07/28/2026
2nd Annual NDR Juggalo Rap Tournament Info
Official Rules & Procedures
1. Tournament Registration
The Juggalo Rap Tournament is currently accepting contestants.
Registration opens upon announcement of the tournament and closes on August 31st at 12:00 PM Noon Eastern Time (New York, USA).
A minimum of 8 contestants is required for the tournament to proceed.
A maximum of 20 contestants will be accepted.
All entries are accepted on a first-paid, first-confirmed basis.
Each contestant must submit the official $20 entry fee before the registration deadline.
Upon receipt of payment:
•The contestant is officially entered into the tournament.
•The contestant's name is added to the roster.
•The contestant's identity remains confidential until the bracket release.
Contestant identities will remain private before the tournament begins to prevent participants from researching, targeting, or preparing specifically for potential opponents before official matchups are announced.
2. Registration Close & Bracket Release
Registration closes at:
August 31st at 12:00 PM Noon Eastern Time (New York, USA).
At that time:
•All contestant identities become public.
•The official tournament bracket is released.
•First-round matchups are announced.
•The tournament officially begins.
3. Tournament Bracket Structure
Tournament brackets will be created based on the total number of paid contestants.
If the total number of contestants does not create a balanced tournament bracket, random first-round byes may be awarded as necessary.
Contestants receiving first-round byes automatically advance to the next round.
All bye placements will be determined by Tournament Ringmaster Jiggzaw and announced with the official bracket.
4. Match Submission Window
Once a matchup is announced, both contestants have exactly 5 calendar days to submit their tournament track.
A contestant who fails to submit a qualifying track before the deadline will:
•Forfeit the match.
•Be disqualified from that matchup.
•Be eliminated from the tournament.
•Award victory to the opposing contestant.
Extensions may only be granted under extraordinary circumstances at the sole discretion of Tournament Ringmaster Jiggzaw.
5. Track Requirements
The Juggalo Rap Tournament intentionally places very few restrictions on creative content.
Tracks may be:
•New
•Old
•Diss tracks
•Story tracks
•Battle tracks
•General songs
•Any other musical style or concept
Contestants may submit any type of track they choose.
However, judges are instructed to score submissions strictly according to the official judging criteria.
While old tracks and previously released music are permitted, contestants should understand that judges may naturally reflect factors such as relevance, originality, effort, creativity, and entertainment value within their scoring.
A contestant who submits a five-year-old track about an unrelated subject may receive lower scores than an opponent who submits a more relevant, engaging, or entertaining track.
Creative freedom is unrestricted. Scoring consequences are determined entirely by the judging panel.
6. Guest Features & Collaborations
Guest artists, featured performers, producers, and collaborators are permitted.
However, judges will be instructed to evaluate and score only the tournament contestant's performance and contribution to the track.
Contestants are responsible for ensuring their own performance is substantial enough to be judged fairly.
7. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI-generated content is permitted.
This includes, but is not limited to:
•AI vocals
•AI instrumentals
•AI-assisted lyrics
•AI-generated artwork
•Other AI-assisted creative elements
However, all judging will be performed exclusively by human judges.
No AI judges or automated scoring systems will be used.
Any strengths or weaknesses resulting from the use of AI may naturally be reflected in judges' scores.
8. YouTube Submission Requirements
All tournament submissions must be publicly released on YouTube.
The submission title must follow the format:
(Song Title) - (Artist Name) - Juggalo Tournament Submission Match #
Example:
Deadly Intentions - MC Wicked - Juggalo Tournament Submission Match #3
The wording within the video description is irrelevant for judging purposes.
Artists may rename their videos after the tournament has concluded.
9. Submission Finality
Once a track has been submitted for a matchup, the submission is final.
Contestants may not:
•Withdraw a submission
•Replace a submission
•Submit a different track after the deadline
•Request scoring based on an updated version
The version submitted before the deadline will be considered the official tournament entry.
10. Video Availability Requirement
Submitted YouTube videos must remain publicly available throughout the judging process.
If a contestant deletes, privates, hides, or otherwise makes a submitted video unavailable before judging is complete, Tournament Management may treat the entry as a failure to submit and may issue a disqualification.
11. Judging Panel
The tournament maintains a pool of 17 eligible judges.
