The Human Orchestra

Biography

Kenny Muhammad possesses a unique talent that only a few hip-hop acts have been able to master, beat boxing. The prominence of this hip-hop art form dwindled during the '90s, after old-schoolers like Doug E. Fresh, the Fat Boys, and Biz Markie brought it to the fore in the decade before. Dubbed the Human Orchestra, Muhammad and a few others (most notably the Roots' resident beat boxer, Rahzel) reintroduced beat boxing in the late '90s and the 2000s and helped establish it as a marketable talent. On the street, he tends to get recognized for his performance in the Clio Award-nominated Burger King commercial in 1997, which he also wrote. However, Muhammad has done and wrote many other advertisements and has performed all over the world in several different types of venues. Some of his crowning achievements include performing together with the New York Symphony Orchestra at the Manhattan Center and also with violinist Eugene Park in Seoul, Korea. The Human Orchestra can wield his vocal percussive skills to mimic instrumentation used in many other types of genres -- reggae, salsa, techno, jazz, house, rock -- which has enabled him to work with a variety of artists, including Public Enemy, the Gap Band, Vernon Reid, and Mindless Self Indulgence. His respectable standing within the hip-hop community was recognized when VH1 invited him to host the Hip Hop Honors television awards show in 2006. ~ Cyril Cordor, All Music Guide