Do Genetics Impact Your Beatboxing?

In this video, we explore the fascinating relationship between genetics and beatboxing ability. Additionally, we'll examine how gender plays a role in beatboxing ability, with studies suggesting that men and women may have genetic differences that affect their vocal range and the ease with which they can produce certain sounds.
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Chapters:
0:00-1:06 Intro
1:07-1:59 Rolling Your R's
2:00-2:32 Curling Your Tongue
2:33-3:22 Making a 3 or 4 Leaf Clover
3:23-4:06 Making a Circle
4:07-4:54 Gaps In Your Teeth
4:55-5:47 Wearing Braces
5:48-8:05 My Thoughts
8:06-9:06 Real Life Example
9:07-10:22 Men vs Women
10:23-11:16 Alternatives
11:17-11:31 Outro
#beatbox #genetics

[@Balistix]

Is having a genetic advantage fair or unfair in beatbox competitions? Why?

[@rori218]

i find it fair bc even with a genetic advantage you would need to invest time in perfecting your special sounds, however a person without the advantage could invest that same time in leveling up even more their basics or other sounds they already know

[@JC-xm9lo]

it's unfair for me, everytime after I play my beatbox my throat will pain after I finish. My voice will immediately change to fucking deep. Not bcuz I did it in improper ways, it's just my whole parts of body are too easy dry my skin and lips always broken and it's my daily life. But, I still play it, juz play a few mins once

[@JoshOMusic]

I think this is what makes the beatboxing scene so fascinating - there ARE people who have certain genetics and can do special sounds, and we’re able to gather them all together in a battle and let them showcase things only they can do. I’d argue that if everyone could do every sound, watching would seem WAY less special.

[@basementboy1910]

Amen

[@Balistix]

That’s a good point, but is it fair to other competitors since the playing field is now different?

[@basementboy1910]

@@Balistix since when has the creative and musical world cared about fairness? Once we are in a competition its PvP, and you will use the advantages you have. Its like doing a sound you know your opponent cant do so its uncounterable

[@JoshOMusic]

@@Balistix I mean, I'm sure there are arguments for both sides. But personally, it would eventually boil down to... "What are you gonna do about it?" People are born with differences, and that's just how it is. Are organizers going to regulate the human voice and how sounds resonate in your cavities in the name of fairness and leveling the playing field? That would seem a bit arbitrary. I'm all for playing every card you're dealt.

[@Balistix]

I’m not arguing that it’s fair or unfair, I’m just here to spur the conversation since objectively it can cause a competitive advantage. And who knows, beatboxing hasn’t evolved to the level of the global stage yet - it’s possible as it grows and begins to become mainstream that regulations could come into play for competitions.

[@lianeleti]

I’m convinced that rolling your tongue can be learned. With a loooot of training and determination, you can learn almost everything. We all have examples of sounds that we thought we would never be able to do and just by training hours and hours we finally unlocked it. Very interesting question though, nice video!

[@thedarkone8867]

I think it is not about genetics.In many languages (and mine ) we talk with r's being rolled

[@ScribblyDoodle]

I agree rolling your tongue can be learned. If I can learn how to roll it inwards, other people can learn to roll it outward. I also think it's possible to learn the 3 or 4 leaf clover, but just very difficult. That being said I also think genetics affect beatboxing. I keep seeing the shape of dlows top teeth, and wonder if that shape helps with the bubble role, or for his teeth clicks being so resonant. The tongue is a muscle, so I think it's possible to learn to manipulate it in different ways that might feel impossible. But you cant control things like the shape of your teeth, or even the shape of your jaw, which would affect how low your OD Bass can get. Obviously things like vocal chord thickness also has a huge impact on how deep your vocal basses are.

[@victorbreaker7]

I would add linguistic culture, a good example is the presence of the letters "R" and "L" in Japanese and Chinese culture. When a person grows up in an environment where their native language does not use certain letters, they are obviously going to be at a disadvantage when it comes to beatboxing. For the simple fact that they don't have the practice that someone else has had their whole life while speaking. I don't go into whether it's fair or unfair, I agree with Josh O that all of this is what makes beatboxing wonderful, special and varied!

[@Balistix]

Never thought of that! Good point.

