Picture This:

You show up to a venue that is already full of people.  The place has a good vibe, the energy is high and you are ready to rock the mic.  You are here with one intent, one goal, one purpose that has been at the forefront of your thoughts all week...to rock the mic and rock it well. 

The club continues to get more packed.  There are twelve other acts performing and they are drawing names out of a hat, so you don't know when you are up until minutes before your set begins.  Your expectations are high.  When is your name gonna get pulled?  It could be next, you never know.  Adrenaline is pumping through your brain and you have all your songs planned out in your head. 

The acts continue to get called onto the stage.  It goes on and on, but when are you up?  The show is already six groups deep and your name still hasn't been called?  Now it's time for an intermission, but why an intermission?  This is not The Sound Of Music.




This is a rap show and the show must go on.  It's 11:40pm now and time begins to creep by...creep...creep.  Your friends decide it is too late to stay any longer.  Although they came all the way here to see you, they sadly won't be able to stick around for your performance.  Can you blame them?  It's almost midnight and there is no sign of when you will actually get to rock.  One of your friends has to work in the morning.  There is no bitterness when you say goodbye.

Now it's 1am and your name still hasn't been drawn.  They're drawing names out of a hat, what is the deal with this hat?  Is it rigged?  Does the hat hate you, or are you just a victim of terrible luck?  You go downstairs to do some detective work on this infamous hat.  You anxiously ask if you get to go next but of course they don't know.  You are completely in fate's hands.  You will either get to rock for this fun loving crowd...or the hat will give you the ultimate diss, refusing to allow your name to be drawn. 

By the time there are only three acts left you have a terrible feeling in the pit of your stomach that you will have to go dead last. 

Sure enough, 1:40 am rolls around and you are about to go on.  It's all good, you can still kill it.  You're jumping around, getting pumped to rock this dissipating crowd which is roughly 1/4 the size of what it once was (of course you are no master of fractions, math was never your best subject, but you estimate about 1/4).  
 
Then, right when your about to do your song, after you got the crowd pumped up, you got them cheering, they were ready to leave but now they're willing to stay to check out one more guy, your DJ drops the record and your beat won't play.*





* I still kicked a freestyle over an instrumental DJ 100Proof threw on, the free was good and I got a decent score from the judges.  Still a let down overall though.  Right now I feel like the heavens do not want me to have a good show.