For each matchup:
•Jiggzaw will randomly select 5 judges from the pool.
•The same 5 judges will score both contestants in that matchup.
•Judges may be selected again in later rounds.
Jiggzaw serves as Tournament Ringmaster and tournament administrator.
Because of this role, Jiggzaw will not participate as a contestant and will not serve as a judge.
12. Judge Replacement Procedure
Judges are expected to submit their completed scores within 24 hours after receiving a matchup for review.
If a judge fails to submit scores within 24 hours:
•That judge will be removed from the matchup.
•Jiggzaw will randomly select a replacement judge from the remaining available judge pool.
•The replacement judge will score both contestants for that matchup.
13. Official Scoring Criteria
Judges will score tracks using the following criteria and wording exactly as written:
•Lyrics & Wordplay
•Delivery & Flow
•Beat Selection & Production
•Personal Impact & Relevance
•Overall Entertainment & Replay Value
Each category receives a score from 1 to 10.
Each judge may award a maximum of 50 points to a contestant.
With five judges, the maximum possible score is 250 points.
The contestant with the highest total score wins the match and advances.
14. Tie-Breaking Procedure
If a match ends in a tie:
1.The contestant with the higher score in Overall Entertainment & Replay Value advances.
2.If still tied, the contestant with the higher score in Personal Impact & Relevance advances.
3.If still tied, a randomly selected tiebreaker judge will review both submissions and determine a winner.
The decision of the tiebreaker judge is final.
15. Advancement Through Rounds
After a winner is declared:
•The winner advances to the next round.
•Once both contestants for the next matchup are known, the next five-day submission window begins immediately.
•The judging process repeats.
This process continues until a Tournament Champion is determined.
16. Tournament Champion
The winner of the tournament bracket becomes the official Tournament Champion.
The Tournament Champion wins their share of the tournament prize pool and advances to the Championship Challenge Match.
17. Championship Challenge Match
The final challenge is against the reigning Juggalo Rap Champion:
HeKillz
Winning the tournament bracket alone does not award the Juggalo Rap Champion title.
The Tournament Champion must defeat HeKillz in the Championship Challenge Match.
If the challenger defeats HeKillz:
•The challenger becomes the new Juggalo Rap Champion.
•The challenger claims the championship title.
•The challenger receives any championship bonuses, sponsorship awards, donations, or additional prizes designated for the successful defeat of the reigning champion.
If HeKillz wins:
•HeKillz retains the Juggalo Rap Champion title.
•The Tournament Champion still retains their tournament victory and tournament-related prizes.
18. Prize Pool, Sponsors & Donations
The tournament prize pool may consist of:
•Entry fees
•Sponsorship contributions
•Donations
•Merchandise
•Promotional opportunities
•Additional prizes secured by Tournament Management
Final prize distribution will be announced before the Championship Challenge Match.
Depending on available funding and sponsorship support, additional awards may be distributed to:
•The Tournament Champion
•The runner-up
•Third-place finisher
•The reigning Champion
•Other recipients determined by Tournament Management
Prize distribution may be adjusted as sponsorships, donations, and promotional opportunities are secured.
All tournament prize decisions made by Tournament Management are final.
19. Acceptance of Rules & Final Authority
By submitting an entry fee and participating in the Juggalo Rap Tournament, all contestants acknowledge and accept these rules, procedures, scoring methods, deadlines, and tournament formats in their entirety.
All judging decisions, bracket decisions, tie-break decisions, eligibility decisions, scheduling decisions, and administrative rulings made by Tournament Management are final.
Tournament Management reserves the right to make reasonable adjustments when necessary to preserve the integrity, fairness, and successful operation of the tournament.
Participation in the tournament constitutes acceptance of all rules, procedures, scoring decisions, and administrative decisions made by Tournament Management.
Official Judging Criteria
The following criteria are the only official scoring categories used by tournament judges:
1.Lyrics & Wordplay
2.Delivery & Flow
3.Beat Selection & Production
4.Personal Impact & Relevance
5.Overall Entertainment & Replay Value
Each category is scored from 1-10 by each judge, with a maximum possible score of 250 points per matchup.
Good luck to all contestants. The question remains...
Can You Defeat The Champ? 🎤🏆🤡
- HeKillz
Defending Juggalo Rap Champion
