Joyner Lucas paid a visit to Hot 97 this week to drop an impressive freestyle for Funk Flex.
The session was inspired by Joyner’s 2015 track “Backwords,” which featured the Worcester, Massachusetts rapper spitting his bars in forward and reverse.
In the same vein, Lucas delivered a “backwards” freestyle for Funk Flex—who previously challenged Joyner to accomplish the feat on his show—over a pair of iconic beats: “Nas Is Like,” from Nas’ 1999 album I Am…, and “Realest N***as,” the 2003 collaborative single from 50 Cent and the Notorious B.I.G.
“Tell your favorite rappers I’m home, and back for supper/The day you beat me is the day Chilli get back with Usher/You spent your whole life tryin’ to ball, but had no jumper/I can pass and dunk it, I’m Dr. J when I’m at the Rucker,” he rapped over “Nas Is Like,” then flipping the bars at the two-minute mark.
The freestyle arrives as Joyner prepares to hit the road for his upcoming ADHD Tour. The 18-date trek kicks off Sept. 16 in Minneapolis and makes stops in Chicago (9/16), Detroit (9/21), New York (9/24), Atlanta (9/28), Las Vegas (10/8), and Los Angeles (10/11), among other cities, before wrapping on Nov. 12 in his hometown of Worcester.
Flash back seven years to see Lucas explain his technique for the original “Backwords” below: