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Wednesday, 14 April 2021

City of Belmont youth find a voice at Youth Week Hip Hop Workshop

In a unique collaboration between the City of Belmont and the Valuing Children Initiative, a group of the City’s young people recorded a hip hop song with Scott Griffiths also known as Optamus from Downsyde.

To celebrate WA Youth Week 2021, the workshops were held in the City’s purpose built, professional recording studio in Belmont Hub. This provided the young people with an opportunity to use state-of-the-art equipment as part of this unique experience.

According to Valuing Children Development Executive Maddie McLeod the two-day workshop gave young people a voice and an opportunity to express themselves.

“Guided by Scott, participants explored what being a teenager in 2021 feels like. Recognising that teenagers are sometimes perceived negatively in our society, the workshop examined the impact that negative stereotypes have on the mental health and wellbeing of young people, and the difference it makes when adults listen to, and value, what teenagers have to say,” Ms McLeod said.

“Young people have amazing opinions about the world - they have a lot to say, and don’t always get the opportunity to say it,” Mr Griffiths said.

“Not every City has a recording studio, so when you have amazing resources and you are able to offer them to the community, you are providing an environment that encourages people to do things at a high level,” he said.

City of Belmont Chief Executive Officer John Christie said it was wonderful to know that Belmont Hub’s recording studio was able to be the conduit for such a positive experience for the City’s young people.

The City of Belmont provides support to young people across a number of initiatives in the community with an emphasis on the promotion of mental health and wellbeing.

“It was really wonderful to give Belmont’s young people the experience of being in a professional studio and I think this provides extra inspiration. Thank you to the City of Belmont for supporting the event and for letting us be the first to use the new studio,” Ms McLeod said.

The group song – Head In The Clouds - will now be professionally mixed, mastered and released to the public later this year.

The Valuing Children Initiative (VCI) is a WA based culture and attitude change advocacy project that believes every child deserves a happy, healthy and safe childhood. Driven by a passion for children and young people’s wellbeing, the VCI strives to ensure that all children and young people are prioritised and valued.

The workshop was also partly funded by Department of Communities as part of Youth Week. 

Watch the video to see what our young people got up to in the studio.