Kickstarter

Hello to all of my friends & supporters, & if we haven’t met before, the name is Shodekeh & I'm a professional Beatboxer & Vocal Percussionist based in Baltimore, MD.

At the age of 8, I was first watched "Krush Groove" which featured the legendary Darren Robinson, better known as Buffy the Human Beatbox (from The Fat Boys), & like any kid that sees something that astonishing, I tried to mimic the technique.

I became a serious practitioner of the vocal art in 1997 during my first year in college, where I managed to skip about 85% of my classes in favor of my musically eclectic radio shows "In The Mix" & "The No Doubt Show" & my overwhelming drive to educate myself to become a proficient Beatboxer & expert on a much larger scale of the vocal craft.

I arrived in Baltimore with my mind open to expanding out of hip hop by entering into the realms of Spoken Word, Poetry, Jazz, Rock, & Experimental Music to name a few varying genres. Eventually I became a professional accompanist @ The Dance Department of Towson University, which has become crucial to the inception of this debut album & it’s overall concept.

Accompanying dance served was a major jumping off point for me to expand my abilities of serving as a composer of vocal & percussion based music. People don’t think of Beatboxing as a tool for creating musical compositions, but as one of the most advanced vocal art forms on the planet, its goal is to create simultaneous musical sections & fuse them through a single effort. A Beatboxer such as myself may encompass the drums, the turntable sound, the didgeridoo, the entire orchestra if need be.  

In 2010 I was inspired to expand my passion for vocal arts beyond myself & into my community, & so I founded Embody: A Series of The Vocal Arts, which will have its continued season in Spring 2013.

Along the way I have had the great honor of performing in my full vocal range with The International Human Beatbox Convention, The American Dance Festival @ Duke University, The Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra, The Conference of World Affairs @ The University of Colorado, (where I served as a panelist among such legends as Roger Ebert), The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, & in "Monk Mix" (a collaboration of remixes of the works of Meredith Monk), as well numerous cultural residencies which have taken me across the globe to New York City, Durham, NC, Washington D.C. Boulder, CO, Vilnius, Lithuania, Russia, & most recently The Republic of Tuva.

At the end of July, I returned from a residency in Tuva, where I had the opportunity to collaborate with world renowned Tuvan musicians & Throat Singers, & through the experience of just being presen among so many legendary practitioners of this ancient form vocal art form, I cultivated a deeper respect for the tradition.

I have returned inspired, more than ever, to begin work on my strictly all vocal & instrumental debut album, MUSE, which at its core is inspired by the art of Modern Dance. Each song will be, at its core, inspired by a specific dancer or “muse,” & led by a different vocal discipline, from Opera to Beatboxing, Throat Singing, Whistling, Death Screaming & so on...


If you contribute to this project for my debut album, your money will assist me in paying fees for a slew of vocal artists, recording time with my esteemed producer extraordinaire Wendel Patrick, studio time, copying & distribution. Plus I’ve got some great incentives that I've created up with for you, from copies of the album MUSE to some truly rare opportunities to go behind the scenes with me as you look into the heart of my musical & creative process.

Over the years, most importantly, nothing I have done has been without the outstanding community of vocal artists & audience which I am deeply honored to be among, & that is why I would like to invite you all to come to The Metro Gallery to celebrate my 10 years in Baltimore through EMBODY Lab: A Catalyst of The Vocal Arts. This will become a regular event moving forward & I have invited a group of remarkable vocalists to join me on Wednesday, November 14th, 8pm @ THE METRO GALLERY ( 1700 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201). It would be my great pleasure if you would join me. This event will be FREE & open to the public!

Also, keep your eyes peeled in the next month, as I launch “Shodekeh’s Baltimore Dance Tour!,” All month I will be roaming the city rocking dance parties from Salsa to Baltimore Club to House to The Breaks (and whatever else I can get my hands on) all throughout the month! Please come out & join the dance floor! I will be putting the word out every day through my fan page on Facebook, so make sure to “like” it so I can keep you all posted!

Please consider donating to this campaign, with your help I look forward to taking a monumental step towards bringing my larger vision for the vocal arts to you & yours.

Thanks so much for listening over the years, & here’s to the future!

Shodekeh