Artist Spotlight: Chillindude
October 24 2018
Respect Your Elders
[Verse 1]
I'm not lawful, make this pussy stop talking
You're not one of the gods, you're one of the god-awfulsTowards the end of 2014, Leffen was improving a lot. People had started questioning if he was one of the Gods, the undisputed, untouchable Smash players. “This was my response to that whole conversation,” said Chillindude.
We all gawkin' when looking at your Fox
Bitch, stick to Smash 4 and losing by four stocksWhen Smash 4 first came out, Leffen “went pretty deep into it competitively,” recalled Chillin. He entered a lot of tournaments, but dropped it for Melee a month or so later. Leffen was also notoriously known for getting four-stocked against high-level opponents in Melee, like Armada, Mang0 and Mew2King. According to Chillin, this line is word play, using the number ‘four’ twice in the line.
Not a fan of your style
You ain't standing your ground
Get wins while kicking a man when he's down
Like, "I beat Mango, I'm the favorite if he chokes!
As far as Armada goes, I'll just wait 'til he's a host."
Ain't no telling how foolish you'll be lookin'
Evidence.zip can't contain the ass whoopingLeffen was so toxic back in 2013 that he was banned from tournaments in Sweden for a year. When this was posted on the Smash boards, a local Swedish team spearheaded by Armada shared a file called ‘Evidence.zip’ that had screenshotted proof of Leffen being toxic. “I never actually looked at it,” said Chillin, “but I figured it was just him being a dick.”
Right when we realize the money match is over
That'll be your cue to throw your controllerAccording to our source, Leffen lost to a good Fox player, Ice, that was actually ranked beneath him at a European tourney. The second the set ended, Leffen smashed his controller on the ground.
[Verse 2]
Expose you as a fraud
Yeah I'll be blowing you up
Who said you were a god?
I know it wasn't Plup“Plup was not yet an amazing player back then,” explained Chillindude. “He was not close to God level. Maybe top 20 at the time. But a couple weeks prior to the money match, Plup beat Leffen with Samus. That was an easy call-out to make.”
I know it wasn't Plup“Plup was not yet an amazing player back then,” explained Chillindude. “He was not close to God level. Maybe top 20 at the time. But a couple weeks prior to the money match, Plup beat Leffen with Samus. That was an easy call-out to make.”
Been here ten years and you know I'm showing up
For a man of many words, I think you've said enough
But, the only way to make you hush
First I'll body bag your Fox then .zip it shut
'Imma put you in your place
Kid, you a disgrace
Get killed quick like that missile hit you in the faceA humiliating finish to the aforementioned match against Plup, Leffen was recovering when he caught a missile right in the face. It was the last kill that ended the entire match.
After all of this you'll be watching your mouth
Ain't no telling who'll be calling you out“This is implying that after I won the match, everyone would be out for Leffen’s blood,” Chillin elaborated. “The flood gates would be open to start beating Leffen.”
Salty Suite goes down
You better come correct
Until you win a major show your elders some respect
[Verse 3]
P.S. Leffen, I ain't done yet
I'm the underdog so place your betsContrary to popular belief, Chillin wasn’t saying that he was a worse player here. According to sources, Chillin was just saying that Leffen was the favorite in the match-up.
Whoever want to see Leffen looking dumb
Throw your money on the line cause I'm making some
Gotta say bro you're looking awfully weak
Wait and see what happens at the Salty Suite
Vanilla Fox don't suit you so go find another
Teach you a lesson and take back my color“We both were the best known vanilla Fox players,” said Chillin. Before the money match, Chillin took to Twitter to let Leffen know that the loser would not be able to play that version of Fox ever again. Since it was a match stipulation, Chillin definitely wanted to reference that in this diss track.
Teach you a lesson and take back my color“We both were the best known vanilla Fox players,” said Chillin. Before the money match, Chillin took to Twitter to let Leffen know that the loser would not be able to play that version of Fox ever again. Since it was a match stipulation, Chillin definitely wanted to reference that in this diss track.
