Seattle beatmaker Unkwn has won the 2019 edition of the SOCAN-sponsored Battle of the Beatmakers, a Toronto-based, global competition to determine the best hip-hop producer on the planet. Cino, from Ottawa, is the first runner-up, while the top four semi-finalists also included Toronto-based Bombay and Dylan Kusch of Saskatoon.

The preliminaries of the competition were held at the Daniels Spectrum on Aug. 29 and 30, 2019, as 64 beat-making producers did battle for a jury that included Grammy Award-winning producer T-Minus, and Grammy-nominated producers Mike & Keys.

The following night, Aug. 31, the final 32 producers vied for the title in The Main Event, at The Opera House, with the same judges. Wildcard producer Hail Czar battled Killakell, who held the 32nd spot in the competition. Czar won the spot but didn’t make it past the first round. In round three, Cino won against the top-ranked producer 10A. While only two females out of 32 producers made it into the competition, Washington music producer J’nae Morrae ranked 4th heading into the competition.

During the event, SOCAN sponsored and maintained the VIP Lounge, which hosted live-streaming interviews with various contestants before the determination of the final eight.

For more information, visit the Battle of the Beatmakers website.