B-boy Fidget

Two days ago local hustler B-Boy Fidget put out the music video for the song “Congratulations” from his debut full-length, No Compromise. Two days in and the video is already well over a thousand views. Fidget is proving that he’s here to make serious moves only. The album came out four months ago and the dude hasn’t taken any breaks since.

If you puruse the man’s Soundcloud you’ll find he’s broken a million streams on several songs. Even each song off “No Compromise” is well over 8k streams—these are crazy numbers for a “local Seattle artist.” Fidget is proving he’s so much more than that—he’s already essentially global. The video he just put out with direction credits to local fire creative, Fuego Gatsby, is a testament to the veritable wave Fidget’s already riding.

The man’s had his hands in the entertainment business longer, and had brushes with the big leagues more times than you’d ever imagine. The grind he’s been on since rooting himself back in Seattle from Atlanta has been unstoppable. Despite tangible accomplishments, we all dream of reaching that level of ultra-success, and what that even looks like.

The music video for “Congratulations” finds Fidget in a rainy-day daydream where he’s popping bottles and sipping champagne in a plush bathrobe off a swanky balcony in Malibu. It goes on to flash between scenes of him living it up with both the homies, and ample ladies. You see Fidget celebrating where he’s at now and the even greater amount he’ll achieve in the new year. Is success all in your head? Have you already made it where you want to be in life? Do you need to take a moment to congratulate yourself? B-Boy Fidget is and you can see why below. - Collin Lee Johnson

B-Boy Fidget has been creating a name for himself in the Seattle scene for the past decade. From cultivating audiences with breaking to his clothing brand F-Rock, as well as his music career. Fidget has done it all in the hip-hop world.

With a storied history in the Northwest, the accomplished creator continues to push the boundaries of success. Lately, his hand has been in a multitude of high-profile events throughout Seattle. Hosting Flattop Fridays in the historic Dynasty Room and supporting breaking across the Northwest. Fidget continues to keep a busy schedule.

Through everything he’s handling, I was able to meet with him to get a deeper look into everything B-Boy Fidget.

RMR: WHAT WERE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES IN CREATING YOUR COMPANIES F-ROCK CLOTHING AND F-ROCK PRINTING? HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM?
B-Boy Fidget: I’m overcoming them everyday. Everyday there’s new obstacles. Life’s really all about obstacles and opportunities. One will always follow the other. One of the biggest things is when you decide that it’s no longer a side hustle, that this is what you’re going to do to pay rent. There’s a different type of hustle. You have no backup plan. You do it because you love it, and it has to work. It’s all in the dedication and hard work.

RMR: HOW DID YOU START F-ROCK CLOTHING?
B-Boy Fidget: It got started because of my break dance crew Fraggle Rock. We’d always be making custom clothes for our shows. After the shows, people would always ask us for T-shirts. Skateboarding brands have their connection to skaters, and F-Rock is kind of like that for breaking. Everyone knows F-Rock clothing stems from Fraggle Rock. It’s been so long now that it is it’s own beast. People identify with it as a clothing brand straight up.

RMR: AS THE CREATOR OF F-ROCK CLOTHING, WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PIECE YOU EVER MADE?
B-Boy Fidget: One of my favorites is Frank the Hip-Hop bear. He’s basically our polo horse. Throughout the duration of our clothing line, he’ll always pop up throughout our pieces. It’s iconic because he’s lasted so long. People can see the bear and know right away that it’s F-Rock.

RMR: WHO WERE YOU BIGGEST INFLUENCES AS AN ARTIST?
B-Boy Fidget: For dance definitely James Brown, Michael Jackson and Diddy. A lot of people don’t know that Diddy and Tupac got on from background dancing. Even Kanye and Tech N9ne used to break dance. A lot of the people you’d accredit for being great artists and musicians are artistic in different ways. They’ve made a mark with one of their talents, but were good at many different things. I applaud anyone who can mix their talents like that.

RMR: YOU MENTIONED MIXING TALENTS. WITH YOUR BREAK DANCING AND HIP-HOP MIXING, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT?
B-Boy Fidget: Combining rap music and b-boying always worried me. I never wanted to do it in a way that it was “corny”. It’s always been a scary thing for me. Now we’re in a good time in music where everyone is just being themselves. It’s accepted now, though. But there was a time where you couldn’t mix the two because it doesn’t match up marketing wise. But that’s my truth, it’s really cool to be able to mix the two together.

RMR: WITH THAT, WHAT REALLY CAME FIRST FOR YOU? THE MUSIC OR THE DANCING?
B-Boy Fidget: It was probably music, but I wasn’t taking it as serious as I was dancing. I came from a musical family. My dad is a percussionist and had me on stage playing African drums and such. My mom is a poet and does a lot of writing. I used to play the trumpet, piano and drums. I wrote my very first rap when I was 9 years old. All these instruments were just in my house and it played a large part in my creativity.

RMR: SO WHEN DID YOU REALLY GET SERIOUS ABOUT MUSIC AFTER DANCING?
B-Boy Fidget: I actually cracked my fourth lumbar vertebra in two places. I couldn’t dance, walk or shit like that for almost a whole year. That’s when I started taking music more serious because I couldn’t dance. I was locked in a room, and it was kind of my escape.

