Are you the next big name to grace the hip-hop game? Well, now you can prove it on a new completion series called One Shot. MTV's Sway Calloway will host the competition, which is the brainchild of Slaughterhouse rapper Crooked I. The show will offer hopeful MCs the chance to compete for the title of hip-hop's next super star, a record deal with SMH Records and $100,000 in cash.
"This is strictly for hip-hop," Crooked I said on Shade 45′s Sway in the Morning. "This right here is to provide a platform for hip-hop, for us. If you're an up-and-coming artist, I had the same struggle. I had the same everything you got. I'm just like you. This is for us. Strictly hip-hop."
Crooked I, who was inspired by Eminem's "Lose Yourself" for the title of the series, said he came up with this idea as a way to give back to the culture that has given him so much and help those coming up in the game.
"I'm truly blessed by hip-hop," he said. "I believe in the pay-it-forward system. If you're getting something, you need to give something. In the nature of paying it forward, I thought to myself, 'What can I do for hip-hop to express my attitude for the culture and everything that it's given me.'"
He continued: "So one thing that I noticed was that everywhere I go, people always come up to me and say, 'Hey man, it would be an honor if I could spit for you. Just let me spit 16. And for years and years people have always done that. And I just sit there and listen to them, and I really wish them the best. Then they ask me how I can help them, and it's like you can't help everybody. It's impossible. So I started to find an idea that would help as many people as I could possibly help."
Calloway and Crooked I will be joined by DJ King Tech of The Wake Up Show and SMH Records CEO Mike Smith as they go town to town finding the next big thing. They'll be venturing to some of the hip-hop capitols of the country: Charlotte, Atlanta, Miami, New York, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.
Additionally, a special celebrity judge from each city with contribute to the panel's assessment of each contestant.
The final-four contestants will then advance to each city's main event, where they will work with SMH Records co-founder Jonathan Hay, Smith, Tech and Crooked I to practice their performance.
The final showcase will take place in Las Vegas and feature those who made it through from their city.
Those interested can download instrumentals produced by Hay and Smith for their initial submission at myoneshot.tv.
"I believe in tomorrow's rap stars," says Crooked I. "I believe in giving them a bigger platform to be heard. I believe that I could help somebody get one shot because that's all I ever wanted."
Watch the full Shade 45 interview below, and let us know what you think of the concept.
(Main image courtesy of Instagram @OneShot)
