Beatboxing: Music Produced By Humans

In recent years, the term “beatboxing” has become increasingly popular in the hip-hop music genre, but what exactly does “beatboxing” mean? Beatboxing is the term used to describe the practice of humans using their voice (including lips, tongues and mouths) to produce vocal imitations of percussive instruments. These vocal imitations are then strung together in order to produce beats, rhythms or melodies in music. While these vocal imitations are most often found within the hip-hop genre, beat boxing is not limited to only hip-hop culture.

The concept of vocal imitation originated several thousands of years ago in India through the creation of Bol. Bol is a form of music that included the use of vocal imitation in the use of rhythmic patterns. It is also thought that traditional music of Africa has influenced the development of beat boxing, where it is common to use the body (ex. Stomping feet or clapping hands) to create rhythm. The name “beat boxing” to describe vocal imitation of percussion instruments was derived in the 1980’s after the development of drum machines, which were also known as beatboxes. The first ever proclaimed “human beatbox” was a rapper that went by the name of Doug E. Fresh in the 1980’s and since, the practice of human beatboxing has gained extreme popularity.

Society was amazed that people were able to create such closely imitated sounds to instruments, using only their voices after being exposed to the phenomenon through hip-hop music. Beatboxing is a learned skill that the majority of people can learn the basics of but as with traditional singing, everyone can learn to sing but some have a more natural gift of rhythm than others. Listening to rhythmic music and beatboxing patterns is the best way to get a feel for the type of imitations involved. Beatboxing skills can be improved through breathing control exercises as well as learning the correct pronunciations of “beatbox language”.

History of Beatboxing

• The Pre-History of Beatbox: An overview of the cultures and practices that contributed to the creation of today’s practice of beatboxing.
• Beatboxing: An Oral History: A history of beatboxing including the history of women’s involvement and specific areas of beatbox popularity.

Beatboxers

• Biz Markie Official: Biz Markie’s personal website, including his bio and samples of the beatboxing that has earned him the title of “Beatboxing God”.
• Rahzel: Rahzel is a popular member of the hip-hop and beatbox community, best known for his beatboxing in the group ‘The Roots’.
• Matisyahu: An American reggae musician who brought beatboxing to traditional Jewish music as well as rock.
• Doug E. Fresh: All about the original ‘human beatbox’, Doug E. Fresh.
• Keith Terry & The SLAMMIN’ All-Body Band: A popular group that uses no instruments but their voices and body parts to create rhythms and melodies in beatboxing styles.
• The Boxettes: A look at the all female beatboxing group.
• 10 Best Beatboxers Of All Time: A list counting down the best beatboxers in the hip-hop culture.

Michael Winslow (The Man of 1000 Sounds)

• Michael Winslow- The Human Beatbox: An interview about the man of a 1000 sounds, human beatbox, Michael Winslow.
• Biography of Michael Winslow: All about the life of the man of 1000 sounds.

Beatboxing Tutorial

• Beatboxing Tutorial: Tutorials on beatboxing basics and advanced methods.
• Basic Beatbox Kick Drum Tutorial: A tutorial for beginners on the basic kick drum technique involved in most beatbox rhythms.
• Beatbox Tongue & Tom Tutorial: An explanation and demonstration on how to conduct tongue rolls and alternate tongue rolls (known as toms) at the end of snares and kicks in beatboxing.

Beatbox Sounds

• Reverse Dry Kick Beatbox Sound: A guide to identifying and creating a reverse dry kick sound in beatboxing.
• The Art of Noise: A guide to how beatboxers make the technique a true art form with the various sounds of beatboxing.
• Beatbox Orchestra: Examples of beatboxing being used in classical music genres, in an orchestra format.

Beatbox Techniques

• Advanced Beatbox Techniques: Advanced techniques used in beatbox ranging from sweeping bass drum, click rolls and scratching.
• Reversed Wind Technique: A simple tutorial on how to perform the reversed wind technique in beatbox.

Boxcon (International Human Beatbox Convention)

• Boxcon: The International Human Beatbox Convention where fellow beatboxers come together to share tips/advice and performances.

Beatboxing for Kids

• Learn How To Beatbox: A kid friendly guide to teaching children to beatbox, including rhythmic songs and catchy melodies that are easy to remember.
• YoGabbaGabba - Biz’s Beat of the Day: Popular children’s television show features beatbox star Biz Markie in a segment aimed at children titled “Biz’s Beat of the Day” which teaches children basic beatbox sounds.
• Bach to Beatbox for Kids: A program focused on interesting children in classical music styles by incorporating beatbox.