By Kristen Bingle
Seven weeks into lockdown, and life has slowed down for most of us. The panic and stress – remember when panic buying toilet paper was all the rage – of the first few weeks has subsided and we’re settling into a new normal.
Lockdown has meant adapting all parts of our lives, including our creativity. The normal ways in which we create have been cut off; but we haven’t stopped being creative. We’re finding new, innovative ways of expressing ourselves and pushing our artistic boundaries. We’re thinking outside the box and proving our tenacity and creativity as humans.
So how exactly have we been staying creative during lockdown?
Social Media
More than ever, social media has helped us stay connected. Different social platforms have also kept us entertained in the most creative and diverse ways, as we self isolate. A great way to connect people on one topic or idea, Instagram live is a part of the Instagram platform, where a user is able to live stream a video to their followers and interact with them in real time.
Tory Lanez hosted his controversial ‘quarantine radio’ on Instagram live. The stream has drawn mixed opinions and even earned the Canadian rapper a temporary ban from the platform. Guest features from the likes of Drake and Raven Symoné, music, shots of Hennessy – or Ciroc – and even twerking contests were live streamed during ‘quarantine radio.’ UK rapper Swarmz also hosted a few lives of his own with yes you guessed it, more twerking.
Beyond twerking though, lives have also been used to host Q&As, performances, discussions and workshops. Online publication Black Ballad have streamed Q&As giving advice on how to pitch to publications, and securing finances during this pandemic. Poetry collective Boxedin who usually host their open mics in Shoreditch, used Instagram live instead, with poets and rappers dropping in and performing their work. Poetic Unity’s weekly open mic, ‘The Poet’s Corner’, usually takes place in Brixton but since lockdown, the non-profit have hosted it on Instagram live.
Radio and media platform ‘No Signal’ have also begun doing their culturally iconic 10 v 10s on their Instagram lives. 10 tracks from 2 selected artists are played back to back and viewers vote in for the track that wins. The tracks are selected by whoever is hosting the live, on that particular night. So far they’ve hosted clashes between tracks from Vybz Kartel v. Wiz Kid, J Hus v. Kojo Funds, N Dubz v. WSTRN and Burna Boy v. Popcaan as well as so many others. The live has drawn lots of attention and a huge following as well as a few heated debates in the process .
We’ve also seen musical performances from the likes of Tinie Tempah, James Blake and Coldplay’s Chris Martin via Instagram live. Brands have also been getting involved and collaborating with creators. Spoken word performer Sophia Thakur, hosted a writing workshop on Ellesse’s Instagram and UK publication RnBrit have hosted artist takeovers with singers Rachel Foxx and Rebecca Winter, on their platform.
Then there’s Tik Tok, the social media platform that’s completely taken over lockdown. With a 23% rise in average viewing time between January and March, people have flocked to the platform to collaborate, connect and have fun. Tik Tok dance challenges have never been more popular and even parents are getting involved. The #DON’TRUSHCHALLENGE saw everyone from influencers, nurses and military personnel do before and after looks with UK rap duo Yung T and Bugsey’s 2019 track ‘Don’t Rush’. The ‘I’m just a kid’ challenge, which was more popular in the US, saw families recreate old pictures in the present.
Finding inspiration to create
With a worldwide pandemic on our doorstep, finding the inspiration to create can be challenging. Sofar London, a platform championing emerging artists, created the #KeepCreatingChallenge to encourage artists to do just that – keep creating. The project was hosted over the span of 7 days and called for the selected artists to create a track from scratch in 24 hours. Sophia Thakur and brother, singer/producer Latir, created their track ‘Summer Solstice’ as part of the challenge, and have now released it as a single. The other creations can be found on Sofar London’s SoundCloud page.
Sofar London is not the only brand that has been challenging creators. Media platform GUAP have released a challenge for photographers, called ‘WAYS OF SEEING.’ A prompt is released on a weekly basis to challenge photographers to shoot within their environment. Themes so far have included coloured lighting, black and white and isolation moods. GUAP have also collaborated with Converse for the #CREATEATHOME series, targeted at stylists. The specially curated challenges are released on a weekly basis and stylists can post their looks on social media. The first theme was ‘80s, ‘90s and ‘00s style in celebration of Converse’s Pro Leather Decades release. By setting these challenges, brands are helping to inspire creatives to push beyond the lack of inspiration so many of us have faced at this time.
Working with what you have
Innovation arises when creators are limited and pushed to create with what resources they have. Self-isolating has meant that many photographers haven’t been able to go out and shoot. London-based photographer Michaela Efford has been taking lots of self-portraits around her home and garden, with many other photographers like Vanessa Ng and Morgane Maurice also choosing to keep their creativity flowing in the same way.
Creatives have also been using the video calling platform – and corporate lovechild – Zoom to collaborate and bring people in different locations into the same room. Hosts of popular culture podcast Made in Chafford have been recording episodes via Zoom since lockdown and have also had a few guest features. Photographer Cristina Ebenezer has been shooting through video-calling platform FaceTime and used it to create her piece ‘Quarantine Chronicles: The Creators’.
Lockdown has truly tested our ability to create, but one thing is clear; we as humans are tenacious, creative and can thrive in any situation. Through a whole pandemic, we’re still reflecting, existing, living, loving, speaking, listening, collaborating, writing, drawing, singing, dancing; creating art and creating memories.
As we adapt and adjust to our new normal, it’s important to listen to our bodies, move at our own pace and not give in to external pressures.