I think it was sometime a decade ago when I first encountered authentic percussive noises magnificently flowing out an average individual’s mouth—and come on, tell me you weren’t rocked out of your shoes like I was.
Unknown to my infant Hip-hop mind at that time, I had no idea that the art of “Beatboxing” was active and alive in the Hip-hop scene—and today happens to mark its greatest pioneering agent, Douglas E. Davis, aka Doug E. Fresh.
Imminently donning the title, “The Human Beatbox”, Fresh brilliantly and unbelievably imitated drum machine sounds, as well as impressive special effects through his distinct mastery over his mouth, lips, gums, throat, tongue, and a common microphone.
Before his reign as Beatbox King, Fresh shook ground in Hip-hop with the Get Fresh Crew. It was through the Danya/Reality Records-produced song “The Show”, and another track “La Di Da Di—which featured Fresh provided solid beatboxing during the song’s entirety—that Fresh came to prominence as a strong force inherent in the industry.
Since then, both songs have been acclaimed as “two of the all-time greatest early Hip-hop classics” as well as being regarded as one among the first and only singles possessing two hit-songs on the same album. “The Show” won the UK Singles Chart’s #7 spot in 1985.
Fresh imminently became a powerful figure in the Hip-hop scene, exhibiting his unique percussive prowess—which significantly began a trend, that many have picked up and continue practicing to this day. The Beatbox King has also provided significant collaborations with several iconic artists, such as MC Hammer and Big Daddy Kane.
Oh, and did I mention Fresh’s moves were the inspiration behind Cali Swag District 2010’s “Teach Me How To Dougie”? That’ll probably get you Dougie-ing to his monstrous beatbox tracks, as we celebrate Doug E Fresh’s birthday!
Birthday Greetings go out to the King of Beatbox!
By Jods Arboleda for RAPStation.com
