This week, Signature shares more about Simeon Campbell, a creative with a passion for dance and hip hop. His latest work, SADBOI, delves into mental health and offers an honest perspective shaped by his lived experience. As a Child of a Deaf Adult (CODA), his artistic voice is also influenced by a profound awareness of communication beyond sound. In the blog, Simeon opens about his creative roots and the inspirations behind SADBOI. Keep reading for more!
On May 3rd and 4th, Simeon Campbell performs at Breakin’ Convention at Sadler’s Wells, the international festival of hip hop dance theatre.
- Hi Simeon, first, could you introduce yourself to Signature engagers.
Hey, my name is Simeon ‘Kardinal’ Campbell of BirdGang Ltd.
- What first drew you to hip hop, and how did your journey begin with dance and performance?
My journey into hip hop was probably a little different actually. I came in as an actor. I liked drama at school so when I left and didn’t know what to do, I joined a musical theatre course for three years. I met my best friend there- he was a dancer so, while I was learning to teach and choreograph, I became part of a dance company outside of college and pretty much learned the ropes from there.
- Who or what were your biggest influences when you were coming up in the scene?
I think that of the UK groups I used to aspire to at that time, the BirdGang Ltd team is one of the favourites- I saw them in 2005 and knew I wanted to be part of what they were doing. Prior to that, there were a few groups around that were quite inspirational- Boy Blue and Avante Guarde for example. Later on, down the line, with having access to YouTube and social media, we were able to see groups abroad also. So, I loved a lot of the American groups at the time, and they became quite a big influence in terms of how I move and other elements that I could pick up and learn from.
- SADBOI feels deeply personal, what inspired the concept behind this piece?
SADBOI is a deeply personal piece. But also, I think over time, I have realised that it kind of embodies the experience of a lot of people. It’s had a bit of a journey to be honest, it started out as a piece speaking about mental health, driven by talking about anxiety and depression, at first as a kind of seven or eight minute instalment. The feedback from that, speaking about male mental health and not having a space to talk about your emotions, was the first step; getting responses from that early draft of the work made me realise that it wasn’t just my experience, but an experience o struggles that other people could identify with. After that, I was able to go away and work on it for a couple of years. We had lockdown, and all that came with it and I was able to learn a lot. I learned about neurodivergence quite a lot in that time, and I was advised to go for an assessment for ADHD. That very much became part of connecting the dots as to why I was having this cycle of depression and anxiety, and how they all linked. So, I was able to go back into the story and talk about it, to really give context to the whole piece and build it to the point it’s reached today. So SADBOI came with me on a journey from talking about depression and anxiety to then being able to talk about the whole neurodivergent experience and what that might feel and look like. I think the story feels a lot more complete now, and perhaps that’s useful, both for people with similar challenges and for people who are neurotypical, to understand something from a different point of view perhaps?
- As a CODA, how has your upbringing influenced your creative expression, both emotionally and artistically?
I’ve always kind of looked at being able to hear as a music as a gift, and that affects the way I listen and make choices around music. Not that D/deaf people can’t appreciate music or that they don’t ‘hear’ based on vibration, but I tend to focus on listening in minute detail, and I feel like some of that is because there’s a lack of it for my loved ones. The way I look at BSL interpretation is similar: whether you can hear or not, you should be able to understand the language of movement and to ‘hear’ the music in the dance. Somewhere along the line in there, those things tie together. From my point of view, being able to communicate in sign language and finding a way to marry it with dance is useful for audiences in understanding a story.
- Finally, what’s one message or piece of advice you would give to young dancers and choreographers entering the scene today?
Don’t be scared to speak about your personal story. The things that I have enjoyed watching come from a personal place, as a creator, there’s a real pleasure in being able to communicate your story. Remember that not everything is for TikTok or social media, there’s space for that, but there’s also space in the studio for exploring and understanding. Give yourself time before you share and have a good understanding of self, who you are and what you have to say.
Here at Signature, we would like to thank Simeon for sharing his creative journey with us. From roots in acting to becoming an integral force in UK hip hop through BirdGang Ltd, his work bridges personal experience with broader social narratives. Through SADBOI, Simeon transforms vulnerability into strength, using movement to explore his experience neurodiversity. Simeon highlights the notion that art is most impactful when it comes from a place of truth, when you communicate your own story with the world.