"KONY (Kendrick Lamar Control Response)" - Astro [Free Download & Stream]

Kendrick Lamar's contribution to yesterday's "Control (HOF)" is quickly becoming the rap verse heard around the world, prompting rappers from Joell Ortiz to Lupe Fiasco to offer responses in less than 48 hours. The most promising of these comes from 16 year-old Astro, who seems particularly miffed by Lamar's "King of New York" self-coronation.

As a New Yorker, Astro feels that Kendrick is shaming the history of his hometown, the birthplace of hip hop:

"No matter how much good music you drop
You can't knock the legacy of B-I-G's
And J-A-Y's and leaving out the new guys
That ain't wise"

Though Astro was only three when the nineties ended, it would appear as if he is trying to give Lamar a history lesson on New York's golden era of hip hop.

That lesson would fall flat were it not for Astro's precocious delivery, which gives Joey Bada$$' tongue twisters a run for their money, as well as sharp punchlines directed at Kendrick like, "you kicked harder lines on the Miguel collaboration."

Though Kendrick's verse is too amazing to say that Astro "schooled" him, the youngster's "Control (HOF)" response runs laps around its competitors, proving that this kid is a force to be reckoned with.

Also, props to Astro for his awesome Tribe Called Quest shirt (below).