DJ Yoda (born Duncan Beiny) is a British hip-hop turntablist.

Betwee… Read Full Bio ↴DJ Yoda (born Duncan Beiny) is a British hip-hop turntablist.

Between 1995 and 1998 he studied English and American Literature at the University of Warwick. During this period he began performing at Mojo, a popular Warwick Hip hop and Soul night until he graduated. After he left university he began releasing underground demo mix-tapes to small music shops. Through the popularity of these tapes, Antidote Records asked him to create an official mixtape, from which 'How to Cut & Paste Mix Tape Vol.1' was released.

During his career he has won a DMC DJ of the Year award in the Scratch DJ category (2001), and was one of 6 nominees for best UK hip-hop DJ in the UK Hip-Hop Awards. He has also been nominated by Q magazine as one of the 'Ten DJs To See Before You Die', has released a series of mix-tapes and has toured the globe with the likes of Goldie and the Scratch Perverts.

He is currently the hip-hop correspondent for Sleaze Nation, The Face, and IDJ magazines, and also writes the DJ page for Hip Hop Connection magazine.

Yoda is currently a resident DJ at London club nights Spread Love, Step Up Front and The Xfm All City Night.

He has been one of the DMC DJ World Finals judges for the last 3 years.

In addition to releasing his own material, he has also performed scratches on Danger Mouse & Jemini's Ghetto Pop Life.

The Breaks
DJ Yoda Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Clap your hands, everybody
If you got what it takes
'Cause I'm Kurtis Blow and I want you to know
That these are the breaks

Breakes on a bus, brakes on a car
Breaks to make you a superstar
Breaks to win and breaks to lose

But these here breaks will rock your shoes
And these are the breaks
Break it up, break it up, break it up!

If your woman steps out with another man
(That's the breaks, that's the breaks)
And she runs off with him to Japan
And the IRS says they want to chat
And you can't explain why you claimed your cat
And Ma Bell sends you a whopping bill
With eighteen phone calls to Brzil
And you borrowed money from the mob
And yesterday you lost your job
Well, these are the breaks
Break it up, break it up, break it up

Throw your hands up in the sky
And wave 'em 'round from side to side
And if youdeserve a break tonight
Somebody say alright!
(All right) Say ho-oo!
(Ho-oo!) And you don't stop
Keep on, somebody scream!
(Owwwww!) Break down!

Breaks on a stage, breaks on a screen
Breaks to make your wallet lean
Breaks run cold and breaks run hot
Some folks got 'em and some have not
But these are the breaks
Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Break down!

To the girl in brown, stop messing around
(Break it up, break it up)
To the guy in blue, whatcha gonna do?
To the girl in green, don't be so mean
And the guy in red, say what I said
Break down!

Brakes on a plane, brakes on a train
Breaks to make you go insane
Breaks in love, breaks in war
But we got the breaks to get you on the floor
And these are the breaks
Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Break down! Yo!

Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!

You say last week you met the perfect guy
(That's the breaks, that's the breaks)
And he promised you the stars in the sky
He said his Cadilac was gold
But he didn't say it was ten years old
He took you out to the Red Coach grill
But he forgot the cash and you paid the bill
And he told you the story of his life
But he forgot the part about...his wife! Huh! Huh!
Well, these are the breaks!

Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Break down!

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of DJ Yoda's song The Breaks is an ode to Kurtis Blow's 1980 hit of the same name with a couple of added raps. The song emphasizes that in life, there are ups and downs, and sometimes things do not go the way we want them to. The chorus of the song, "these are the breaks, break it up," emphasizes the concept of dancing and finding pleasure in every situation. The song uses different situations to explain the concept of breaks, such as in the first verse, the breaks that stop a vehicle, and the breaks that make someone a superstar. In the second verse, he explains the breaks of encountering challenges in different facets of life, such as losing your job, receiving a large phone bill, or borrowing money from the mob.

The song has a fun beat and is an excellent piece of early hip hop that reflects the culture of the time. It glorifies the breakdance culture that had started to gain popularity in the early '80s. The song is a reflection of DJ culture and the utilization of sampling, with the chorus being one of the most sampled lines in music history. The song's message is about enjoying the moment despite the challenges and enjoying life's small pleasures, such as dancing. It is a song that encourages people to keep moving and having a positive attitude towards life.

