A worldwide assortment of hip-hop DJ devotees turned out in droves last month for the DMC Technics World DJ Championships in New York City, with last year's champ, Craze, taking home the individual gold yet again.

The two-day event consisted of the individual world finals, the first-ever world team championships, performances by the X-Ecutioners and Rock Steady Crew, and appearances by legendary DJs such as Grandmaster Flash, Red Alert and the World Famous Beat Junkies.

MTV News' Greg Kaplan was there to capture the scene in words, images, and RealVideo. Check it out.

"I can remember 26 years ago. When I first [started], I had no blueprint. When I first thought about doing this turntable art form, I knew I was the man then. Here it is, 26 years later. There's a lot of good men out there."

Indeed there are. This year, Craze was the hands-down favorite to win the DMC World Title. In 1998, his over-the-top mix of jungle and turntablism wowed the masses at both the US and World Finals - which occurred in New York and Paris respectively.

He didn't disappoint. The 21-year old Miami native won the competition for the second year in a row with a stunning bass-driven six-minute set, while London's Tony Vegas of the Scratch Perverts and Los Angeles' P-Trix spun to second and third place respectively.

Craze not only impressed the judges, which included DJ Honda and the X-Ecutioners' Roc Raida; throughout the night he also received by far the most applause from the packed house at Manhattan's Hammerstein Ballroom.

The team competition, which took place on Friday night, consisted of 13 teams from all over the world, and the stars from the individual competition shined there as well.

Tony Vegas's U.K. crew, The Scratch Perverts, finished first, becoming the first-ever DMC World Team Champions. The Allies (consisting of Craze, 1997 World Champion A-Trak, and MTV's Hip-Hop Week Turntablist Infamous) finished second, much to the disappointment of the large crowd rooting for the U.S. team.

The competition is fierce, but the scene is tight. Case in point: The Perverts' set was highlighted by a vocal scratch claiming "Down Go The Allies," a direct attack on the second place finishers. Nonetheless, the move was simply in jest. During their World Team Champions acceptance speech, the Perverts invited the Allies back on stage, claiming that the two crews have now "merged" and are planning to collaborate for future battles and showcases.

Craze

"With turntablism, there isn't a language barrier," said Craze. "Kids all over the world scratch, and they can relate to you on just scratching. I'll go to Germany, and this kid will be talking to me for like a half an hour and I won't understand sh**, and he'll start scratching and I'll be like, 'Oh, all right," and I'll just jam with him for about a half an hour. We'll communicate just by scratching."

"It's worldwide," he added. "I went to Japan and there were kids who knew me and knew the whole crabs and flares and all this stuff, and I was like 'damn.' Kids love it everywhere. It's not just a hip-hop thing. It's a universal thing."

Craze comes from the East Coast, and P-Trix comes from the West Coast. The rivalry exists, but only on the decks. "I've met [Craze] a few times," said P-Trix before the battle. "He's a cool guy. We hang out. We've had sessions before. We practice. It's all good."

"I mean, in the DJ community, everybody's pretty close," he continued. "Everybody hooks up at battles. With DJs, nobody really has big heads. They are always down to hook up. People from out of town, you know. I mean, look at all of these crews. People come from different countries, cities, and states and hook up in crews. I mean, it's all in love, and in fun."

As for Craze, his DMC victories are paying off. Ever since his first championship, he's toured the world incessantly, headlining turntablist showcases, club performances, and raves. Recently he released the critically acclaimed underground LP "Crazee Musik," an experimental and complex mix of turntablism, breakbeat, hip-hop, and jungle which was simply produced with two Technics 1200 turntables and a eight-track recorder.

Four days after the DMC World Finals, he began a North American tour with his Allies partner Infamous.