DENVER (KDVR) — A woman from Denver is looking to make history (again) as she takes the stage for the Red Bull Batalla USA National Finals freestyle rap and Master of Ceremonies competition in New York this weekend.
Maria Camila Perez Amarillo, known by her stage name Desnivela, will be the first female MC to compete in a Red Bull Batalla USA National Final after winning the 2024 Westside Cup in California. She has been preparing for Friday’s event, the worlds largest Spanish-language rap competition, for about a decade now.
Originally from Columbia, Desnivela came to the states with her family at a young age. They moved to Denver and she eventually moved to California, where she was able to grow a name in the freestyle scene. She came back to live with her family in Denver and has been competing in local leagues like Colorado Freestyle and Denver National Freestyle.
With help from a translator, Desnivela told FOX31 in an interview that while rappers are polished and know what they will perform with plans for each set, MC’s go with the flow in the moment and can freestyle rap and engage the audience with any given prompt.
She combines her cultural heritage with American hip-hop to create a unique, recognizable style. She explained that Columbian MC’s, especially women, tend to have an “aggressive edge,” so she is punchy with the way she delivers her raps. She said her Columbian background also gives her a “tough skin” advantage when competing with other MC’s.
Denver has also had a great impact on her performance. She said that her presence in local leagues has been a confidence boost like no other, and her Denver fans are loyal supporters, both things she did not feel in California. That confidence even pushed her to start recording her own music.
These are all skills that will help her in the competition Friday. She said the panel of judges look at many aspects of freestyle, but the three main ones are punch lines, flow and consistency. MC’s will be judged on their ability to adapt to and flow with a beat, be spontaneous and versatile while having consistency in delivering punch lines.
The competitiveness can be intimidating, but Desnivela said she loves it and lives off it, more than food itself.
She will be the only woman among 16 MC’s in the national competition. She is hoping to make history once again as the first-ever female champion of the competition. The winner will represent the U.S. at the Red Bull Batalla World Final in Chile next year, and the exposure will likely bring them opportunities like record deals and endorsements.
She explained that she feels an added pressure being the first woman in her position and has to work twice as hard to compete in a male-dominant event, but hopes that she can inspire other girls to follow their dreams and join the scene.
“She says that it feels absolutely surreal. When she first had events last year, she kind of considered herself just one of the guys as far as her mindset. Her friends kept reminding her, like, ‘hey, you’re the first woman that actually did this. Like, this is insane. This competition has been going on for 20 years. There’s never been a female kind of national finalist competitor. Like, this is crazy.’ So she had to really sit there and let that sink in,” the translator said.
She said she hopes that in the next five years, half of the MC’s competing will be female.
“That’s kind of what she’s aspiring to and really why she does it, because she feels like they’re worthy of it. They have the talent to do it. Obviously it’s very, very intimidating and that might hold some girls back from either freestyling or trying to compete. But nonetheless, she’s out there on the forefront trying to make a name for herself and also put them on the map, because they have all the talent in the world and they deserve them to be on big stages just like this,” the translator said.
If she doesn’t win the champion title, she hopes to be on the podium in the top three so that she is grandfathered in to the next national final.
Desnivela at major competition in Denver
Desnivela said she is very excited for a major competition coming up in Denver with the Denver Nacional Freestyle League on Oct. 5.
The competition will be judged by Venezuelan freestyle royalty, Latin rap legend and 7x Latin Grammy nominated artist, Akapellah. The winner gets a $2,000 grand prize and will open up for Akapellah at his show in Denver.
Anthony Sutton is a business strategist and writer with a passion for management, leadership, and entrepreneurship. With years of experience in the corporate world, he shares insights on business growth, strategy, and innovation through management-opleiding.org.