Line by Line Meaning

Clap your hands, everybody
Everyone, please clap your hands

If you got what it takes
If you're capable enough

'Cause I'm Kurtis Blow and I want you to know
Because I'm Kurtis Blow and I need you to understand

That these are the breaks
That this is life, with all its ups and downs

Breakes on a bus, brakes on a car
Vehicles need brakes to function safely

Breaks to make you a superstar
Opportunities to become famous or successful

Breaks to win and breaks to lose
Chances to succeed or fail

But these here breaks will rock your shoes
These particular life experiences will impact you significantly

And these are the breaks
And that's just how life is

Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Keep the music and dancing going!

If your woman steps out with another man
If your significant other cheats on you

(That's the breaks, that's the breaks)
(That's just something that happens in life)

And she runs off with him to Japan
And your partner leaves with the other person to another country far away

And the IRS says they want to chat
And you're audited by the IRS

And you can't explain why you claimed your cat
And you don't have a valid reason for the deductions you made

And Ma Bell sends you a whopping bill
And the phone company sends you an unexpectedly high bill

With eighteen phone calls to Brzil
And they charge you for 18 expensive phone calls to Brazil

And you borrowed money from the mob
And you owe money to a dangerous person or group

And yesterday you lost your job
And you lost your employment the previous day

Well, these are the breaks
Well, those are just the unexpected events that can happen in life

Break it up, break it up, break it up
Keep the music and dancing going!

Throw your hands up in the sky
Raise your arms up high

And wave 'em 'round from side to side
And move your arms in a waving motion

And if you deserve a break tonight
And if you need a break from everything tonight

Somebody say alright!
Someone please confirm

(All right) Say ho-oo!
(All right) Express excitement

(Ho-oo!) And you don't stop
(Expressing enthusiasm) And the fun doesn't stop

Keep on, somebody scream!
Keep enjoying the music, someone should scream in excitement

(Owwwww!) Break down!
Expressing enthusiasm and excitement, let's dance!

Breaks on a stage, breaks on a screen
Instances during performances, on stage or screen

Breaks to make your wallet lean
Opportunities which will cause you to lose money

Breaks run cold and breaks run hot
Life's opportunities can be good or bad

Some folks got 'em and some have not
Some people are lucky, and some are not

But these are the breaks
But that's just how life goes

Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Keep the music and dancing going!

To the girl in brown, stop messing around
To the girl wearing brown, stop wasting time

(Break it up, break it up)
(Get serious about your time)

To the guy in blue, whatcha gonna do?
To the man in blue, what's your plan?

To the girl in green, don't be so mean
To the girl in green, be nicer

And the guy in red, say what I said
And to the man in red, repeat what I just said

Break down!
Keep dancing and having fun!

Brakes on a plane, brakes on a train
Stopping mechanisms on planes and trains

Breaks to make you go insane
Circumstances that can drive someone crazy

Breaks in love, breaks in war
Setbacks in times of love or in times of violence

But we got the breaks to get you on the floor
But we have the right music to get you dancing

And these are the breaks
And this is just how life goes

Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Keep the party going!

Yo!
Hey there, everyone!

Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Give it your all, do it!

Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Don't hold back, give it your all!

Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Keep going, don't stop!

Just do it, just do it, just do it, do it, do it!
Let's keep the fun and energy going!

You say last week you met the perfect guy
You claim to have found the perfect partner last week

(That's the breaks, that's the breaks)
(That could be positive or negative in the grand scheme of things)

And he promised you the stars in the sky
And he made grand promises to you

He said his Cadilac was gold
He told you his Cadillac was an amazing status symbol

But he didn't say it was ten years old
But he didn't mention that it was a decade-old car

He took you out to the Red Coach grill
He took you to a fancy restaurant called Red Coach Grill

But he forgot the cash and you paid the bill
But he forgot his wallet, and you ended up paying the bill

And he told you the story of his life
He shared his life story with you

But he forgot the part about...his wife! Huh! Huh!
But he didn't mention that he was already married!

Well, these are the breaks!
Well, that's just how life is sometimes

Break it up, break it up, break it up!
Keep the party going!

Break down!
Keep dancing and having fun!

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JESSE BONDS WEAVER JR., CHARLIE JIMENEZ, LARRY MACK, REGGIE HOBDY, RICKY M. L. WALTERS, DAVID JOLICOEUR, VINCENT L. MASON, KELVIN MERCER, ROBERT ARTHUR FORD, JAMES B. MOORE, RUSSELL W. SIMMONS, LAWRENCE SMITH, KURTIS WALKER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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