Love, Peace And Beatbox (2008)

[bunniefuu]

Sharper. Press your

lips together hard.

Ever heard of Beatboxing?

- No.

Or Beatboxers?

- No.

Human Beatbox?

I don't... Oh, right, yes.

Making beatbox sounds.

Making noises with your mouth.

A kind of microphone art...

Done with the voice. And

it's heavy on the b*at.

A sort of rhythm group

with mouth-made beats.

No, what's that? b*at... what?

Hi, there!

Welcome to my pastures!

That's my dog, Toby.

Sit! Very obedient, huh?

Mostly cooped up inside

Now we're out on the streets

All around, far and wide

Everyone's rockin' to Wetlipz' beats

I'm Wetlipz, from the

And I'm thrilled to be here...

Out in the sun...

This is Pirat.

Go on!

- I'm Pirat MC of Berlinutz.

We do Hip-Hop and Rap,

usually with these guys.

That's it...

- And we're having a beer.

You know, Beatboxing...

When I started in 1999, 2000,

people sounded like this.

Mostly crap. Then I heard

Rahzel and Killa Kela,

and I was like, "Amazing!

I want to do that!"

Beatbox was so new people

thought it was a martial art.

"Oh, really, Beatboxing?

Can I see a move?"

"You don't do moves, you make beats. "

That's how it was till about 2003, 2004.

In the first battles I was in, it

was mostly Old School Beatboxing.

Basically pretty basic

stuff, you know, like this...

Doing that well,

maybe adding...

...a bit of scratching or melody,

was enough to win a battle.

If the show was good, at least.

The show counted more then.

Today you'll go to a battle

and some 18-year-old...

...will rattle something

off like a machine.

It sounds cool, sure,

but it's almost... freaky.

That's what I'd call

New School Beatbox.

Mando, my 4XSample Crew homie,

was German Champion in 2006.

And he's very good, of course.

And what can I say? I'm sure

he'll win this year, too...

But it'll be harder this time.

Congratulations!

LAST YEAR... BEATBOX

CHAMPIONSHIP 2006

The German Beatbox

Champion: Mando from Berlin!

Mando, come on and join

us up here on the stage!

Mando, from the

the new German Human

Beatbox Champion!

Congratulations!

You won the Fourth German

Championship! Here's your certificate.

Now the winner will serve up

some beats with the golden mike!

We need the blue cable, guys!

Looks like it works. Thanks!

- All right!

We need to set up for later.

When I give a workshop, one

of the main things I try to do

is tell people about what Hip-Hop is,

what its origins are and what it means.

There are five

elements to Hip-Hop.

First of all the DJs, the

guys on the turntables,

Then there's the MC,

the Master of Ceremonies.

That's something a lot

of newcomers don't know.

And then...

Next there's Breakdance.

Breakdance is a word

the media coined, though.

The real term for Breakdance

is actually "b-boying. "

But the media dubbed it Breakdancing,

so we'll use that term for the moment.

Then there's graffiti...

Some call it vandalism,

but we disagree.

Sure, there are jerks who scratch

their tag into every glass pane around.

You can't even read them.

To me, that is vandalism.

And there's Beatboxing,

the fifth element.

We had to fight hard to get it

officially recognized as such.

About three years ago we won,

and now it's the fifth element.

Wait... How did that go again?

Right...

Let's hear some Rap.

Wherever in Berlin that I go The

DJs ain't got soul, ain't got flow

All the stuff that I'm

hearin' Is so shitty and dreary

Every jerk thinks he's

king Even kids of ten

Not yet in their teens

Get f*cked up in this scene

The system's a bitch Every

jerk wants to get rich

Pen bad rhymes about tits and

speed And call himself an MC

To know what I mean

Check out Rap City Berlin

You suck, your business is weak

Listen to me, you kids in our scene

You're way better

than those freaks!

This aggro vibe in Berlin

That sucks, it's got to stop

And it's going

to k*ll Hip-Hop

Cool. You done?

- Yup, done.

My turn.

- Okay, you rap now.

And I'll do Beatbox?

- Yeah.

Sittin' here on the meadow

Feelin' pretty mellow

Yeah, this is cool Though

I wish I had a stool

Having a root up my butt kinda

blows But that's okay, I got flow

Sitting on the grass

That's got class

Cool, huh? Bet you can't top that.

- Yeah. Strike!

Right! All right!

I grew up in a

high-rise project.

I said to my mom once the

streets were my school.

But that's bullshit.

I'm a pretty normal guy.

My family's cool, but

my dad's an assh*le.

He left us when I was ten.