Kashan “Chillindude” Khan is an American rapper who also has been known to play Melee for Team Liquid. His side job as a Fox main has been the main source of inspiration behind his raps, including his first-ever diss track “Good Clucks,” which he and his 2003 Melee crew H2YL used as a callout to their rivals in California and New York.
Beefing and drama “comes with the territory” of being a top Melee player, said Chillindude. And the veteran has found his own unique way to deal with it: Rap disses, each bar putting his opponent in a lyrical chain grab. Back in 2014, Chillindude wanted to get his Twitch stream viewers hyped for his January 2015 money match versus Leffen at Apex 2015’s Salty Suite.
“I thought a sick idea would be a diss track about Leffen.”
Luckily for the seasoned rapper, there was a lot of material to work with. Known for his toxic behavior and negative attitude, Leffen was an easy target for a lyricist like Chillindude. He knew he would be able to “hit him specifically where it hurts” with the goal of showing a “true beef” between the two leading up to the Salty Suite. Plus, he really did hate the guy back in 2014.
The original “Respect Your Elders” track was written in November of 2014. Hardcore hip hop fans swarmed Chillin’s Twitch stream to hear him rap it out. But one poser had infiltrated the listening party and shared the rap with Leffen himself, who - of course - tweeted it.
With lines like “Leffen wanna call out Team Curse / Same old story / It’s all rehearsed,” the original rap became outdated the moment Chillin signed with Team Liquid anyway. Chillin dumped the leaked diss and started a brand new one the same month of the Salty Suite. And the masterpiece we now all know and bump was written in under one hour.
Fans first heard the new track at the Salty Suite just before the hyped match started.
“People were going crazy,” recalled Chillin. “Nobody had expected a whole music video behind it. People were losing their minds. It was insane.”
As the story unfortunately goes, Leffen defeated Chillin 5-0, and immediately took to Twitter to humiliate him. The same diss that had once fueled the money match’s initial hype had now come back to hurt him. Chillin spent the whole rest of the night wondering what negative things people were thinking of him as he passed them. But more importantly, he, too, was disappointed in his performance.
“It sucked,” he admitted. “It was really bad. I think I would have felt better about losing if I had been playing well. Although Leffen was better than me at the time, I knew I was capable of beating him. But the nerves, the build-up… I just couldn’t play well at all. I could have done better. It was a nerfed version of myself.”
Despite the disheartening outcome at the Salty Suite, “Respect Your Elders” rose to imfamy. With over 1 million views on YouTube, it’s currently the most viewed piece of Melee content on the Internet. It’s become sort of a Melee anthem, the pinnacle of beef culture, feeding the blood-hungry community that has proven too toxic for some.
The beef between Chillin and Leffen was settled by the money match, and Chillin felt that Leffen was slowly improving as a person since then - despite the constant trash talking. So at Big House 6 in 2016, Leffen and Chillin talked in person - not on Twitter or on stage - for the first time ever.
“The conversation was actually me asking if I could use vanilla Fox again,” said Chillin, referencing one of the stipulations of losing the money match. “He said he didn’t care if I did. I thought that was cool of him.”
Then, in 2018, Chillindude revoked the most famous line in “Respect Your Elders” after Leffen became the EVO champion. Chillin took to Twitter to tell Leffen he “no longer owed his elders some respect,” to give him some props for the major win. Leffen retweeted the sentiment, and later told Chillin it was “an amazing tweet” at an after-party after a recent tournament.
While Chillin loves Melee because of the freedom of movement it provides its players, and the complexity and creativity involved in the gameplay, what first drew him to the game was the competitiveness it brought out of him. The rivalries were a real motivator, and have continued to also inspire him in his rap career.
When Chudat was signed to Team Liquid, Chillin collabed with him on a rap as a way to welcome Chu to his new crew. Providing lyrics for Chudat to rap to his rivals became a tradition for the pair. Chillin had a world premier of his latest diss track at the Roast of HugS, where “HugS Diss Part II” was shared with the Melee community for the first time on Sept. 22.