Yogetsu Akasaka

When you think of live looping music and beatboxing, you probably don’t directly make a connection with Buddhistic chanting. Well, we have news for you: it exists, and it is amazing. We’d like to introduce you to Yogetsu Akasaka: a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk who creates beautiful, meditative music by combining the chanting and singing of sutras/mantras with beatboxing and handpan music, while live looping it at the same time.

Yogetsu started his unique career by beatboxing his way around the world. He then became a Zen Buddhist monk, ordained by Zen master Koshu Itabashi, a former head priest of the Soto Zen school. After experiencing the traditional Zen practice in Japan and spending time at Zen centers in the United States, he decided that his way of delivering Buddhist teachings is through his unique style of music.

In 2020 his Heart Sutra Live Looping Remix on YouTube went viral, gaining over 2.5 million views worldwide and resulting in over 100,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel. Because his improvised music is mindfully created by his wide range of vocal pitch and overtone sounds, its frequency and deep vibration creates a meditative and energetic vibe, helping people to become more aware and energized.

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When a student is ready, the teacher appears.
When a student is truly ready, the teacher disappears.

Lao Tzu