Brazilian Jiu Jitsu X Heavy Metal

Recently I went on another road trip to explore some of the wider lifestyle around Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This time it was music, and specifically heavy metal.

The addition of music in the training environment of a BJJ club can be a controversial topic. Martial Arts purists would probably argue that in a traditional setting there is no place for music, and that you should be focusing on training and perhaps looking to enhance your mindfulness through a peaceful learning environment. They may also say there won’t be your favourite track in the background in a self-defence situation or battlefield.

Most people however are not running their daily lives worrying about the severity of self defence, and actually are participating on a social and recreational basis. Music can provide the soundtrack to all of our lives, and is a powerful tool to enhance energy and motivation.

Within any trading session there is a time and place to turn the music up or down. When I teach a class I turn down the music during instructional periods so that students can hear and understand what I am saying and not be distracted, but when we get to sparring, it is definitely the opposite!

As with any walk of life and any room you walk into, people will have different tastes and BJJ is no different.Everything from fighting style, affiliation allegiance, Gi or Nogi, your favourite pro-fighter, whether you like MMA or just pure grappling, your club will have its core influences.

As a second degree black belt with a few years of experience, I enjoy sharing what motivates me, its not always everyones cup of tea, but over time having listened to what I have to say, and how id design practice, you may start to form your own ideas, and that is healthy and normal.

Before you read on, we are running a Heavy Metal Open mat at our club Sunday 21st July at 2pm, click the link to find out more!

So why heavy metal?

Just on a personal note, I love it! The heavy riffs and energy have captivated me since I was a teenager and it has always been present to different degrees in my car, in my training, at my wedding!

In recent years to help add some spice to hard sparring rounds at the end of a long day I have turned up the volume in the club and it has helped drive the intensity, in a positive way.

But I was sure it can’t just be me, so I wanted to hit the road and find out!

I recently attended a live concert of Metallica, In Copenhagen. They were supported by another band I very keen on, Five Finger Death Punch (5FDP). 5FDP were founded by Zoltan Bathory who is himself a Black Belt in BJJ and I wanted to see them live, experience the energy and bring that back to the training room. But it also gave me the opportunity to explore further and highlight some other acts with an interest in BJJ.

One of the first metal stars I came across that actively participates in BJJ is Dave Mustaine, frontman of Megadeth. I have enjoyed listening to these guys since I was a kid, so it stoked me out to find out that Dave is a currently a brown belt (must be nearing black too). Have a read of this article on Blabbermouth.net to find out more.

TOOL frontman, Maynard James Keenan….

TOOL only came onto my radar back in 2019, actually whilst on a surfing adventure in the Indian Ocean, and whilst travelling solo, they provided the melodic and lengthy heavy riffs that helped me to remain calm and focused.

They say there are usually only 6 degrees of separation between any 2 individuals and this proved true when a fellow BJJ black belt from the UK and connection of mine announced he was going to stay with Maynard in Arizona! Have a read of this article from Revolver about Maynard receiving his Black Belt recently.

The last one I wanted to talk about was band from Harrow in London, called KIMURA! They are band of 4 where 3 are active participants in BJJ, they say they are having some fun with the use of BJJ in their music and I think that’s awesome. Check out this article with links to their music!

OK, one more little piece of trivia…..

How about these for some lyrics, apparently originally intended for a Spiderman movie, but not selected in the end, guess it was because it was obviously a BJJ song!

“Are you ever gonna surrender
Do you even care
Wasn’t talking about sweet submission
It wasn’t even there….”

All in the suit that you wear, Stone Temple Pilots