I've been doing music my whole life. And man, I love it. But before the music, it was all about the martial arts. Something my father passed down to me from the age of three. He always said that I should head to the source of kung fu to complete my training. So if you get the opportunity, you have to take it.
Lupe Fiasco, Episode 1
Beat n Path is a martial arts documentary series where Lupe Fiasco travels across Asia and trains with different Kung Fu masters. It landed a distribution deal with Celestial Tiger Entertainment in Asia, and premiered on March 8, 2018, exclusively through KIX TV in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.[1] Later the pilot series was re-formatted and aired worldwide on July 1, 2019, with nine episodes uploaded on the website, lupefiascobnp.com.[2] Proceeds went towards the non-profit organization, Rebuild Foundation, which transform buildings and neighborhoods. His single "Air China" was also released on the same date, with its accompanying music video interspersed with clips of his journey.
In Asia, the series met with critical acclaim, and won Best Direction at the Asian Academy Creative Awards in Hong Kong. Along with this, the series aims to travel to Japan, South Korea, Philippines, and Malaysia, for each season.[3]
Dubbed the "King of Lyrical Trickiness", Lupe Fiasco applies his skill for lyrical flow to the movements of kung fu. The Beat n Path docuseries joins the world's greatest martial arts masters as they teach Lupe their secrets.
Lupe Fiasco, a rapper from Chicago, drops everything to embark on a cross-cultural journey of epic proportion across China.
In this pilot series, he will live out his other passion— martial arts—through practicing with masters around China and take opportunity to explore China's hip hop scene.
His experiences will inspire his next hit, Air China, a song about the journey.
Background[]
Fiasco grew up with martial arts, his father opening a school in Chicago during the 1980s-90s to teach youth the different-styled techniques. Fiasco trained with his father ever since he was three years old, and earned his first black belt at the age of ten. He shared in an interview, "[I]t's always been a passion of mine. Little hints of it pop up here and there in my music, but for the most part, my fans never really saw my martial arts side. They only know me for being a musician and a rapper. Hopefully this show will introduce people to that side of me."[4] In another interview, he noted in memory of his late father, "My father always told us that his system was complete in certain areas, but there were some things where you have to go to Japan to finish your martial arts training. He'd always talk finishing your training. Go to China. Go to these original places and finish your training there. So this is me quasi-finishing my training."[5][6]
In 2017, ten years since his father passed away, Fiasco traveled to China to fulfill his quest. He visited various places including Shanghai, Beijing, and Dengfeng. His single "Air China" was inspired by his experiences, to which he explained, "I wrote a whole song through the show, pointed out different experiences. Some of it is obscure and other stuff you blatantly see. I actually get the beat at the beginning of the show."[7] The screening was open to friends and family, held on July 2, 2019, at the Stony Island Arts Bank, next to where his father's martial arts school was.[5]
To SKY, he said, "There was really no way to train for that, you know? I knew there was going to be some kicking; I know I'm going to do some jumping around, so I try to be somewhat fit. But then you get to another master, and there's no kicking, no jumping around—just sitting in a stance for three hours, and that's the training."[3]
Format[]
Format
Duration
Episodes
Long form
25 mins
6
Short form
5-8 mins
12
Episodes[]
Season 1[]
No. overall
No. in series
Directed by
Original broadcast
1
1
Simon Yin
March 8, 2018
Lupe begins in Beijing in a familiar and comfortable setting, a music studio, to meet local hip hop artist Jeff Kung to discuss China's budding hip hop scene. He then finds the home temple of his childhood hero, Wang Zi-Ping, the Chinese Muslim Grandmaster of Wu Shu in Cangzhou.
2
2
Simon Yin
March 15, 2018
Lupe continues his journey of self-discovery in the Songshan Mountains where he visits Shaolin Temple and Fa Wang Temple. Here he learns the secrets of Shaolin Kung Fu from the world's greatest martial arts masters.
3
3
Simon Yin
March 22, 2018
Lupe ventures to Beijing to discuss the art of sword making, learns the ancient art of Chinese opera face-changing and works on his next record, Air China.
