Reflections on 3 years of Tokyo Being the Center of the Beatbox World

Three years ago, as I prepared to launch this newsletter, I met with people across the beatbox world to hear what was on their mind. What was the next big sound, who was a rising leader, and how will the beatbox scene respond to the fallout from GBB 2021 and Swissbeatbox’s subsequent cancelation of GBB 2022.

During one such conversation, Chris Celiz shared with me two game changing pieces of information. One, a fact, the other a prediction.

First, he told me that the Beatbox House would be traveling to Asia with the US State Department. I wrote up that exclusive story for the New York Times, and the Beatbox House’s trip to the Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan was a huge success, leading to another trip with the State Department the next year, that one to Egypt.

The trips abroad were massive accomplishments for the American beatbox scene, but today, less than 12 hours before GBB 2025 kicks off in Tokyo, I can’t stop thinking about Chris’ second revelation. 

He put down his sandwich, looked me right in the face and announced that “the future of beatboxing is in Japan.”

How right he has been proven.

Days before I sat down with Chris, Swissbeatbox announced GBB 2023 would be held in Japan, the first time the world’s biggest beatbox event would leave Europe. For the next three years, Tokyo, Japan became the epicenter of the beatbox world. Not New York City, Berlin, Saint Gallen, or Warsaw, but far-off Japan.

Since then, Swissbeatbox has held three Grand Beatbox Battles, launched Beatcity Japan (a qualifier event aimed at promoting the local scene), drawn attention to local organizers, and inspired one massive copycat event in the Haten World Championship.

Before GBB 2023, Japan was a mid-sized beatboxing country with an occasional breakthrough onto the world stage. Tatsuaki, Batako, and Show-Go held it down for Japan in the 2010s, and as the decade turned and beatboxing emerged from Covid lockdown, it was the Sarukani boys leading the charge.

But once Swissbeatbox made Japan its medium-term home, things changed. JLC (Japan Loopstation Community) was able to host increasingly large events and cultivate a generation of looping talent, headlined by GBB25 contestant Mahiro. 

Beatbox luminaries like Chris Celiz, Gene Shinozaki (SpiderHorse), Colaps, River’ (Rogue Wave) and others began to make regular trips to Japan — even outside of their judging commitments. Colaps, Spiderhosrse, and Alem all made special social media channels where they dubbed their videos in Japanese and made unique content for their Japanese audience.

Even more than the teenage upstart Mahiro, Jairo (JohnT and Yamori) rapidly ascended to world’s best status with a dominating two-year run at the GBB, losing only to the aforementioned Rogue Wave. They have joined the judging/showcasing circuit, recorded collaborations with other beatboxers, and secured deals outside the beatbox world, beatboxing for corporate clients. 

Swissbeatbox leaned into its roots, partnering with local media companies to host and produce events just like it once did with B-Scene in Basel, Switzerland, for the early Grand Beatbox Battles. They attempted to innovate, hosting U-18 and Producer categories before ultimately letting go of those additional competitions for the 2024 and 2026 GBBs.

Now that GBB 2026 is set to return to Poland, it seems an era of beatboxing is coming to a close. I want to do more of a reported piece about this time in the future, taking stock of the good and bad, but as we embark on what looks like the final chapter of this moment in beatboxing history, I wanted to put it all down in one place, and simply say that a lot has happened in Japan over the past three years. 

The move to Japan was a reaction to the growing awareness that there was a huge appetite for beatboxing in Asia, and now it seems Swissbeatbox and the rest of the beatbox world are saying that they have invested enough, there are new worlds to conquer. 

But despite the fact that Swissbeatbox has moved back to Europe and Haten didn’t deliver an event in 2025 as promised and hasn’t posted since 2024, leaving Japan, and indeed all of Asia, without a world-class event, the country’s beatboxing scene will continue to enjoy the impact of this era for years to come.

Congratulations to all the beatbox people in Japan who have had the opportunity to attend, participate in, or organize an event over the past three years. Congratulations to Swissbeatbox for three years in Asia and to all the judges, competitors and attendees — particularly those set to kick off GBB25 in a few hours.

Where to next? Let’s check back in after a couple months and see if there are any favorites.