Beatboxing

Introduction

I could go on for ages about beatboxing HAHA it’s literally something that’s changed my life, and has completely revolutionised the way I think about music.

Here’s a bunch of my favourites:

I plead guilty.
*pffffffffffft*
Also look at how it brings together people from such different ethnicities and cultures ❤
LISTEN TO HIM DOING OPEN 5THS ON HIS OWN OMG

(Big shout out to Swissbeatbox.com and my friend Pepouni)

Fun distractions aside, let’s get back to why you’re here: to learn to be a better acapella beatboxer 🙂

I think the best place to start would be to figure out what is beatboxing. Only then can we decide why beatbox and then decide how to beatbox.

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This is my definition of beatboxing: putting weird noises together, in rhythm, to make music.

Here are the practical implications of my definition:

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a) Weird noises

In my opinion, there is no such thing as a right/wrong noise in beatboxing. Each person’s vocal apparatus is unique and hence no two people will produce the exact same sound.

Therefore, to be a beatboxer (especially those of you who got arrowed to learn it), all you need to do is just try. Let loose your inner child and MAKE SOME NOISE 😀

To be honest, at first the people around you will think that you’re a bit crazy, or that you have some serious gas issues whenever you practice in the toilet (highly recommended practice place btw. Start your own party in the shower!)

Don’t let the embarrassment stop you; keep practicing! You will get better 🙂

Go and Practice indeed.

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b) Putting weird noises together

A common mistake I’ve seen in many beginner beatboxers is that they focus too much on getting single sounds right. While it may be important to learn how to get your Bs or inward Ks going at first, it’s even more important to move on.

When you practice individual sounds, you only learn how to make that one sound.

When you practice that same sound, but put together with other sounds in a beat, you learn how to transition into that sound from other sounds. The pressure of having to stick to the rhythm will make your mouth more agile and more consistent, much faster.

As soon as you’re able to get the rough hang of basic beats sounds, start practicing along with songs that have simple beatbox patterns!

Here’s a free example of a song with simple beatbox patterns

Aside from being more effective, the best part is that practicing this way is MUCH more fun 🙂

(Also, your parents will hopefully stop asking if you need laxatives).

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c) In rhythm

Chirping birds or sloshing waves or the gentle patter of raindrops are all pleasant sounds, but they don’t quite feel like music. The missing ingredient is a sense of structure and predictability; that’s what rhythm does.

Case in point: it’s pretty pleasant sound at first, but it feels like the music only starts properly around 0:39, when it feels like there’s suddenly a rhythm to things. Even if the rhythm is ridiculously complicated and beyond us mere mortals (Jacob Collier how do you even?!)

Also don’t forget that as the beatboxer in an acapella song, you’re the rhythm from which all the other singers take reference. So as essentially a human metronome, you really need to get good at keeping a steady beat.

Therefore as a beatboxer, it is absolutely critical that you also develop a strong sense of rhythm. (I’ll teach a simple but effective technique for it in another post).

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d) To make music

I cannot emphasis this point enough. Your goal is to make music.

Let’s quickly think about what defines music. Some people are into hardcore dubstep, others refuse to acknowledge anything other than Beethoven’s, and of course there’s always a bunch of old people who shake their heads and complain that “they don’t make music like they used to.”

Regardless of what your definition of music is, I think we can all agree on this:

If they like what they hear, they’ll call it music. If they don’t, they’ll call it noise.

Fair enough?

Therefore, your goal is to deliver what others would appreciate hearing.

  1. While there are no “right/wrong” sounds, there are certainly better choices of sounds in different parts of different songs.
  2. As far as you can, PLAN your beats, don’t just wing them.
  3. You are NOT just a metronome or backing track; you are a part just as important as any other singer in the group.
  4. You are NOT there to show off; don’t add random sound effects/complicated beats just because you can.
  5. Of course, try not to repeat the exact same beat pattern for the whole song. That’s technically musical, but it’s boring 😦

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Putting it all together: look at this marvellous example of putting weird noises together, in rhythm, to make music.

Notice how the beat patterns switch up so much? Or how there’s so many places where there’s nothing but beats and melody? Or even beats alone? And yet everything flows and feels refreshing every single moment ❤
PTX is outstanding because they really put a lot of thought into their beats.

Hopefully, by the time we’re done with this part of the blog, all of us will have the tools to become just as good as PTX 😀

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There’s a lot more that I’m looking forward to sharing with yall 🙂 hopefully this introduction has gotten you a little more excited about this very unique art form #WeSpeakMusic heh. We’ll go more in detail in subsequent articles!

Have fun and keep making those noises!

~ Andrew