This is an update to let you all know what we at Tech Styles have been doing since the lockdown has begun. We have been working hard behind the scenes to keep pushing forward with our work whilst also being in support of the worldwide effort to keep our communities safe.

Tech Styles has been involved to help facilitate online classes with Tranquil Productions for the community of Bradford and beyond. We have maintained a community presence and have been working hard for the future of Bradford and Tech Styles. We can’t run our events as usual, so we have been formulating plans since the beginning of the lockdown. This is a difficult time for everyone and now more than ever unity and connection is needed. We believe that access to exercise, art, music and creativity are crucial for mental and physical health. Director of Tech Styles International, Lloyd Thompson gives his official statement below.

“As the Director of Tech Styles International I felt an immediate responsibility to help support people in communities across Bradford that we have built up relationships with and the Tech Styles Community as a whole. I also felt it was vital to help the local, national and international breakin scene through utilising our expertise and skill set. This is a very difficult time for artists/creative practitioners, the loss of work in our industry due to the current lockdown has been massive. God put it in my heart to help and I immediately had a strong vision for a project, which could help many creative practitioners/artists. From the announcement of the lockdown up until this point, we at Tech Styles have continued to work and push forward.

We know that through our work we may be able to play a key role for arts and culture in overcoming the current situation and setting plans into motion that will continue to change people lives for the better long into the future. Thanks to God through prayer, research and strategy development we are now in a position to bring our project to life and we will be making announcements regarding this within the next two weeks. I have to say a massive thank you to Arts Council England for supporting our organisation and enabling us to bring our vision to life.”

To support the breakin community, our students, friends & family and the team have been working around the clock to ensure that classes can be brought to you online via YouTube livestream and online tutorials, links to Tranquil tv. classes can be found below. We wanted to continue with our work and reach out to help as many people as possible. We have maintained a community presence and have been working hard for the future of Bradford and Tech Styles.

https://www.youtube.com/tranquiltv

Alina Cvetkova is a Tranquil Productions Student and has been involved in the online classes that we helped to facilitate.

“The online classes have helped me stay active and positive during lockdown as there’s something to look forward to each week. I am able to interact with other dancers and enjoy doing what I do on a regular basis in the comfort of my own home. I’ve attended every session since they started and have noticed myself progress so much. I can definitely say that training at home has made me stronger as I feel more committed because I’m not in the regular environment. I have to be independent as I don’t have the constant support of others. I think it’s a great opportunity for those who struggle being at home all the time, especially those who struggle with mental health to be able to join the classes. I would recommend these for anyone just looking to get in a great workout too.”

We really encourage a regular daily routine in order to look after yourselves and others during this period. Adding daily exercise makes you feel great and gives you more energy and motivation to stay fit and healthy.

The work that we have been doing since the lockdown begun has not only been to help facilitate online classes but to also provide something new and exciting for the scene and for the world to see. Our events help provide opportunities for artists across the UK and beyond and we didn’t want this to stop due to the situation we are in. We are so happy to announce that we have received support from Arts Council England to help sustain Tech Styles during this uncertain time. We must say a massive thank you to Arts Council England, your support is truly appreciated, thank you from the Tech Styles team and thank you from all the communities across Bradford that we work with.

Tech Styles 6 was our biggest event to date but we hope that what we have planned will surpass even that.

To keep up to date with our efforts, please follow our social media channels.

facebook.com/techstylesinternational
facebook.com/tranquilproductions
instagram.com/techstylesinternational

Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been effected by this situation and we praise all the key workers working diligently during this time.