Music
Doin' it for Kicks
Rapper Lupe Fiasco shares the soundtrack to his lifelong martial arts journey.
Rapper Lupe Fiasco (real name Wasalu Muhammad Jaco) got his big break in 2006 with a show-stealing verse on Kanye West’s “Touch the Sky.” Eight albums and a Grammy win later, the 40-year-old from Chicago is still spitting rhymes— and flexing his skills in martial arts. “It’s something I’ve been immersed in since birth,” says Fiasco, who began his studies in the dojos of his late karate- instructor father. “A lot of what I do either references or reflects it, and I still practice today, almost daily.” Here he selects four tracks with maximum impact on his life.
Willie Hutch - The Glow (1985)
Willie Hutch - The Glow (1985)
© Motown Record Corporation
“When I was a kid, I would always watch this ’80s Black martial arts film called The Last Dragon. I first heard [this song from the soundtrack] when I was about 3 years old, and it’s been imprinted on me ever since. I’d watch the movie, hear the song and see them doing a fight scene, then the next day I would be in the dojo, acting out that same scene.”
Vince DiCola - War (1985)
Vince DiCola - War (1985)
© Intrada
"My dad would play this track [from the Rocky IV soundtrack] endlessly at home and in the dojo. We’d design entire martial arts demonstrations to it, from breaking boards to self-defense presentations. It’s really long and there are no lyrics, but it has such power. Sometimes it’ll bring me to tears because it’s so directly connected to my childhood and my martial arts experience.”
George Lam - Nan Er Dang Zi Qiang (1983)
George Lam - Nan Er Dang Zi Qiang (1983)
© Warner Music Hong Kong Ltd.
“I first heard this song in martial arts movies in the early ’90s, but I could never find it anywhere—this was before the internet and Google. But a couple years ago I went down a YouTube rabbit hole and eventually found it. I play it religiously, and even though I can’t understand the lyrics it’s definitely one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever heard.”
Astrud Gilberto - Berimbau (1966)
Astrud Gilberto - Berimbau (1966)
© Verve Records
“Capoeira originated in Africa and migrated over to Brazil during the slave trade. It looks like a dance, but it contains very lethal martial arts techniques. It’s always set to music, and the most iconic instrument used is a single-stringed bow called the berimbau; it’s very distinctive. This bossa nova track has some berimbau on it, and I use it to relax once practice is over.”
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