[@BLOODHOUND_BEATBOX]

Bro such an interesting video I love it 🔥, also a few year back when I learned inward bass I was terrible as u would imagine, well ever since I was 5 years old I had terrible nose bleeds to where they would last up to 40 mins with the worst migraines ever,not to mention had very bad sinus problems as well, well everytime I would do a bass like nasel,throat,or inward it would cause these nose bleeds to occur, well I finally went to go and see a doctor about this situation I've had all my life to see if it could be fixed, well I underwent an hour long surgery to get a giant damage dried up blood vessel that if irritated it would cause it to bleed, and now I no longer have nose bleeds or bad sinus problems, and on top of all of it my basses sounded so clean and refined, so my nose problems I've had forever was holding me back from my full potential.....ironically my name is bloodhound 😅

[@Balistix]

sick story

[@DHawkBeats]

Damn sick!

[@Kh4fra]

Another interesting question is how much your native language affects your abilities to do certain sounds/combos. When you pronounce something a certain way for your whole life and you suddenly need to do something completely different it might be very difficult to do so, hence one language should have an advantage over the other in one field and vice versa. If this wasn't true accents wouldn't exist.

[@rori218]

really interesting topic!! in my experience as a kid i couldnt roll my r's but probably bc i just never learnt it right. sooo around my 15-16 i decided to finally do it and after a couple months i was able to :) thats not the case with every sound of course but sometimes its just dedication and breaking mental barriers

[@vlop6411]

I also couldn’t do any whistle, but with enough practice I’m able to do many whistles now.

[@varen3870]

really thought provoking video! another interesting food for thought is napom; i remember an SBX interview in which he mentioned that the skin of his cheeks were extra flappy / long (he even pulls his cheek with his fingers and indeed, his cheeks are way more flappy than normal), allowing him to create more full sounding liprolls.

[@Balistix]

True!!

[@aribennett5927]

There are some sounds that are simply impossible for some people. Sometimes, it’s hard to know which sounds those are especially when you’re a beginner like myself 🥲 But beatboxing is like any sport in the sense that it is a combination of genetics and hard work that helps someone achieve a high level. Of course also genetics plays a limit in the development of a sound as well. No matter how much practice is done, most people probably won’t be able to do a lip roll as powerful as Napom’s, for example. So it’s another interesting topic to see just how far genetics limit you in how much power you can produce out of a certain sound.

[@MajuhsAlt]

Nice content! anyways im on my way to break my nose to get CLR bass😋

[@Balistix]

bro is dedicated to beatboxing 😭

[@derek_dkf3772]

Brooooo, this si so interesting, an perfect example is the Kim láser technique that i think it comes from the separation of his theets, i also have so i can replicate. Also there was a vídeo of Tomazacre speaking about his bass and others and mention that even the face form affects the texture of the bass. Good video bro.

[@gram_gaming]

underrated vid man

[@briel_vps]

It's awesome to think that some genetic variations can impact our beatboxing, and the restrictions presented find alternative more unique sounds for us - off the top of my head I can name Hiss not being able to do a liproll so he does a clickroll to substitute it. Vino's throat genetics is also another one to note as his throat bass is WAYYY different from anyone else's. Another one I can think of is my own inward bass texture where I use my tongue to mimic a tunnel (it kinda sounds like Osis's), the first time I showed this to Vocodah he was shook at how WACK it looks but awed by the texture of the sound! I've also been stuck learning sounds due to how my tongue is, I can't learn slizzer rolls on the side because of how long my tongue is (I can reach the bottom of my jaw with it). But oddly this long tongue thing is quite interesting when I do Dlow's tongue flute, I can whistle from the base of my tongue (using a hollow air flow), or the tip of it due to how long my tongue is (using a normal air flow), ik this because when whistling with the base I can overlay a hollow chest voice but not falsetto, but when I whistle from the tip I can overlay with falsetto or poly but not chest voice! Though I gotta say, Dkoy's whistle doesn't require a 4 leaf clover, just requires the same crease in your tongue you make with the laser whistle u do! I can do Dkoy's, yours/Pono's, Codfish's and Ballzee's whistles and they're all similar in a way, just Dkoy's is WAYYY harder to control the airflow of to be the same as the others! (The others are assisted with either both your lips or only 1 of them) Also my friend couldn't roll their R's but COULD do tongue bass (even as a non beatboxer), so that's how I taught them how to roll their R's! I appreciate people who get behind the science of beatboxing and how every small detail can aid in the development of sounds, I literally can't find a lot of people interested in this type of stuff but when I do it's just so interesting to watch and listen to! The more you understand how a sound works, the easier it is to learn. Much love Ethan! May God Bless u homie

