When you walk around campus, you do not picture the old guy wearing washed-out jeans to be in a bluegrass band. You do not expect the kid with dyed-black hair, teal skinny pants and a Thrasher t-shirt to be an artist of impeccable taste, either… But he is. And Sohail Emamian probably does not look like he could beat box to save his life, but he can, and that is why Emamian is IPFW’s hidden artist of the week.
Sohail Emamian, a freshman at IPFW, seems to have a drum set in his mouth, and is IPFW’s very own beat boxer extraordinaire.
Emamian is as cool, calm and collected as one could be on a first interview. He began beat boxing about four years ago, but only revealed his talent a year ago. He started by beat boxing on his own, picking out beats from his favorite songs, and then he would freestyle his way through his own creation. After building a little more confidence, he let his friends see what he could do.
“I would just do it [beat box] in front of friends while hanging out,” said Emamian.
Emamian has performed at parties and on stage with a group called Kikaflo, a Fort Wayne based rap/hip hop/indie group. “People really liked it and I started doing it more often,” he said. But his biggest and proudest moment was when he performed in front of over 200 people at his high school senior variety show.
“It was crazy,” he said. “I don’t really even remember how I felt during or after because I was so nervous.”
Nervous is not the first thing that comes to mind when you meet this guy. He holds himself with a quiet, profound swagger that reminds you of Julian Casablancas, minus the shades.
Although he would not call them his idols, Emamian prefers the works of Kid Cudi, Kanye West, and Jay Z and draws inspiration from their beats.
“It’s something I started doing, spontaneously, recreating what I heard,” he says. “One of the first songs I did openly was, ‘Drop It like It’s Hot’,” a Snoop Dogg song that was a hit a few years back.”
He looks up to beat boxers like Rahzel, and his biggest influence— Kenny Muhammad, aka ‘The Human Orchestra.’
“He [Muhammad] has actually beat boxed with the New York Philharmonic, so he’s pretty legit,” said Emamian.
Like many freshman college students, Emamian is undecided in his major, but leaning towards chiropractic studies. He likes to hang out with friends, listen to good music and work at his part-time job with his best friends. When it comes to his future in beat boxing, Emamian knows where he wants to see himself.
“I want to build up the confidence to perform at my full potential while under pressure. A lot of times, when people ask me to do it, I feel pressured and may not perform as well as I can,” he said.
Like all great artists, Emamian has impressed his friends and his peers, but before he can be satisfied he has to impress himself.
