Announcer

Announcer

“

EPIC RAP BATTLES OF HISTORY!

— Announcer

”

The announcer is the voice heard at the beginning and ending of almost every episode of Epic Rap Battles of History. Voiced by Nice Peter (revealed in an episode of the Monday Show), he is the character with the most appearances in the series.

Information on the announcer

The announcer announces the combating rappers at the start of each battle. The only exceptions to this rule occur when characters come into the battle as either a back-up or third-party rapper (Vince Offer, HAL 9000, etc.). However, he did announce Macho Man Randy Savage in the middle of Hulk Hogan and Macho Man vs Kim Jong-il, who was a main rapper as he is named in the title. In Steve Jobs vs Bill Gates, Steve Jobs interrupts him before he could say his name to start the battle. Nice Peter even announces the participants of the unofficial battle, GLaDOS vs Sherlock Holmes. At the end of every battle (except for all season finales, which feature the announcer only whispering, ultimately shouting, or repeatedly singing the title), the announcer asks "Who won? Who's next? You decide!", and then shouts "Epic Rap Battles of History!", though this is performed in a different way every battle. In the battles, he is represented by the logo featured during the intro and outro, while in ERB News videos, he is sometimes portrayed by varying animals as a running gag.

In the satirical spin-off series Flash in the Pan Hip Hop Conflicts of Nowadays, he serves the same role as the main series, announcing the combating rappers at the start of each conflict. Like in early Season 1 battles, its voice is not yet established. So far it seems to have a high pitched comedic tone compared to the bellowing nature of its ERB counterpart. At the end of each conflict, instead of saying "Who won? Who's next? You decide!", the announcer says "Who won? Who cares? You decide!", highlighting the non-seriousness of the series.

In-battle dialogue

While most battles have him only in the beginning and end, there have been two exceptions. Coincidentally, they are both from Season 1.

Hulk Hogan and Macho Man vs Kim Jong-il:

"Hulk Hogan goes down! I don't know if he can finish the battle! He…he's reaching for the ropes! It's…it's 'Macho Man' Randy Savage!"

Billy Mays vs Ben Franklin:

"Is there anyone out there who can finish this battle? Anyone? Anyone…"

Trivia

Nice Peter vs EpicLLOYD 2 is the only battle so far where he does not announce the contestants.
- If unofficial battles are included, however, then Michael J. Fox vs Chucky is also counted. However, in Michael J. Fox vs Chucky, the two characters announce themselves. This does not happen in Nice Peter vs EpicLLOYD 2.
- The announcer can still be heard during the outro of Nice Peter vs EpicLLOYD 2 whispering the series name similar to other season finales.
In an episode of the Monday Show, Nice Peter revealed that the inspiration for the ERB announcer voice came from an announcer from the movie Idiocracy.
Steve Jobs vs Bill Gates, Donald Trump vs Joe Biden, and Lara Croft vs Indiana Jones are the only battles where a rapper interrupts the announcer.
Frank Sinatra vs Freddie Mercury is the only battle where the announcer is voiced by more than one person, as EpicLLOYD and Dante Cimadamore voiced him alongside Nice Peter in the battle's outro.
In Romeo and Juliet vs Bonnie and Clyde, the announcer says "Who won? Who's next? You decide!" in confusion rather than the typical excited fashion due to the deaths of all four participants.
In Eastern Philosophers vs Western Philosophers, the announcer deviated from the ordinary outro, instead imitating the philosophers by asking "What is winning? Who is next?"
- In the same battle, the announcer angrily shouts "QUIET!" to the battle participants. This is the second time the announcer has interacted with the participants aside from introducing them.
Terminator vs Robocop is the first battle to have a physical interpretation of the announcer appear, with the announcer taking the form of the Terminator as portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
In Donald Trump vs Joe Biden, the announcer altered the ordinary outro by saying "You literally decide!", as an incentive to call for people to vote in the 2020 US Presidential election.