[@NimbusBBX1234]

This video makes a lot of sense, thank you Balistix for this Video! This was really awesome :D

[@Balistix]

Glad you liked it! More videos like this coming soon! 👀

[@pronemanoldbutyoung5548]

Interesting video. Tom Thum did a video where he put a camera to show his vocal cords. So to do some special sounds, the genetics of the vocal cords certainly comes in play. And also the lazer sounds through the gaps in Ball-zees teeth definitely makes it possible. Gaps in teeth may not be entirely genetic though 😉

[@juhaojanpaa]

I believe that some of those are are possible to learn. I wasn't always able to do a 3 leaf clover but I've somewhat learnt it.

[@Just.Your.Average.Beatboxer]

I have Chronic catarrh which if anyone Does not know what that is. I have constant phlegm in my throat I cant get rid of (it can go away but for some people it dosent). This affects my beatboxing on a daily basis. one day my inward bass can sound clean. another day it could sound completely different because of the phlegm. or even some days it'll just not work at all and I have to wait till the next day for it to fix up. Update. today was a day of it being clean :)

[@Balistix]

Thanks for sharing your perspective!

[@sahaj8693]

I know right! Every time I use the inward bass, I have to cough it out to continue for a longer time I first thought it was just because the sound was new to me, but even after more than a year, it's still the same issue

[@theglueinhaler2628]

I think the CLR thing is more of a funny coincidence, that bass is pretty similar to the one Jaynkins does and it's like a loose chest bass. I don't know how breaking the nose could affect any of the vibrating parts, even the uvula, but who knows though lol.

[@grim_bbx2241]

Cool video bro

[@grim_bbx2241]

Honestly i think mouth structure or learning patterns could play a part.. But a majority of it comes from discipline i believe..

[@Balistix]

Definitely! Without practice, a person will never know if they’re capable of doing a sound or not.

[@DHawkBeats]

Oh yeah I used to be much worse when I had my braces, when I did spit snares too much it caused my mouth to bleed, and I couldn’t liproll that low because the braces took up too much space in my mouth. However, once I got them off I became much better lol. It was like training with weights on and taking them off lol

[@p0dr04il8]

i wanna say, that rolling your tongue in U shape doesn’t correlate with genetics, well at least at my experience. i really wanted to learn dlow whistle aka tongue flute, but i simply could not roll my tongue in that way. but you know what? now i can, i just tried really hard and i got both the shape and the sound. so don’t limit yourself with “genetics” guys and try your hardest!

[@basementboy1910]

I believe whistles are the only thing really affected by all this. Every other Sound can atleast be emulated if you invest the time. Rolling r's for example can be done at so many diffrent positions even if you cant do it in general theres definetly atleast one place where you can create it, be it with tongue, uvula or whatever. And while it is true that a tenor's vibration bass will never have the texture of someone like clutch, I dont think a "genetics diff" is gonna hinder anyones creative or professional career in the near future.

[@Balistix]

I don’t think having a lack of certain genetic traits will “hinder” anyone from being successful in their careers but could prevent someone from exploring new avenues of creativity.

[@edzio3171]

I really enjoy this video though

[@emilflarsen2]

Hey Balistix, cool video! I can't do throat bass and inward bass and i think it's due to my genetics. I'm pretty sad about it since it would upgrade my style a lot. I can do a weak first harmonic bass, a bit like Enel, but very bad. It's always been bothering me. I can't roll my r's either.. it sucks! I've been practicing for 8 years on a casual level, but i'm close to giving up.

[@Balistix]

Keep pushing bro, you got this.

