translating spoken voice to rap, Bob Ross’s gentle voice gets a laid-back delivery not unlike Snoop Dogg or Slick Rick.
Verse #3
Sam: I can’t get behind this verse at all, it honestly just bored me. There was nothing clever about any of the lines, most of Picasso’s allotted 18 seconds to recite his own name. That does not make for interesting rapping.
Greg: I haven’t been impressed with the lyrics in this video so far overall, and it doesn’t help that “Picasso” oversells them in the delivery. I’m not feeling the accent, either. These guys aren’t professional actors or anything, right? So I could forgive Epic Lloyd for not nailing the Spanish accent, but he slips into an American accent too many times.
Verse #4
Greg: Hold up, was Bob Ross really in the Air Force? I hope so, because the image is delightful. Again, the lyrics are slightly better here, but the delivery is really the highlight again.
Sam: This verse, much like Ross’ first, flowed excellently and had some terrific disses. Like Greg said, the Air Force part was great, really well delivered. The closer was kind of weak but he said it in such a way that you can’t help but like it.
Phat Beats
Sam: Nothing crazy good here. Pretty standard, worked with the less aggressive style of both of these rappers but didn’t speak to me outside of that.
Greg: It’s been a while since watched one of these videos, but I don’t remember ever being impressed by the beats. Do they even make their own beats? Whatever the case, they’re pretty generic and completely repetitive, but that’s probably par for the course.
The Winner Is…
Sam: Killer delivery and clever lines, Bob Ross definitely won.
Greg: There’s no question that Picasso is a better painter than Bob Ross and pretty much everybody ever, but apprently Ross is the superior rapper.
Who’s Next?
Sam: Just put Ryan Higa in one of these!
Greg: Judy Blume versus Beverly Cleary.
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
