Grime-Stepping All the Way to National Television
Student brings his unique skill to “America’s Got Talent” and may perform for celebrity judges
By Emily Guerra
Student brings his unique skill to “America’s Got Talent” and may perform for celebrity judges
By Emily Guerra
A national talent show may find their star in one of Pioneer’s own students, who is bringing a widely unknown skill to the forefront of television.
Awaiting the results from pre-show auditions for the opportunity to perform in front of the judges, Tyler Peña, 12, is set to appear on “America’s Got Talent.” Instead of the cliché dancing or singing, however, America will witness a truly standout talent.
Combining two completely different forms of music, Peña, has revived grime-step, a forgotten form of beatboxing.
“It’s techniques from Mongolian throat singing and beatboxing. I learned how to grime-step before I knew Mongolian throat singing was even a thing. Then I incorporated some new techniques from that into grime-step.”
Peña has been practicing the skill since he was a freshman. After discovering grime-step on YouTube, he showed his newfound talent to his friends, who first encouraged his practicing of the skill, and then his audition for the show.
“Over the last few years it’s evolved. I started grime-step freshman year, and I kind of developed a character around it, called Grime-Boy,” said Peña. “I’ve just been doing it here and there once in a while, and I finally decided, why don’t I just do something funny that nobody would expect? So me and Travis Hill were talking, and he said, why don’t you just go on ‘America’s Got Talent’ and do something? And I said, okay, I’ll grime-step, and it just evolved from there.”
Travis Hill, 12, is Peña’s biggest supporter on his journey through “America’s Got Talent.” When asked if he thinks Tyler will win the competition, Hill responded with a resounding yes.
“He’s Tyler Peña, and he has a personality that America will fall in love with,” said Hill. “I enjoy listening to him grimestep, as it is unique and fun. I think they will find him entertaining, and someone worth watching.”
Pascal Rozinsky, 12, thinks grime-stepping will give the judges a break from singing and dancing in exchange for a rare talent, increasing his chances of winning.
“I think he’s hilarious. He’s gotten quite good at it. What first started as a joke, he’s actually practiced a lot, and it’s quite funny,” said Rozinsky. “It’s amazing, the skill it takes to grime-step, you have all of these singers come on all the time, they’re the exact same, (grime-step) just brings something fresh in there. With some of the acts I’ve seen get through, he definitely has a chance. His throat, that thing can do wonders.”
Even if he doesn’t make it past the audition, Peña is grateful for the experience he was given.
“I'm very much someone who likes to shock people and defy expectations in funny ways, so I would hope that grimestepping is not only a comedic act but something that people haven’t seen before and can get interested in pretty quickly,” said Peña.
Awaiting the results from pre-show auditions for the opportunity to perform in front of the judges, Tyler Peña, 12, is set to appear on “America’s Got Talent.” Instead of the cliché dancing or singing, however, America will witness a truly standout talent.
Combining two completely different forms of music, Peña, has revived grime-step, a forgotten form of beatboxing.
“It’s techniques from Mongolian throat singing and beatboxing. I learned how to grime-step before I knew Mongolian throat singing was even a thing. Then I incorporated some new techniques from that into grime-step.”
Peña has been practicing the skill since he was a freshman. After discovering grime-step on YouTube, he showed his newfound talent to his friends, who first encouraged his practicing of the skill, and then his audition for the show.
“Over the last few years it’s evolved. I started grime-step freshman year, and I kind of developed a character around it, called Grime-Boy,” said Peña. “I’ve just been doing it here and there once in a while, and I finally decided, why don’t I just do something funny that nobody would expect? So me and Travis Hill were talking, and he said, why don’t you just go on ‘America’s Got Talent’ and do something? And I said, okay, I’ll grime-step, and it just evolved from there.”
Travis Hill, 12, is Peña’s biggest supporter on his journey through “America’s Got Talent.” When asked if he thinks Tyler will win the competition, Hill responded with a resounding yes.
“He’s Tyler Peña, and he has a personality that America will fall in love with,” said Hill. “I enjoy listening to him grimestep, as it is unique and fun. I think they will find him entertaining, and someone worth watching.”
Pascal Rozinsky, 12, thinks grime-stepping will give the judges a break from singing and dancing in exchange for a rare talent, increasing his chances of winning.
“I think he’s hilarious. He’s gotten quite good at it. What first started as a joke, he’s actually practiced a lot, and it’s quite funny,” said Rozinsky. “It’s amazing, the skill it takes to grime-step, you have all of these singers come on all the time, they’re the exact same, (grime-step) just brings something fresh in there. With some of the acts I’ve seen get through, he definitely has a chance. His throat, that thing can do wonders.”
Even if he doesn’t make it past the audition, Peña is grateful for the experience he was given.
“I'm very much someone who likes to shock people and defy expectations in funny ways, so I would hope that grimestepping is not only a comedic act but something that people haven’t seen before and can get interested in pretty quickly,” said Peña.