My mom told him to f*ck off.

It was better that way,

though at first I freaked out.

They asked me who I wanted

to live with and I said

I'd rather live on the street.

I tried it, but I

lasted about two hours.

Then I'd had it and

went home crying.

But that's history.

Anyway, I grew up in what

used to be East Berlin

and dropped out

of high school.

I had other things on my

mind, and I mean, literally.

Around the same time I moved closer

to the center, to Friedrichshain.

I got a job where I trained to be

a game-level designer, bla bla...

What can I say, I

think do pretty well.

People always say

I'm spaced out.

But I'm no space cadet,

I know what I'm doing.

What's taking him so long?

- Yeah...

If that flake isn't here by

the time I count to three!

One...

Two...

Two-and-a-half...

Lucky for him!

- That was close.

Coming!

That's it, keep it up, guys!

Sorry, I had to go buy beer.

The beginning is fairly easy.

It starts out with a hi-hat...

That kind of thing.

It starts out smooth.

It's fairly slow at first.

And then it builds up.

- Right, later it's...

And who's going to

do... the hi-hat?

Me.

- I agree.

My parents are from Argentina,

from San Nicols near Buenos Aires.

It's around 30 kilometers

south of the capital,

about as far away as

Bonn is from Cologne.

I was born here in Germany.

I've been doing

Beatbox for six years.

And I really enjoy

doing lip disco.

The battles are where you

get together and meet people.

It's like a forum where Beatboxers

meet, in Germany at least.

And then we have jam

sessions on the street.

Just like in the Bronx, with

braziers and "yo!" all around.

Well, almost... It

was dark, anyway.

So, we had this session and

they showed me some stuff...

And Mando said he

could tell I had talent,

but we both kind of

held back at first.

It was funny, he was the only one

who was holding back like that.

I suspected right away there was more...

- That he had more tricks up his sleeve.

'Cause everyone else was

going all out to impress,

but he just listened in, with

maybe a "pfft" now and then...

But the others...

- Yeah.

Then we realized we were

way cooler than the others,

so we swapped numbers and

decided to get together.

We'd heard there was a

championship for teams...

So they exchanged

numbers and met,

and Mando told me that

he'd met the horse guy.

I said, "Oh, the horse guy.

" I called him Jolly Jumper.

That's Lucky Luke's horse.

Show him why they call you that.

- Yeah!

Well, it's because...

It's 'cause of a sound I really like

and was the first to perform on stage.

Then there was the

Hip-Hop World Challenge...

We were the only team representing

Germany, which was great.

The jury awarded us second place,

that is, we were vice world champions,

but unfortunately that's not official.

- No official title is bestowed.

The jury just mentioned it in passing.

- That was a shame.

They loved it and told

us it was really close.

But in the end Australia won both

the solo and team competition,

something we hope

to do this year.

There's something going on in

Berlin pretty much every week.

In 2005 we gave

Meaning we were drunk

at least 83 times.

Where does Beatbox

fit in with Hip-Hop?

It's said to be "the

fifth element"...

I disagree: I

consider it the first.

The technique is

difficult to learn

It requires a lot

tongue and finger skills,

plus a good sense of

rhythm and musical talent...

Beatbox isn't just Hip-Hop. You

can apply it to any musical genre:

Drum 'n' Bass, Techno,

Reggae, Ragga, Dance Hall...

Besides that,

Beatbox can be used

to achieve all kinds of

special effects, of course.

You can imitate horses,

explosions, helicopters...

The Foley artist's craft, which

came in with silent films...

...is now called Beatboxing.

With 4XSample, we always prepare

sets of about four to six minutes.

For the simple reason that that's the

time limit you have in most battles.

Usually we rehearse at

my house or Mando's...

We listen to songs we want to

cover or use for bastard pop,

where you mix the b*at from one

track with lyrics from another.

So we'll work out a set, and in

between maybe do some freestyle.

We'll just jam till we

come up with something cool

or an interesting pattern.

Pattern are specific sequences of

measures that can vary in length

and are repeated in loops.

And that's how sets are born.

But we've started using ten-minute

sets. It just gives you more time.

Four minutes, that

can be exhausting.

We did one set in the 2005

championships that contained 14 songs.

Just imagine, 14 songs in four

minutes, plus scratches and solo parts!

It gets too much for people to take

in. Of course we hear every single b*at,

but for the audience,

it's just a blur.

By the time they recognize a song

and start clapping, it's long gone.

So we're cooling it down...

Doing longer sets...

and writing them down.

I'll kick the b*at, you rap?

- Like always.

Yup.

- Yup.

