NEWS: Pat Stay on defending title at Blackout 5; connecting with Drake

Pat Stay on defending title at Blackout 5; connecting with Drake 

East coast hip-hop journalist and enthusiast Jacob Smith linked up with KOTD Title Match winner, Dartmouth’s own Pay Stay, to discuss his recent victory at Blackout 5 this past weekend and the impact Drake had on the event. Check it out below.

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Toronto, ON – A Dartmouth battle rapper has just claimed another victory in his fourth North American title match.

Over the weekend, in a pay-per-view battle at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto, Pat Stay defended his title in King of the Dot’s Blackout 5 against rapper Charron.

This was Stay’s third time defending the title and easily his biggest battle to date.

In addition to the pressure of performing in front of a crowd of roughly 1,500 fans, Blackout 5 was co-presented by Grammy-Award winning rapper Drake and his label, October’s Very Own Sound.

“I’d like to say [having Drake there] didn’t put pressure on me, but of course it did,” Stay told CBC News on Monday.

“I had to come correct and that’s what I did.”

Drake opted not to go to Sunday’s Grammy Awards — for which he was nominated for three awards — in lieu of hosting, participating in and judging Stay’s battle against Charron.

Stay has a lot of respect for Drake.

“He likes me a lot and I like him a lot and we just have a respect for each other. We’re friends and I don’t try and capitalize off of that,” said Stay.

At a press conference the day before the match began, Drake upped the ante by offering an additional $10,000 to the winner of the battle.

“He didn’t hit me with it yet, but it felt great because now I can pay off my bad credit,” Stay said jokingly.

What started as a hobby for Stay has now become a career.

Stay to appear in reality TV show

Later this year, Stay will become a member of rapper Eminem’s reality TV show, Road to Total Slaughter, which will see eight emerging battle rappers compete to co-headline a main event match-up in Eminem’s Total Slaughter Battle Rap League.

Even with the recent endorsements by some of music’s biggest stars, Stay said the support from his fans has been the most rewarding.

“It means so much to me, more than anybody could ever imagine, knowing that my people support me. It touches my heart,” he said.

An on-demand version of Blackout 5 is available for purchase at KOTDTV.com until Feb. 28. All the battles, including the finals, will be available to the public though the KOTD YouTube channel after Feb. 28.