This years BC One was big. Red Bull BC One World Champ BBoy Lilou from France and BC One All Star BBoy Pelézinho from Brazil flew into judge the competition here in Kuwait. There were some controversial decisions, great side acts, sweet music and as always killer Kuwait BBoying. BBoy Hush of the always outstanding Electrik Crew took the win and will be traveling to Egypt for a chance at the World Championship in Seoul, South Korea. I wanted a fast paced, colorful clean edit and went with a fun music track to match the vibe of the show. Sit back and enjoy the best moments of the 4 hour event in just over 5 minutes.
So I got with the folks on Camp Arifjan who handle celebrity visits and shows. They have brought over 50 Cent, Ja Rule, Ciara, The American Gladiators, UFC Fighters, Taking Back Sunday, The cast of Spartacus and more. I wanted to see if they could do a show that would show the troops on base, their friends and families back home and anyone else watching that Kuwait isn’t all what they see in the news, browse on the web and emails, read in the paper or hear on the radio. So I suggested The Kuwait Underground. A show that would showcase Kuwait’s dopest talents. I basically asked everyone I have done a video with and others I have seen perform here. We went with the name The Kuwait Underground because the people participating are doing amazing things but these things are just now starting to be accepted in Kuwait. We will have Rappers, Bboys, Dubstep Dancers and Traceurs(Free Runners). There are a lot of names on the roster like The PK Jaguars, 965 Crew, Electrik Crew and Kuwait Got Rhymes with more being added. The video below will be played all over the base so the Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen can get a taste of the awesomeness that is The Kuwait Underground’s talent. Unfortunately only people living and or working on Arifjan will get to see it live. But I will be recording and posting all the performances for you guys to watch!!!
I have been doing a lot of videos with Kuwait’s Hip Hop scene the past few months. Rappers, BBoys, Beat Boxers and DJs are creating a vibrant Hip Hop scene here in Kuwait. Below are some of the people featured in my work for that scene.
Love him or hate him if you are living in Kuwait you have probably heard about Big D and seen some of his videos. The guy is continuously trying to get better and always writing or in the studio. I’ve worked with him a few times and consider him a friend now. The Big D you see online is loud, in your face and outrageous. He is very different than the introspective, mellow guy I know. Either way the music he is starting to put out now deserves the attention and hopefully getting some play on people’s iPods and Androids. Check out the videos I shot for him below. We wanted to keep them intimate and simple not make them huge productions and they get the point across pretty well.
Cursed Ink featuring Deep Raw (In The Studio)
Rage Of A Poet (In response to his “haters”)
Relevant Existance (Remembering the Iraq Invasion)
Gran Milli is an American rapper from Georgia working and living here in Kuwait. He is a modest, intelligent, talented guy and a charismatic rapper with real skills.
Gran Milli The Movement
MC Element has one of the most laid back and smooth flows I have heard in a while and his music is great. I heard one of his songs and wanted to work with him straight away. He just put out a new mix tape that is pretty diverse. He is currently in San Francisco
MC Element Faith In Me
A few months back most of the rappers here in Kuwait gathered together for a cypher the highlighted the skills and talent of the artists doing their thing here in Kuwait. Here is the cypher video featuring Beat boxers and beats.
Kuwait Hip Hop Cypher Vol 2
Djiby and Guled a rapper and R&B singer teamed up to create Lost Souls which is a thoughtful, poignant song about when life gets you down and getting up and pushing forward.
While working on the Cypher I met Duffy a funny, shy and very talented Beat Boxer. This is him entertaining the rappers while we waited for others to show.
Duffy – Kuwaiti Beat Boxer
Dance is getting more popular here in Kuwait…Much to the chagrin of many. Which is a shame because some of the dancers here are world class like the 965 Crew, Elektrik Crew and X Crew.
Doss is one of the founding members of the 965 Crew along with NJ and KG. Here he is below having a good time around Kuwait.
Doss Kuwait is my dance floor
Doss Kuwait dancing on the Edge of Kuwait
Moath aka BBoy Psycho is a fun loving down to earth guy who happens to be one of the baddest BBoys in the Mid East. Check him out at my apartment and in a massive battle with Can’t Stop Us.
BBoy Psycho
BBoy battle featuring the music of Arabique another amazing Kuwaiti Rapper.
One Soul Crew was a BBoy Crew that sadly disbanded so they could pursue their own interests but man were they talented and funny. They also introduced me to Doss and the 965 crew!
So there you have it. The next time someone says Kuwait doesn’t have a music scene show them this post as evidence exhibit A. The scene here is big and this is just a fraction of what is going on!
We shot this video in one take while on break from shooting our big multi location video. We were leaving and said hey lets chill by the pool for a bit. This was completely on the spot improv to a song of last minute choosing and it came out pretty cool “WANNA GET HYPE” is the first of two videos to be released this week. I finished editing the second today and know you all will be blown away by it and the Kuwait locations. Doss and I love Kuwait as it has been good to us, so the new video will be a love note to our fans and Kuwait.
BBoy Psycho aka Moath of Electrik Crew stopped by my place and we talked about why he BBoys and what the BBoy scene in Kuwait is like right now. He also showed me some of his sweet moves which you will see on display here. Hope you enjoy it.
With a massive dust storm still clearing up 965 Crew’s Doss felt the need to head down to Marina Waves and dance on the Edge Of Kuwait. He did two completely different dances in one take. They were so good I had to use them both. The first is snappier while the second is smoother. You decide which you like. Either way they look damn good. He took the time to say a few words to those who help keep dance alive too. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Qusai, France’s BBoy Lamine and surprisingly me. Thanks Doss and thanks to everyone who supports our work like Handbook, Mark, Caeser, Qusai, Lamine and of course you the fans and our friends all over the world!
In the heart of Kuwait City the best BBoys in the country came to battle it out for individual pride and to prove who has the illest crew in the country. For nearly 4 grueling hours they went head to head in entertaining, funny and sometimes heated battles. In the end everyone was happy, skills had improved, friendships were created and some BBoys earned spots on the sickest crews in Kuwait. This is the absolute best of the best condensed for your viewing pleasure. Each color is a different battle. The first four songs are courtesy of the Kuwaiti Middle East Beast himself Arabique. The others are from Zeds Dead ft. Omar Linx and one of the best Hip Hop producers alive Handbook!
Here is round one of the Can’t Stop Us BBoy Competition held at Fit 4 Fun in Kuwait. The BBoys had one chance to show what they could in order to make it into the next round where they would battle one another. The vid is raw, no frills and street which is how BBoying is and should be. I wanted to make sure everyone who came out got their moment to shine. I will be posting Round Two the Battles and finally a shorter, tighter highlight reel showcasing all the dopest moves from the competition with all the editing bells and whistles. All music by Handbook! Check back for more and hope you dig!