[@emilflarsen2]

@@Balistix ❤️❤️

[@msmcfly]

Fucking insightful! From one scientist to another ;)

[@etiennechamps9142]

For me, yeah there are people who as genetics advantages and the contrary, but most of the sound can be done by all people. For the difference between men and women, I agree with you, they are some sounds that women can do more too i think, so many women can use high poly. There's chiwawa inward bass, her's sound so unique just because she's a woman I think, would love so much to see more women in beatboxing. ( there are some liers, how can you do meow squeak with braces, you can't keep the air in your cheek because of the gap beatween your teeths and the braces. Because of the braces, i do my pf snare in the side, and synth were so weird with them. You basically have pieces of metal in your mouth, of course that hurts when I move my mouth into impossible shapes )

[@NeeNeeMeow]

I think it definitely does play a role. I was gonna submit a GBB U18 wildcard but the retainer I have to wear, although I can remove it, it dries out my lips really badly and I couldn't do kicks and spit snares properly and it sucked cause I will be turning 18 and next year I will have to enter the main event. I have a snaggletooth and my snare sounds very unique, not as a direct result of it but also cause I do my snare in the middle of my mouth. Also my poh snare sounds kinda weird. It has its pros and cons but overall I would have just preferred to have had normal teeth.

[@Balistix]

Thanks for sharing your perspective!

[@DHawkBeats]

Couldn’t you just take out the retainer for the video then put it back in after?

[@NeeNeeMeow]

@D-Hawk Beats I did that but it still impacted me when I tried, my lips were very dry and felt a lot more like one solid piece rather than a dynamic piece that I used to have. It's difficult to explain but it stopped me from doing certain things like spit snares and triple kicks, also I was ill so my basses sounded kinda bad lol

[@juhaojanpaa]

Where's the D-koy whistle tutorial?

[@JC-xm9lo]

it's unfair, everytime after I play my beatbox my throat will pain after I finish. My voice will immediately change to fucking deep. Not bcuz I did it in improper ways, it's just my whole parts of body are too easy dry my skin and lips always broken and it's my daily life. But, I still play it, juz play a few mins once

[@stefq5621]

How do you do that pokemon sound?

[@justintansc]

Nice video! Moral of the story is to find a partner who is "genetically advantaged" and maybe your kid can be a world champ in the future 😂😂

[@Balistix]

Requirements for marriage: - Must be able to do a 3-leaf clover

[@justintansc]

A quick Google search says only 14.7% of the population can do the clover tongue. Good luck guys

[@DHawkBeats]

I’m pretty sure a majority of these are actually genetically possible it’s just difficult to learn and practice

[@d0inky628]

I cant make an o shape with my tounge nor can I fold it and I must say it does piss me off sometimes 😂

[@DHawkBeats]

I think the only restrictions op that should be placed on beatbox is that it must come from your mouth. Otherwise, go ahead, even if you’re literally built different 😂

[@kellybelcher2319]

I can do all of these except for the gap tooth one :) ALos, as far as I know, I don´t need to get braces (this is my mom´s account)

[@ScribblyDoodle]

Rolling your tongue is most likely NOT genetic. I wasn't able to roll my tongue inwards at first, it literally felt impossible. But then after 6 months of sounding like a dying fish I got it. I think the same could be said for people who can't do it outwards. But there are also definitely some genetic factors that can affect your beatboxing like teeth shape, vocal chord thickness, jaw size, etc. But rolling your tongue (and even making a 3 or 4 leaf clover) is done purely through muscle control, which I think can be learned through practice.

[@Balistix]

How much influence do you think jaw size, etc plays in one’s ability?

[@ScribblyDoodle]

@@Balistix I think there will be some sounds that are impossible to learn. I have a suspicion that dlows bubble roll has to do with the shape of his teeth. His top front teeth are shorter that the ones beside it, which is right where his bottom lip is flapping, whereas I have huge front teeth, and although I can do the motion of the sound, if doesn't have the "bubble" quality, maybe because I have these huge chompers interfering. I also agree with the gap tooth leading to whistles. I think that things like Jaw size and vocal chord thickness/length won't stop you from learning a sound, but can affect the tone and range, as they will resonate differently. At the end of the day though, creativity is always enhanced through limitations and working with what you have, not the other way around. Overall I think most sounds will be available to most people, but there may be a few exceptions due to genetics, having braces, etc. And then other sounds will be possible for us but we'll still never manage them. I'm sure I can do a hollow whistle, but it's been 10 years of trying and still no luck 😅 Although now that I think of it, I'm pretty sure that having braces as a kid HELPED me develop my hubba bubba sound.

[@Sydyy]

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