What tempo?

- I don't know, around 95 or 98 bpm.

Okay...

No, seriously...

Sittin' here in the

park Makin' our mark

Enjoyin' the weather

Chillin' together

Berlinutz says turn it up, I agree

Berlin's cool, the place to be

And we're lovin' it, livin'

it, Beatboxin' and rappin' it.

That's me, I'm not no hectic MC

I do it nice and cool and easy

Keeping things real in my head So

many MCs in this town are stupid

So come on down And

see the best in town:

Wetlipz, Berlinutz, Zirkus Mandolini

And all the girls in bikinis

Girls dancing, baring it all And

I'll b*at that weenie MC at pinball

I'm all charged with energy

Just like that dolphin on TV

So come and see us anytime We're

in our prime, we have the rhymes

Moving our lips a mile a minute

Keeps us sharp, keeps us fit

Oops, lost my thread But

that's okay, time for bed

Tomorrow it's off to work in

Neuklln Early bird gets the worm

When I do Beatboxing,

I'm the kind of guy who...

...was born to make other people laugh.

It may sound weird, but it's true.

It makes me happy when

I can get people to laugh

and say, "That guy's

cool. I dig him. "

That goes for when I

perform on stage, too.

You joke around with the

audience, keep the banter coming...

If a guy heckles, I might josh

him, "Just a minute, Sugar!"

Once they're laughing and

eating out of your hand...

Then you put on your best

show and they lap it up...

That's like pure gold.

That's just the best.

And I just go with

the flow and enjoy it.

When I get home from my drum

lessons, I always practice

the new patterns with my mouth.

- Cool. What does that sound like?

Like this...

Wow.

Great... job... I'll say!

Now let's have some

yummy cocoa, okay?

I'm Bee Low from Berlin and

I founded Beatbox Battle.

I busted my ass over

the last few years

to provide the German

Beatbox community

with a forum for

fair competition.

I started out

hosting DJ battles.

I would time the

DJs with a stopwatch,

each one would get 90 seconds.

And when there was

a technical glitch,

the sound guys had to

replug cables or whatever...

In situations like that, as

the host I'd take the mike...

...and keep the audience

entertained with some beats

till the next act went on.

That's when I realized

how well Beatbox went over.

People liked it in its own

right, apart from the battles.

So I thought, 'Why not

have our own event? '

And the idea for the Beatbox

Championship was born.

The plans gradually

took on shape in 2001.

Maxim, may he rest in peace, who's

sadly no longer on this planet...

He and I thought everything through

and planned it all out together.

And on September

the first German Championships at

the Icon in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg.

Zeero won the first title in

we did some publicity work,

sent out press releases...

We spread the word to people,

and the feedback was incredible.

Right away, we were invited

to the Austrian championship...

Zeero and I traveled

to Switzerland,

and it continued with Poland, the

Czech Republic, Finland, the UK...

Beatbox Battle was everywhere.

I was at all the events.

Usually I was on the jury,

as I couldn't very well host

in Finnish or whatever...

Two champions, and the

man who made them: Me.

Hey!

- Hi! You have ten minutes?

Sure.

- Great.

Hi, there. How are you doing?

Here are the contracts.

Pretty standard.

A copy for each of us.

But don't let them see.

That's strictly confidential.

- Okay.

sh*t, I'm in business

but I haven't seen a cent.

It pisses me off, honestly.

As I was saying, for

the past few years

I've been hosting

events throughout Europe.

That includes DJ Championships

held by the ITF and DMC,

Breakdance championships,

and various Rap battles.

I've seen the dissing at Rap

battles. "I'll f*ck your mama... "

"Your daddy this or that... "

And then a big fight breaks out,

bottles fly, the cops come...

And in the end the lights

go on and the party's ruined.

That's not my scene. To me,

it's about the element...

It's about demonstrating our

skills on stage in a fair way,

showing what we can do,

something not everyone can do.

And, without wanting to boast,

battling in a fair competition.

That's why I always

try to convey to people:

Being there is what counts, not

winning. Get to know each other...

It's not about "that guy's

my enemy" and all that.

Sure, when they're on

stage, face to face,

they'll eyeball each other

and try look intimidating,

you know, mock

sh**ting and stabbing...

But there's no real

v*olence of any kind.

And when the show is over

and they go backstage,

it's friendly handshakes

and slaps on the back,

and they swap numbers

and e-mail addresses.

The best example is the

They met at a Beatbox Battle,

they really hit it off,

and decided to found a crew.

Now they do

professional recordings.

I'm Zeero, two-time

German Beatbox Champion.

