Rattle Battle: Baby Beatboxing
Beatboxer Bigg Taj tries to put down in words his experience with the mums and babies at Expecting Something in Wester Hailes.
A beautiful smile can transport you miles
This bar (lyric) was written by one of the talented mums in our Wester Hailes Group.
I’ve witnessed it a few times over the last however many years I’ve worked with Starcatchers – but I’m not sure I’ve captured it before in writing. I’m going to try:
Every once in a while an amazing artist (someone who has spent several hours every day, every spare minute practicing their craft, perfecting a skill, experimenting, thinking and working it out; someone who has taken knockbacks and made sacrifices but never been deterred; someone who has real love for what they do; someone who has regularly made a huge audience in a concert hall, theatre or venue catch their breath) turns up. And they perform/ create/ offer something to a tiny baby and their carers. Perhaps it is a first for both baby and artist- this intimate one-on-one performance style? Or perhaps it has only happened before for the artist and their baby in private at their home. It takes place just meters away from me, and the room stops still. All watch both the performer and the reaction of the baby who appears to instinctively connect with and appreciate the artist. This moment sends ripples through the room. The last time this happened for me it was a classical musician. This week it was a beatboxer.
One of the mums in our Wester Hailes group is a fan of rap music and beatboxing. She often writes amazing lyrics and shares them with us. We love it- and the babies have been enjoying the rap playlist too. So we asked Bigg Taj if he would come in and do a session with us. He shared some pure beatboxing with us, and some stories about his career and passion for making music. He listened to all the things that the group wants to express at the moment and we came up with some bars together. It was an inspiring day- potentially the start of something bigger that we can make together.
Beatboxer Bigg Taj at Expecting Something Wester Hailes from Starcatchers on Vimeo.