PaperMedia Exclusive

The "Next to You"
Freestyle Challenge

Honoring the Legends · The Legacy of Hip-Hop

Next to You Freestyle — Erykah Badu and The Alchemist original illustration

Before the World Blows

The Abi & Alan Experiment · 2026

Instagram Caption

🎤 THE "NEXT TO YOU" FREESTYLE CHALLENGE — PART 2 🎤

Erykah Badu rapped over The Alchemist's beat from Mobb Deep's 1999 classic "The Realest" — the same instrumental Prodigy and Kool G Rap originally laid bars on. Now the Queen of Neo-Soul claimed it. The torch has been passed.

🔥 THE CHALLENGE: Drop your verse over the "Next 2 U" beat. Tag @papermedia. Best freestyle gets FEATURED. 🔥

🎤 FEATURED CHALLENGER — PART 2:
▸ Theonlyes (@theonlyes) — First entry. Raw bars. No filter. The culture in real time.

Who's next? The challenge is LIVE.

💎 BEFORE THE WORLD BLOWS: THE ABI & ALAN EXPERIMENT 💎
Out now · 17 tracks · Control Freaq Records / Young Recordings
Erykah Badu's first album in 11 years. The Alchemist's production. Mobb Deep's "The Realest" sample. Neo-soul meets boom bap meets hip-hop history.

Feat. every artist who made this a masterpiece:

▸ Erykah Badu (@erykahbadu) — Vocals · Production · The Queen of Neo-Soul
▸ The Alchemist (@alanthechemist) — Production · Beats · Hip-Hop Legend
▸ Steve Lacy (@steve.lacy) — Vocals · Bass · "To the Moon (Plan C)"
▸ Earl Sweatshirt (@soapmanwun) — Vocals · "I Know That Man"
▸ Thundercat (@thundercatmusic) — Bass · Vocals · "They Ain't You" & "Crossfade"
▸ Kamasi Washington (@kamasitheviper) — Saxophone · "Black Box"
▸ DRAM (@shelley) — Vocals · "Valentine"
▸ Westside Gunn (@westsidegunn) — Vocals · "No I.D." & "I Just Play a Part"
▸ Joi (@tennesseeslimkitty) — Vocals · "I Just Play a Part"
▸ DJ Creole Princess (@dj_creoleprincess) — Vocals · "I Just Play a Part"
▸ DJ Quik (@djquik) — Percussion · Additional Production
▸ Young Guru (@youngguru763) — Mixing Engineer · Engineering Legend

Honoring the legacy:
👴 Prodigy (RIP) — Mobb Deep — "The Realest" (1999)
👴 Kool G Rap — Original "The Realest" verse
👑 The Alchemist — Three decades of hip-hop greatness

Two titans. Nothing left to prove. Just truth, soul, and fire.

📥 Drop your freestyle. Tag @papermedia. Let the culture speak.
🎵 Stream everywhere: Spotify · Apple Music · Tidal · YouTube Music

The culture happens here. The challenge is OPEN.

SEO Hashtags

#NextToYouChallenge #ErykahBadu #TheAlchemist #BeforeTheWorldBlows

Track 1 · Echos

No pro tools. No digital cleanup. Just a Tascam four-track, a dubbed Mobb Deep tape, and a room with the lights low. The wow, the flutter, the hiss — that's not a plugin. That's the sound of hip-hop being born on a cassette deck.