I won twice, but the bigger deal

to me is that I was the first.

That's something no one

can ever take from me.

We were 13 or 14.

I don't know if

I should say this,

but weed was actually

what brought us together.

I had this computer game he

liked and he had the connections.

So we got together one evening,

hung out, gamed, and got high.

He asked if I wanted

to listen to some music.

I figured he meant on his ghetto

blaster and said "sure" and kept playing.

When he started making these

sounds, I just stared and thought,

'Wow, what's that? ' I had

never heard anything like it.

And he knew some ace

tricks, for those days.

First I just watched five or ten

minutes as he did this Breakdance b*at.

And then he went on to do a whole

show with all sorts of beats,

and I went on playing

Mortal Kombat on the side.

That was my first

encounter with Beatbox.

There was this

telephone chat...

People would meet in

chat rooms and talk,

kind of like on the Internet

today, but on the phone.

I recognized a friend's voice,

but he didn't recognize me.

So I start saying his

name in a robot voice

and imitating Rahzel beats.

He thought it was the CD

and is like, "Cool, Rahzel!"

He got the CD 'cause of me,

actually. So when I said his name,

he was bowled over.

"Hey, who is this?"

When he realized

it was me, he said,

"Hey, I want to see you do that

myself. I bet you used a computer!"

When I did a demonstration, he said,

"That's great, you should keep it up. "

Soon after that

I met Bee Low...

He got me to go on stage with him,

and it kind of went from there.

Soon people knew about

me, a few, at least.

Okay, that's enough!

- Out, out!

Bee Low, he's some

guy! Maximum respect!

Just thinking of him

makes me grin, you know?

The way I see it, Bee Low

is the godfather of Beatbox.

The seminal battler,

in Germany, especially.

He's amazing. I just love him.

He MCs at all the Beatbox battles.

He pretty much invented the scene.

It was a struggle at first, but

now it's a Europe-wide thing.

Worldwide, even.

Bee Low knows

people everywhere.

And practically every Beatboxer

in the world knows who he is.

So, really, all I can say is:

Maximum respect to Bee Low!

Oralic Sound Machines,

Machines, Machines...

For me, it all started when...

Around '83 or '84.

It was a bit different

with me than most others.

I didn't get into it by

hearing stuff from the States.

In my case it all started with me

trying to imitate different sounds.

I actually wanted to do

stand-up comedy originally.

I experimented a lot.

I'd do animal noises James

Brown loops, and stuff like that.

I'd do live performances,

with just a mike.

And it really went

over well, too.

I traveled all over the place.

And then, sometime

in '84 or '85,

someone told me Beatboxing

had its roots in Hip-Hop.

And that someone was Maxim.

I had my posse in Wedding,

the part of Berlin where

I was born and raised.

Maxim's scene was

Kreuzberg and Schneberg.

We each did our thing on our own turf,

but then we got to know each other.

But due to the tensions

between Wedding and Kreuzberg

we'd actually meet

secretly to practice.

Before the Wall fell, we used to

meet at Friedrichstrasse station

'cause it was neutral territory

and the cops couldn't bother us.

We became good friends with the

guys from the BVG transit authority.

They'd turn the key,

a huge wrench, and say,

"Stand clear of

the closing doors. "

And there would be a microphone

and speakers on the left side,

and the same thing

on the right side.

So, we got hold of one of the keys

and presto: Beatbox in the subway.

Back when I

started coming here

and started hanging out and I

first heard them doing Beatbox,

I thought, 'What's that? '

I was kind of intrigued by it,

but I at first I was too shy

to get up in front of the

guys all alone, as a girl.

But Mesia kept saying, "Come

on, why don't you give it a try?"

I was still scared, but finally

I got up my nerve and did.

It kind of went from there.

I kept at it... and here I am.

Mesia and those guys

were my teachers.

They showed me lots of stuff.

I'm Neves, and my Beatbox group

is called Oralic Sound Machines.

It's been about five years. At

first I wasn't into it at all.

I thought it was really weird,

like: 'What the hell is that? '

But then one day I went

to see Killa Kela perform.

He's from the U.K. And

he's really well known.

I ended up talking to him, and

after the show I was so psyched

that I just had to learn that

and get so good that people

would really get off on it.

Just percussion, melodies...

You know, stuff

that grabs people.

And things just kind of fell into

place. I practiced a lot on my own...

Then a year or two later, I met Mesia,

who was still with Maxim back then.

I attended a few Beatbox

workshops, and it went from there.

I'm sorry to say Maxim

passed away a few years ago.

A situation got out of hand

and there was a big blow up.

