After the Beale Street Flippers’ August 11th performance on NBC’s
America’s Got Talent, judge David Hasselhoff called the foursome
“the best flippers I’ve ever seen.” But judges Sharon Osbourne and
Piers Morgan thought the group should have added more variety to their
stage routine.
And viewers must have agreed, because the Memphis natives were voted
off the talent show the following night. Home in Memphis now, the
Flippers are back performing death-defying acrobatics for tips on their
namesake street, as well as daily shows inside B.B. King’s Blues Club.
The group also routinely performs during NBA games.
Founding member Rarecas Bonds took a break to talk to the
Flyer about the group’s talent show experience.
Flyer: How did you feel about the Flippers’ last performance
on America’s Got Talent?
Rarecas Bonds: We had to take [our performance] from the
street to the main stage, so we had to change it up and do it
professionally. The choreographers did a great job of putting us on
that level. We’re not used to doing this for competition. We do this to
laugh and have fun.
Host Nick Cannon left you guys waiting for several minutes before
revealing the results on the night you were voted off. What was that
like?
It was one of the greatest moments of my life. A minute felt like an
hour, and my legs were shaking. My arms were shaking. My heart was
beating so fast. It was like being in front of the pope.
How did the Flippers get started?
Twenty-two years ago, I came from a [downtown] street called
Pontotoc. Every weekend, all the grown people would get together and
take their kids walking through the city — to a local park or the
McDonald’s. One day, we ended up on Beale Street, and there was a band
playing.
I started flipping, and people tipped me. Ever since then, I’ve been
coming to Beale Street every day. People started to know me on the
street. People started feeding me. Now, that’s what I teach the kids.
I’ve trained more than 100 kids to flip over the years.
Have people been tipping better since the appearance on
America’s Got Talent?
No. People think we’re rich now. It’s hard on the Flippers right
now. Some nights, we may only get $40 or $50 to split. For some of us,
this is our job. This is how we take care of our families and pay our
car notes. This is how we do everything. We can’t even have days
off.
If you could have done one thing differently with the
America’s Got Talent performance, what would that have
been?
I would have done more sit-ups at the Fogelman YMCA [laughs]. No, I
think we could have gotten new outfits, because what you wear affects
how well you do.
