Young Leeds stars align to perform inspirational lockdown anthem

A group of talented youngsters have teamed up with sports stars and musicians to create a rousing reworking of Chumbawamba’s iconic hit Tubthumping to give the city a much-needed lockdown lift.

The legendary Leeds-made anthem brought people across the globe together when it first stormed charts worldwide more than 20 years ago.

Replacing the hit’s famous “I get knocked down but I get up again” lyrics with “Leeds got locked down”, the video features submissions from young artists and community groups as well as appearances by Leeds Rhinos players and world champion triathlete Jonny Brownlee.

Recorded remotely and mainly from mobile phones, the montage reflects life in lockdown for its enthusiastic cast of young musicians, DJs, dancers, majorettes, aerialists, hula-hoopers, as well as dramatic drone footage of Leeds supplied by Yorkshire Folk Ltd.

Councillor Judith Blake, leader of Leeds City Council, said:

The project 'Breeze' is Leeds City Council’s initiative for 0-19 year-olds. Since 2004 the team has delivered a huge programme of summer events across the city.

The arrival of Covid-19 challenges the delivery of the normal free summer activities for young people in Leeds. Along with other providers across the city, the Breeze Team is developing a range of alternative socially-distanced events.

One of these is the annual Breeze Has Talent competition which is set to return but with auditions online. Artists aged between eight and 18 can share their talents by visiting www.breezeleeds.org/breezehastalent and following the instructions.