IMS Junior Jim Wang showing his beat boxing talents; photo by Joe Cerwinske

Jim Wang is a junior at the Iowa Mennonite School with dreams of designing roller coasters for a living, but he also has a not-so-secret talent. The 18-year-old Wang, who is originally from southern China near Hong Kong, has gained notoriety as a champion beat boxer. Beat boxing is the art of creating instrumental sounds, primarily drums and bass, using only your voice. Wang said he was inspired to learn it after watching videos of beat boxers while in junior high. By watching the videos he was able to learn basic sounds, but realized he needed to create his own style and began practicing diligently.

In addition to impressing his fellow students in the IMS hallways, Wang has competed in and won several competitions over the last two years, including this past weekend’s talent show at the Kalona Fall Festival. In addition to the competitions, he’s made videos and gained popularity in China through the Internet. He has recently started uploading videos to YouTube with a steadily-growing following. However, he says fame isn’t what drives him, he’s just trying to be himself and create his art. To Wang, beat boxing is like drawing, and he enjoys showing people how he can turn individual sounds into a canvas of music. For more from Wang, listen to the In Touch with Southeast Iowa interview on KCIIRadio.com. Click the audio file below to hear an example of Wang’s beat boxing.