But Mesia is the one

to ask about that.

He knows more

about it than I do.

The only people who

know what really happened

are the ones who were there.

But according to...

...the official story, at least,

the official version of events,

his wife was out shopping...

She had the baby

along in a stroller.

She didn't get a shopping cart

'cause she couldn't push both,

so she loaded the

groceries onto the stroller.

The problem was, this older

man took offense to that,

or however you

want to call it.

He went running to the cashier

and accused her of shoplifting

'cause she wasn't

using a cart, whatever.

Which was true, she

was using the stroller.

Anyway, the man sent the cashier

over, but when he saw her,

he said, "Oh, she's a regular customer!

She never uses a cart, it's no problem. "

Well, the old

geezer got upset...

He felt he wasn't being taken seriously,

whatever, and made a huge scene.

Anyway, it was Maxim's birthday.

That's why she'd gone shopping at all.

So she gets home and tells him about

it, not to egg him on, but just...

"Unbelievable, this old geezer

just accused me of stealing!"

"He's still down there, making a scene

and ranting on about calling the cops. "

So Maxim goes down to

set things straight.

"We're good customers

here and we don't steal. "

"So please stop

harassing my wife. "

Well, before he could

even finish his sentence,

the guy pulled a Kn*fe and

stabbed him in the chest.

And as luck would have

it, or bad luck, rather...

...he got him

right in the heart.

It wasn't even a long Kn*fe,

either. Just an itty-bitty thing.

I guess as a young man he must've

had special m*llitary training.

Either in the West or East German army.

Whatever, one s*ab and he k*lled him.

Thank you all for coming...

...and being here

to support his mom.

We only just found out she comes

here every year to honor Maxim,

at the site where he d*ed.

And as we already said,

he not only d*ed on that

day, it was his birthday, too.

I mean, on the same

day, that's just...

How could something

like that happen?

We still can't grasp it, the wound

still sits deep in his brothers' hearts.

We can't forget

him, because Maxim...

Let me just say a few

words about Maxim...

Maxim was the one who

launched Hip-Hop in Berlin.

He was the one who

introduced it to people here.

No one had even heard

of Hip-Hop in '82.

He was the one who first brought

all the American stuff over here.

He passed it on to the

kids and got them interested

so they wouldn't devote their energy

to criminal pursuits or whatever,

but to dancing instead.

'Cause Hip-Hop is an entire culture,

a culture Maxim tried to foster

and worked to preserve.

And...

As I said, it's hard for

me to find the right words,

'cause this is the

place where he d*ed.

Where he was k*lled in

cold blood, if you ask me.

But the authorities

didn't see it that way,

and we just can't

understand that.

We still can't

quite believe it.

And don't forget the

ideals Maxim upheld:

No v*olence and no intolerance...

toward people of other races.

Maxim didn't care if you were

German, Turkish, Arab or whatever.

He invited groups from

the West to come to Berlin.

When bitter turf battles

were being waged here

over tags or streets

or names or whatever...

Maxim made people see

that wasn't the way to go,

that wasn't the message

of Hip-Hop culture.

Maxim tried to unite

us, make us one.

Maxim lives on in all

of us, in our hearts.

Thank you, everybody.

So there I was, on my own.

At first, I was ready to quit.

I mean, you work hard and

practice for ten or twelve years,

only to be told

you can forget it,

it's all over 'cause

your partner d*ed...

You wouldn't believe the

stuff I had to listen to.

Anyway, I tried to...

I wouldn't say escape,

but get my mind on other

things, by working like a fiend.

Mostly with young people,

holding workshops and so on,

to carry on what we'd started.

If we couldn't

work as a group,

at least I could pass the legacy

on to the kids we'd been coaching.

And somehow, the

spark really ignited...

Eventually, we had a

group of about ten students

who were totally keen to learn

and work together as a group.

So one of them said, "Maxim's gone.

You two were Oralic Sound Machines. "

"You taught us. Now we'll

be Oralic Sound Machines. "

I thought that

was a great idea.

The cool thing about Maxim,

what fascinates me, is...

Yeah, initially it was with

Mesia, but also on his own...

He'd go to the kids on the

streets and encourage them

to do something: Breakdance,

scratching, DJ-ing, whatever.

He inspired them,

showed them they could do more than

just dis each other and get in fights.

He made them see that's not cool.

Beatboxing, Breakdancing, turntabling...

Winning people over with

skill... that's cool.

I really respect him for that.

There are a lot of kids out

there with nowhere to go.

Their parents have their own

problems and they're on the streets,

harassing cigarette vendors

for fun. That's just the pits.

