Muslim Lifestyle

Hamzah Fletcher - The Human Beatboxer

Issue 65 February 2010

The human voice is an extraordinary instrument capable of great oratory, lilting ballads and operatic arias. On meeting Hamza Fletcher, I realise there is another use: beatboxing. The 17 year old Birmingham A-level discovered his talent as a human beatboxer three years ago. For those of you who not familiar with the art, it is basically making beats and drum sounds using only vocals and mouth.

Hamza confesses that he has, “Been making silly noises since I was about 12 years old”, but it was seeing beatbox professional Kenny Muhammed – ‘The Human Orchestra’ that inspired him to take his noises to another level. Refining his talent through the video tutorials on the website www.humanbeatbox.com, Hamza’s ability to use his voice to sound like an instrument has taken him to an unusual array of events.  “I’ve performed at different shows around the UK including some talent shows. I recently won the Birmingham heat of the YM Talent Search, and then I won the whole event in the London finals.” 

PORTRAIT ALEX RUMFORD