Formed by breaks fanatic Miles Tackett, Breakestra is a constantly morphing hip-hop orchestra based in Los Angeles. The group came together in 1997-1997 around Tackett's DJ gigs at a coffeehouse.
A multi-instrumentalist whose work on cello has appeared on recordings by B.B. King, Macy Gray, and Black Eyed Peas, Tackett was a funk fan who got into hip-hop during the late '80s.
Their club night, Root Down, brought in crowds, along with the cream of the rap underground (Jurassic 5, Dilated Peoples, Company Flow, DJ Shadow, Freestyle Fellowship), and their first single, "Getcho Soul Togetha," appeared on Stones Throw in 1999. That year also brought an intriguing demo called The Live Mix Tape
In 2005 Breakestra recorded a single, Family Rap, featuring Chali 2na and Soup from Jurassic 5 and Double K from People Under the Stairs, and also released their third studio album, Hit the Floor, on Ubiquity Records.