That's where Maxim tried

to make a difference,

and I wish a lot more people

would follow his example.

That's what we're trying to do,

anyway: Love, peace and Beatbox.

I saw how Maxim and the

Old School legend Sugar Box

incorporated Beatbox in their

shows and the audiences loved it.

That really inspired

me when I was a kid.

And I hung out

with Maxim a lot.

He was like a

big brother to me.

He introduced me to graffiti

and Beatbox and all that.

Most important, he was a good

friend. That went beyond Hip-Hop.

And sadly, with

his tragic death,

when he was m*rder*d

on his 33rd birthday,

our dream d*ed along with him.

Maxim had the potential

to go really far

and make a true

difference in this world.

But we're going to keep nurturing

the roots we put down with him

and build on them

along with DJ Mesia.

And we'll hold them in respect

and make sure others do, too.

We know Maxim is watching from up there

and trusts us to do the right thing:

Not to sell out the Beatbox

community but to be there for them.

Women in the Beatbox scene...

There aren't very many.

I think partly it's

because a lot of them think

they could never

learn to do that.

It is often pretty heavy

on the bass, after all.

But besides that,

I think maybe...

I guess a lot of them,

how should I say...

...are kind of inhibited.

They're scared to try it...

...and to venture

into that world.

And you do have to prove

yourself, after all.

The cool thing about Beatboxing

is you don't need any equipment.

Just yourself, and stamina.

You can realize

your ideas right away

and turn them into music.

You can do it

anywhere, anytime.

You can have fun

and entertain others.

Time to take off winter attire

The down jacket's got to go

Get rid of that spare tire Now

it's fun in the sun, let's go

Let's play hooky and have a

lark Let's go party in the park

A few 'shrooms and some weed

What fun, that's all we need

Now it's light till ten p. m.

We can hang in the park and jam

We can barbecue and party all

night Hey, it's 90 degrees outside

Time for block parties, open-air

Feel that tropical flair, oh yeah

Girls strut their stuff, lookin'

pretty It's summer in the city

Head for the park or a pool that's

near Hey, this is our time of year

Berlin seems far away And

who needs money, anyway?

The love, the heat, what you

feel That's it, the real deal

Just get out, go for it, man!

Yeah, Hip-Hop...

Hip-Hop is cool,

definitely. And...

I think the whole Hip-Hop

lifestyle is pretty cool.

But it can be kind of

tiring and infantile, too.

Some things really get on my nerves,

like those MCs on "Rap City Berlin. "

They're not all like that, but a lot.

- Pretty much everyone but me.

Hip-Hop is just a word.

They needed a name they could use

to introduce it to the wider public.

I only heard the

term Hip-Hop later.

In '83 I was into Breakdance,

as a dance form and as music.

Which was basically

breakbeats...

...that the MC

would rap along to.

It wasn't like today's Rap,

where guys like 50 Cent

combine R&B with rap passages.

Back then the DJ was the main

element. The DJ was the king on stage.

The MC was the sidekick who

presented him: "This is my DJ!"

"Yo, you wanna hear what my DJ

can do? Then listen up, folks!"

I was being crap on purpose

just now, to make a point.

Back then MCs

didn't really do Rap.

Sure, Grandmaster Flash on The Message,

the Furious Five... they rapped.

It was a stylistic element. And

a style in its own right, sure...

But we never referred to it as Hip-Hop.

To me it was Rap music and Breakdance.

And to our mind, breakbeats

were the defining feature.

What it's really about is a

certain attitude, a lifestyle.

It's meaningful 'cause

you're part of a community,

if you're not into the MC

scatology thing, that is.

And it's a culture

understood around the world.

Like Heavy Metal is...

I mean, what is hard rock?

It's big hair, tattoos, riding

a Harley, I don't know...

It's a way of life.

And the same is true of

Hip-Hop: It's a way of life.

There's a certain worldwide consensus

about what constitutes Hip-Hop.

You move within those parameters

and try to get the most out of them.

In brief: It's a culture

and a way of life.

In the beginning, Hip-Hop

was about hanging in the hood,

"us against the world," but

it's not like that anymore.

Every Hip-Hopper says he's the greatest,

the coolest, has the biggest balls...

And everyone else is gay... or a "ho. "

- But then...

But if everyone sucks except for

you, who's going to buy your stuff?

Djibutie has a great line:

The one people respect is king.

Not the guy who

crowns himself.

There are a lot of posers

in Rap who say they're king.

"I'm the greatest, the baddest,

for this and that reason... "

They don't get what Rap is about.

It's about being a community,

not about being the greatest.