RMR: WHO ARE YOUR TOP 3 SEATTLE CREATIVES OF ALL TIME?
B-Boy Fidget: Vitamin D, Quincy Jones, and Jimi Hendrix. Vitamin D is the one who taught me how to make beats. He put me in the studio at a very young age. He taught me every aspect of being a professional recording artist. Originally he had a studio with Jake One named The Pharmacy. I made my first album there titled In The B-Boy Stance in like 2005 right before I moved to Atlanta.

RMR: HOW HAS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST INFLUENCED YOU AS AN ARTIST?
B-Boy Fidget: Just being on the West Coast in general, I feel as if you become more freethinking. People historically have always come west to be free. Seattle has really given me an advantage over other artists due to the fact that we welcome the arts in ways that other areas don’t.

RMR: YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU LIVED IN ATLANTA, HOW WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE LIKE THERE?
B-Boy Fidget: Grimy, yet inspiring. There’s a ton of black wealth out there. You see people who are just like you who are trying to do the same exact thing. It’s really inspiring to have that star factor. It does two things. If you’re already motivated to be a star it amps your motivation. But it also makes people think that they’re stars when they aren’t. Overall, Seattle taught me how to hone my talents. Whereas Atlanta gave me a chance to disperse them into the world.

RMR: TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR FLAT TOP FRIDAY’S.
B-Boy Fidget: It’s coming up on May 3rd. We’re going to be giving guests something new every single month. It’ll always be the first Friday of the month at the Dynasty Room. It’s going to be DJ’d by DJ Pheloneous & DJ Remi, and hosted by your’s truly. - Kade Maijala

After a decade-long hiatus from the rainy city, I sat down and caught up with a unique, home-grown talent. Marcus Sharpe – also known as B-boy Fidget – is a true NW artist with roots in breaking and funk style, hailing from the veteran Seattle b-boy crew, Fraggle Rock. After interviewing the man himself, one thing is clear: he has had a lot more than dancing on his plate since moving to the south.

Fidget began his rap career in Atlanta around 12 years ago, and hasn’t called Seattle home again until now. With his partner, Seattle-based Tim “Chips” Uomoto, Fidget co-founded F-Rock, a multi-faceted hip-hop collective. This collective is not to be confused with their crew, Fraggle Rock, despite the similarity. Fidget elaborated on the reason for a separation as the crew’s business aspirations became an object, “ We needed F-Rock to be separate from the crew, mostly because of Jim Henson… but we wanted to stay true to our original name.”

Besides the occasional grooving and his own personal projects, Fidget has been leaving his mark all over the hip-hop scene in Atlanta under the name F-Rock Entertainment. Besides the production work he does in the rap community, he is also working on tracks for commercials, and has even delved into the EDM scene. “It’s a different language,” he shared regarding his work in other scenes, “but I try to see the good in all hip-hop, and in all art.”

He recently completed his latest album, No Compromise, under F-Rock Entertainment. No Compromise reflects his taste for true school hip-hop and a conscious approach, something that stands out in the south. “In ATL, people said I spoke proper and asked me, “Where you from?” kind of funny. I felt the need to let them know: Seattle is dope,” he remarked.

That Seattle flavor hits hard in his latest album. This latest work of B-boy Fidget features conscious, hard-hitting lyrics over tracks that range from Seattle, a straight turn-up track, to Clap Kidz (Legal), which discusses cannabis legalization. Fidget pointed out that there is a clear difference between how cannabis is viewed in Seattle versus Atlanta. “I feel like Georgia is the last place slaves aren’t free. The racism is still there, it’s common for homies to get locked up for weed-related crimes… and the cops are no help either.” He shared while shaking his head. In Georgia, holding anything more than an ounce of marijuana is a felony. It wasn’t long ago when Washington State was also subject to drastic laws on cannabis possession, even though it now seems like a safe haven for smokers.

The move back wasn’t just to get away from the negativity, however. Fidget’s mission is to develop F-Rock’s clothing line. “In ATL I was building my network and connections, but now, it’s time to get back and put our heads together,” he reflected while he and his partner Tim showcased a prototype for me: a trucker hat reading Make Hip-Hop Great Again. I took to the hat, especially in light of recent politics, and Fidget replied, “That’s what we want you to think: ‘I would wanna wear a hat like that.’” But F-Rock isn’t all Fidget is working on. Quikflip is a hustle-and-street-culture inspired line also incepted by the Seattle hip-hop artist. “I want to start the new year out strong,” he told me as we wrapped up. Be on the lookout for Fidget’s music and new line – this Seattle hip-hop aficionado has a lot on the horizon.

You can check Fidget’s music out on his Facebook page, or the F-Rock line at F-Rock’s website: www.frockclothing.com - Alex Juliano

B-boy Fidget is back with his new music video "Seattle", directed by Janice Hudson. This song is paying homage to Seattle, and all of it's great artist such as: Jimi Hendrix, Quincy Jones, Bruce Lee, Bill Gates, Kurt Cobain, and a long list of other innovative creative geniuses that helped to push the boundaries of technology, and art forward. Enjoy the video!

"Seattle" By: B-boy Fidget Available Now On iTunes & Apple Music:



itunes.apple.com/us/album/seattle-single/id1274475178 - Marcus Sharpe