Gallery[]
Beat n Path - Interview 1 with Lupe Fiasco
Beat n Path - Interview 2 with Lupe Fiasco
Beat n Path - Interview 3 with Lupe Fiasco
@bonniechanwoo: "Celebrating gender equity at work on this International Women's Day, which coincides with the premiere of my Beat n Path show co-produced with Lupe Fiasco. 🎊🎉👏💃🕺🍿🎬📡 #womanboss #lupefiasco #beatnpath #tvshow #premiere #womansday @lupefiasco @lupefiascobnp @studiosvstories @iciclegroup"
March 8, 2018
Instagram
@bonniechanwoo: "Celebrating gender equity at work on this International Women's Day, which coincides with the premiere of my Beat n Path show co-produced with Lupe Fiasco. 🎊🎉👏💃🕺🍿🎬📡 #womanboss #lupefiasco #beatnpath #tvshow #premiere #womansday @lupefiasco @lupefiascobnp @studiosvstories @iciclegroup"
March 8, 2018
Instagram
@StudioSVStories: "Studio SV Co-Founders @bonniecwoo & @LupeFiasco started with an idea... tonight, it all comes to fruition! Catch the world premiere of our first show #BeatNPath all across Asia starting tonight and every Thursday at 9pm on @KIXAsia! 📺 🎉 @lupefiascobnp #worldpremiere #StudioSV"
March 8, 2018
Twitter
@studiosvstories: "We're very excited to announce that @lupefiascobnp has been selected by the @asianacademycreativeawards as a First National Winner for Best Direction (Non-Fiction) in Hong Kong! Next, on to the regionals in Singapore. Shout out to our Director @yintertainment! 🏆 @lupefiasco"
October 16, 2018
Instagram
@bonniechanwoo: "Lupe and I co-founded Studio SV to produce contents that connect cultures. Our debut project, Beat N Path, just made its US launch this week. The BEAT N PATH journey, from idea conception to production, from distribution to launch, from premiere to community screening, has been crossing cultures like an extreme sport. We did not do it because it was cool and fun, in fact the journey was full of challenges. Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. The differences were clear, but the common grounds were also striking. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung Fu, Black to Asian, Hollywood to Shaolin, Hong Kong to South side of Chicago, we glided across unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow, because we believe cross-cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today. We wish you would experience our journey and the deep inspiration that we got while filming Beat N Path, by immersing into a foreign land, engaging the locals, appreciating the differences and recognising the shared experiences as humans. I thank each of you who has lent support along the way. Watch the web version at www.LupeFiascoBNP.com. Enjoy. More to come at @StudioSVStories"
July 3, 2019
Instagram
@bonniechanwoo: "Lupe and I co-founded Studio SV to produce contents that connect cultures. Our debut project, Beat N Path, just made its US launch this week. The BEAT N PATH journey, from idea conception to production, from distribution to launch, from premiere to community screening, has been crossing cultures like an extreme sport. We did not do it because it was cool and fun, in fact the journey was full of challenges. Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. The differences were clear, but the common grounds were also striking. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung Fu, Black to Asian, Hollywood to Shaolin, Hong Kong to South side of Chicago, we glided across unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow, because we believe cross-cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today. We wish you would experience our journey and the deep inspiration that we got while filming Beat N Path, by immersing into a foreign land, engaging the locals, appreciating the differences and recognising the shared experiences as humans. I thank each of you who has lent support along the way. Watch the web version at www.LupeFiascoBNP.com. Enjoy. More to come at @StudioSVStories"
July 3, 2019
Instagram
@studiosvstories: "You might have noticed that it’s been a busy week for Studio SV as we debut our very first project, #BeatNPath, in the US. Read on for some special words from our co-founders @bonniechanwoo and @lupefiasco on Studio SV and Beat N Path’s purpose and mission: “Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung fu, Hong Kong to Southside of Chicago, we glided over unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow because we believe cross cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today.” More to come from us, as always! @lupefiascobnp #lupefiasco #lupefiascobnp #studiosv photo credit 2, 3, 4 to @thecamquarter 📸"
July 4, 2019
Instagram
@studiosvstories: "You might have noticed that it’s been a busy week for Studio SV as we debut our very first project, #BeatNPath, in the US. Read on for some special words from our co-founders @bonniechanwoo and @lupefiasco on Studio SV and Beat N Path’s purpose and mission: “Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung fu, Hong Kong to Southside of Chicago, we glided over unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow because we believe cross cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today.” More to come from us, as always! @lupefiascobnp #lupefiasco #lupefiascobnp #studiosv photo credit 2, 3, 4 to @thecamquarter 📸"
July 4, 2019
Instagram
@studiosvstories: "You might have noticed that it’s been a busy week for Studio SV as we debut our very first project, #BeatNPath, in the US. Read on for some special words from our co-founders @bonniechanwoo and @lupefiasco on Studio SV and Beat N Path’s purpose and mission: “Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung fu, Hong Kong to Southside of Chicago, we glided over unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow because we believe cross cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today.” More to come from us, as always! @lupefiascobnp #lupefiasco #lupefiascobnp #studiosv photo credit 2, 3, 4 to @thecamquarter 📸"
July 4, 2019
Instagram
@studiosvstories: "You might have noticed that it’s been a busy week for Studio SV as we debut our very first project, #BeatNPath, in the US. Read on for some special words from our co-founders @bonniechanwoo and @lupefiasco on Studio SV and Beat N Path’s purpose and mission: “Crossing cultures is hard work, it takes patience, humility and passion for open mindedness. From corporate to hip hop, music to Kung fu, Hong Kong to Southside of Chicago, we glided over unfamiliar spaces, connecting people and experimenting ideas like we were in a flow because we believe cross cultural friendships, partnerships and collaborations help develop shared platforms that build bridges, close gaps and bring people together. The need for cross-cultural understanding is increasingly relevant in light of the significant cultural, political, geo-political and social shifts that are happening in the world today.” More to come from us, as always! @lupefiascobnp #lupefiasco #lupefiascobnp #studiosv photo credit 2, 3, 4 to @thecamquarter 📸"
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