Delivery III - Punchlines
Punchlines make an audience react. They're the "OHHH!!!" moments from a crowd when rappers show off their cleverness. The term "punchline" originates from the final line of a joke but it is a general reference for any bar that is extra strong. This includes comedy, mind rhymes, wordplay, and yes, diss too:
So how is this different than what we've been doing? Our standard paradigm up until now (with the exception of mind rhymes) has been to say a sentence, and then come up with a rhyme for it. This means that your first line typically has the more interesting content, more complex rhyming word, and more intricate flows. But with punchlines, we intentionally reverse this standard, and push the stronger line to the end. Here's an example of wordplay using this in action:
ITS EASIEST TO USE A PUNCHLINE AT THE BEGINNING OF YOUR FREESTYLE BECAUSE YOU HAVE MORE TIME TO THINK BEFOREHAND...
This technique is just a more generalized version of the technique used to think of mind rhymes because mind rhymes are indeed a type of punchline. The trick is that you have to be extremely fast on the rhymes, which is why we strongly recommend that you start off by using rhyme sets for this method.
When you start a new rhyme set, just think of the rhyming word for the last bar first. Hold it there in your memory. Pick a rhyme. Now start thinking about how you are going to use your word but while you're doing that your mouth has already started speaking. You're trusting that your subconscious brain will find a rhyme for your last word of choice by the time it reaches the end of your line, and if you've practiced enough it will. Your first line might not be the most elegant of sentences but it should work. With the extra time you've devoted to your last line, it should come out more detailed than your first generic line. Here's an example of this used in comedy:
The better you get at this technique, the better your generic phrases, and the stronger your punchlines will be. Also its important to note that you can have however many bars you want between initially picking a word dropping the punchline. More lines gives you more time to think but then your brain has to come up with more generic phrases while you're thinking.