Our first U18 Pop-Up session at West End Academy got underway this week, and it didn't take long for the room to find its rhythm.
The aim was to bring a group of young people together, introduce them to the creative process behind making a track, and give everyone the opportunity to have a voice in what we created. From the start, the engagement was there.
Nailah and Kari also stepped into their roles as UAM Associates for the session, helping to bring the group together, support the activities and make sure everyone had an opportunity to get involved. They both embraced the responsibility and played a big part in keeping the session moving.
We started with a mood board, using it as a way to get everyone's ideas on the table and begin exploring the themes, sounds and messages that could shape the track. From there, the conversation naturally moved into music, artists and influences before we started putting some of those ideas into words.
Then came the rhymes.
What started as ideas on a mood board quickly became lines on a page, with everyone contributing in their own way. Some people came with ideas straight away, while others took a little more time to find their angle. That's part of the process. There's no single way to write, and watching those ideas develop in the room is what makes sessions like this work.
By the time we got into the recording side, everyone had something to contribute. Getting young people to actually hear their ideas come to life through the microphone is always a great moment, particularly when they've gone from a blank page to being part of a track in the space of one session.
The biggest positive for us was the level of engagement throughout. Everyone got involved, everyone had a role to play, and the session felt genuinely collaborative from start to finish.
And we're not finished yet.
We've been invited back to West End Academy next week for another session, where we'll pick things up from where we left off, finish the track and give the group the chance to hear the final product come together.
One session down. One track underway.
We'll see where the music takes us next week.