If people say you're the greatest,

fine, but not 'cause you tell them to,

but 'cause they liked your

track and say so on their own.

That's what Rap's about:

Not bigger balls or obscenity,

but skill and smarts.

I want to welcome

you all tonight

to Kalkscheune for the Fifth

German Beatbox Championship!

But before we start...

You guys were great last week!

- Thanks.

But you left so fast...

- Yeah, I was pretty b*at.

It's hard physical labor, about

as tiring as construction work.

You're going on alone today?

- Yeah.

Another guy from my band

is also competing alone.

The short one?

- No, the tall skinny guy.

The guy from Zirkus Mandolini?

- Oh, okay.

Right... Wetlipz, or Kyrill.

So you may have to go up against him?

- Yeah.

It's happened twice.

It sucks, but...

Depending on how things go, we might

face each other early on or later.

In Munich it wasn't till

the final. That was great.

I ended up winning,

but we had so much fun

'cause we knew that either

way, we'd made the finals.

Tonight we're really

going to rock the house!

We're back to celebrate

our fifth birthday,

the Fifth German Beatbox

Championship, here in Berlin!

We just toured Germany and

held five preliminary rounds,

with the four best from each

one qualifying for the final.

Tonight...

...the best young talents

in Human Beatboxing

from all over Germany will

be performing on this stage.

They're going to get those

mikes rocking for you...

And you know what else?

They're going to party and

have a great time with you guys!

'Cause we're not

like all those haters

always dissing each other

"Your mom this, bla bla... "

We're a community and we're going to

represent tonight with all of you guys!

Beatbox, battle style!

Get ready for Wetlipz!

The two-minute elimination

round... starts now: Go!

Let's hear it for... Wetlipz!

That was... Wetlipz!

With the whinnying

horse on the mike!

We'll carry on with the battle

here in about ten minutes.

So you four Beatboxers get ready,

'cause this is the real thing!

Man-do!

Dark-manz!

And the first battle we're going

to see is Mando versus Darkmanz!

Uh, yeah, it was

good... just not for me.

But even if I wasn't

successful, I had fun.

The jury decides...

Butjurors are only human, too.

So, I didn't make it past the

first round, but whatever...

My band 4XSample won the

German Championship, so...

Maybe I'm better

as part of a band.

Maybe Mando will get to the

final. We'll see in a minute.

In any case, he already made it

past some pretty tough competitors.

I definitely think he

ought to be in the final.

But we'll see. The jury

decides, and jurors are human.

There can only be two

people in the final.

I see a lot of you are waving flags...

Let me see, who has the most fans?

Yeah, Mando's in the

final. He's done it again!

Mando will battle Robeat for the

title of Fifth German Beatbox Champion.

Okay, Berlin...

It's been an exciting night,

and now here's the moment

we've all been waiting for...

Robeat: Get ready, get set...

And go!

You play the trumpet? Me, too.

You play the guitar? Me, too.

You want to drive? I'd take

the subway if I were you.

Okay, get a load of this...

My new shoes do

some mean squeaks...

And now backwards.

I would say that was

pretty amazing, guys!

That was the final with

Robeat versus Mando!

Zeero, come on

up here, please!

Zeero will present

the golden microphone.

As you know, Zeero has

two golden mikes himself,

as a two-time German

Beatbox Champion.

And today he'll present the

golden mike to the new champion.

Mando is here, he's ready...

Okay, both finalists are

up here on the stage...

We'll keep it short and sweet:

Robeat, congratulations

on winning second place!

The German Vice-Champion!

Congratulations!

Second place... congratulations,

man! All the best!

Robeat, your show's the best,

so take it to Stuttgart...

You didn't win this time...

But Stuttgart won in soccer, maybe

the team can give you something

to go with this

certificate from us.

But, and I only wish Berlin's

soccer team were so lucky...

The old and new

Beatbox Champion is...

The title stays in Berlin...

Our maximum respect to...

...Mando, from

the 4XSample crew!

First of all, I want

to thank my family,

who supported me always!

When I made funny noises in the

shower, they didn't say I was crazy.

They said, "Hmm, interesting.

If you enjoy it, keep at it. "

I've been at it for eight

years, and it's my life.

And my girlfriend and all

my friends are here tonight,

and I want to thank

you all for being here!

My roommate... My band...

Thanks to everyone,

this is awesome!

And of course... Robeat!

I want you to know he's the

biggest talent around today,

and one of the youngest, too.

He is just amazing, so

give a big hand to Robeat!

Enough bla bla, now for an

encore before I get wasted!

