From funny sounds to national competition: Why Robert is in Toronto today

What does Saultite Robert Drolet have in common with 15 other Canadians from five different provinces?

The young performer, known locally as Killabeatz, is in Toronto this weekend to compete in the 5th annual Canadian Beatbox Championships presented by Beatbox Canada.

Without realizing what it would lead to, he began beatboxing approximately 15 years ago and is completely self-taught.

"I started more or less just making funny sounds with my mouth and annoying my friends," Drolet told SooToday.com. "Eventually, I started to realize what it was I was doing. When I started, YouTube wasn't around so there was nothing for me to refer to. I kept plucking away at it and my friends started to encourage me to keep doing it."

"People are astonished and surprised when they first hear me perform," he explained. "They're amazed at what one person can do, especially when I make two sounds at once. It's a joyful experience for someone to hear for the first time."

Like most serious vocalists, he spends half an hour preparing for a show by singing and practicing specific sounds and pattern sequences, and has learned specialized breathing techniques.

"Each beat has a different breathing pattern, so it comes down to learning the best techniques," Drolet said. "I could beatbox continuously for hours if I actually sat down and tried."

This weekend's Canadian Beatbox Championships marks the second time Drolet has taken part in the national competition.

He regrettably got knocked out in the first round of battle in 2011, something he partially blames on stage fright issues he's dealt with throughout his performance career.

"It was definitely a learning experience. I look back at it and realize that I was not ready for it then," he told us. "I panicked and was just fighting to get through it."

With more stage experience under his belt thanks to the recent resurgence in popularity of the local hip hop and rap scene, Drolet's previous nervousness has been replaced with excitement.

He attributes a lot of the scene's popularity to Shane Erickson (AKA DJ Seith) and the creation of Soo York City years ago.

"Over the years, he's kept it going and pushing the word out," Drolet said. "Shane and I have been doing a lot of performances within the community at events like Passport to Unity, the Tribe Called Red competition, and the Emergency Festival. Because we're doing more public shows, people are seeing more of us. It allows the community to be more interested. People now have a bit more positive perception of the hip hop community here."

Erickson and another close friend will accompany Drolet to tonight's competition at Toronto's Mod Club to offer their encouragement and support.

While he hopes to unseat Calgary's James 'Peterpot' McInnes, the defending champion, that's not Drolet's reason for attending the competition.

"As much as I want to win the top spot, I'm going to the competition for the experience and to have fun," he said. "I'll do my best to represent our city. I've got one or two tricks up my sleeve to get through the first round."

"As a performer I've grown since 2011," he continued. "My state of mind has gone from 'Can I do this?' to 'I can do this' and I'm more excited to hit the stage to see what I can do to get a crowd response and battle it out. I'm not even nervous."

Head-to-head competition at the Canadian Beatbox Championships begins tonight at 6 p.m., and will be judged by Canada's Scott Jackson and Napom from the United States.

Performers will be judged on creativity/originality, technical skill, stage presence, and flow/musicality.

For more information about the Canadian Beatbox Championships, please click here.

(Photo: Robert 'Killabeatz' Drolet performs during the 2013 Bon Soo Winter Carnival. Donna Hopper/SooToday)