I hope you'll join me

for a little session.

I want to play, too.

- Okay, everybody join in.

You have to break

in the gold mike.

Christen it with spit.

- Okay, here goes...

Volker! Thank you, thank you!

It was awesome.

It was... a hard-won victory.

I'm dead tired, and all

I want is to get wasted

and celebrate with the

band and all my friends.

I have to pee really bad,

but I always have time

for you guys: How are you?

A lot has been happening for me

lately: Gigs, projects, and so on,

that have helped me

grow as an artist.

That's one reason I was fortunate

enough to win the title again.

It's important to me

to keep developing.

You have keep pushing yourself

and keep fit if you want

to play in the big league.

And I try to do that: I

quit smoking, I go jogging...

I go swimming and

work out regularly.

Beatboxing is very demanding

physically, and if you smoke

and don't keep fit

through exercise,

you're going to be

exhausted after one round.

You can't keep your arms up.

You need great stomach muscles,

which I don't have, but...

But you need physical stamina.

And I try to keep as

physically fit as possible

so I can get through all

the rounds on a day like this

and still be able to

stand and talk to you guys.

Well, I have a big

piece of paper...

...or several, actually,

with my entire repertoire.

What you see here...

is everything I can do.

That's my entire

Beatbox art right there.

I should point out that the

greatest crime in a battle

is to repeat yourself.

If you do one b*at three times,

the jury will subtract points.

The other guy might not be as good,

but he'll win if you repeat yourself.

He'll be rewarded for having

the guts to try new things.

That's why I wrote

down everything I do:

The old stuff, the new stuff,

the moves, the tricks...

Then I cross out what I've done

after each battle and use what's left.

In the end there were five

or six I hadn't done yet

that I was able to use, with

success. It worked out great.

And my opponent played

along beautifully.

He left the goal

wide open for me.

All I had to do was

kick the ball in.

Though I have to say that Robeat,

who was second and won for Best Show,

really is a huge young talent.

I'm sure that in years to come we'll

be seeing some wild stuff from him

and he'll be a major force

in the German Beatbox scene.

As for my future, I think

I'll try to win a third title.

If I succeed... yippee.

If I don't... boo-hoo.

Either way, I'll

participate one more time

and try to go for a triple.

If I pull it off,

I'd be the first

to be German Champion

three times in a row.

Then I'd retire, from

the Championships, anyway.

Of course I still have my band.

We're going to tour, go to New York...

Beatboxing will

always be in my life.

But most people in the

battling scene are really young,

and I don't think I'll want

to do that after next year.

I'll go for it one more time.

I'll work even harder,

come with new sounds and

an even longer list...

Then maybe I can pull it

off. If not, at least I tried.

But I did it twice,

like Zeero before me.

Major respect to him for that.

I just experienced for myself

how hard it is to defend a title.

Boy, I thought it would...

No, I didn't think it would be

easier, but I hoped it would.

Way cool!

- Thank you all!

First there was Bee Low Then

came Mesia and all them bro's

Then 4XSample came on the

scene And stole the show

Sorry, just kidding, you see

Mesia, Bee Low and me go back a ways

It was tough for all of

us Back in the early days

Beatbox wasn't for cash, just kicks

Berlin was all workshops and basics

Now Beatbox has unfurled

Its banner around the world

Now Bee Low tours the globe, he rules

And Mesia produces hits, way cool

Maxim, you'd be proud So

have fun up on your cloud

Life's a breeze, you know If you

take it easy, go with the flow

Do your thing, let your ideas

blossom Like 4XSample, man, awesome

And Pirat from Berlinutz

His rhymes kick butt, he rocks

Now he's tryin' out Beatbox

Most Beatbox ain't worth a mention

Him and my band are the only exception

But whatever, we're just going to jam

Here in some park whose name I forgot

But this sh*t is hot So

peace, Bee Low, peace Mesia

So peace to Maxim and peace to me

And peace to 4XSample, definitely

Here it comes: The Big Bang!

There's a basic step in

Breakdance: The six-step.

And there are three

basic elements in Beatbox.

Here's the first: The kick.

Make it sharper. Press

your lips together hard.

One more time?

That's better.

The next is the hi-hat. You

make a "ts" sound, like this.

Or just "ttt-ttt"...

Like this, you know?

I'll do it, then you try.

You can do better than that.

That's more like it.

One more time. Okay.

Next you make a "k"

sound, like this...

And then put them

all together...

I have a pointer for you, as

someone just starting out in Beatbox.

It helps to say "bad cat!"

in German: "Bse Katze!"

Training module

one: "Bse Katze!"