Participant Luc Arnoldussen on Life Cipher

Luc Arnoldussen (Heerlen, 1999) is one of these talents within this track. When Luc first visited IBE as a ten-year-old boy in Heerlen, he was sold: breakdance, that was what he wanted to do. He went all the way and still does so not without merit. In 2022, for instance, he danced at IBE with Mighty Zulu Kings, the first original break crew in hip-hop history and thus his biggest role models. He landed in the world's top eight that same year.

Photography in Africa 

Back to a ten-year-old Luc: after his introduction to breaking, he soon became so fond of the sport that he opted for CIOS just under five years later. Combining studying and dancing proved to be a tricky one. He took a gap year and went to Africa, where he discovered his love for photography. On his return, Luc decided to go for photography training, only to start working as a photographer. That turned out not to be for him, as commercial work was killing his creativity. 

Besides the occasional photography job, he has spent the past few years working on dance commissions, workshops and performances, mainly with and for young people. "Young people still have their own views on certain things. The older they get, the more likely factors are holding them back. If I can motivate them to keep doing what they want to do, then only something beautiful can come out of it," he says. 

Inspired by the coach 

In 2023, Luc started a psychology course to further develop in this field. "My first idea was to become a therapist or coach later on, preferably for artists or otherwise creative people struggling with performance pressure," he says. "I am considering doing a music therapy minor in year three as well, to be able to make the link between hip-hop and what that music does to people. We'll see where the ship runs aground." 

What Luc does know for sure is that he wants to continue to be of significance to young people. "I'm now working with people I used to look up to, I want to show that it's all possible." Of course, this inspiring story of Luc's does not come from nowhere, as he too was once one of those young people who was coached by a great role model. "True, my mentor in this case was Jop, co-founder of Kool Cult and, among other things, the brains behind HFC. Since I started taking break dancing classes with him in 2012, he has played an incredibly big role in my development. And now he is a coach at Life Cipher." 

Support from Life Cipher 

Life Cipher was founded partly because there are too few training and education opportunities for young creatives. Luc can attest to that, although for Luc a challenge also appeared to lie in time management. "I always had to choose; am I going to train or am I going to study? That always became training. Besides, CIOS was focused on sports. I missed that grip of an education, knowing that you are building something that will last, with a view to a career in dance. I was a dancer, not an athlete." 

So CIOS was no match. But then, what would have been the ultimate education for a 16-year-old Luc? "Good question! I missed the combination of personal training and dance. A combination of the three courses I do or have done, so dance, psychology and training science, would be really cool I think. Then I could use dance to help people, and use the psychological piece to prepare them for what is involved in big events, for example. The physical training is then there to help people get to the best result." 

Accelerating within dance 

The issue of ‘training’ is one of the questions being considered at Life Cipher. The project has now been underway for over a month, with a number of working sessions having taken place with the eight participants. "We will soon take a small part of this group to Japan, from another project. Among other things, we are researching Japanese funk and break there, as well as dance and philosophy. Even though the trip is not under the banner of Life Cipher, I have been looking with Jop at what I can research there for Life Cipher. Everything I'm doing now is to accelerate within dance and youth work." 

Beyond Japan, Luc has not yet looked ahead, he says. Although: in October, American rapper Jeru the Damaja is coming to Heerlen for a performance. This will, of course, be accompanied by a chat with the participants. "Furthermore, we are especially encouraged to have inspiring artists come here ourselves, also as part of The Juice: the event we organise from Life Cipher." 

Developing in a sustainable way 

Ideally, The Juice would take place in a hip-hop centre in Heerlen, but such a large, creative space is still hard to find. "We've been looking for a new space to train for a while now, ideally we'd like to go ahead with a large space that also has room for a photo studio, clothing designers and so on. That's also a way to bring the city's creatives together," says Luc. Asked what he is most looking forward to within the Life Cipher track, he enthusiastically replies, "Development! I get to do research on a topic of my own choosing and get the necessary tools to do so. My focus is on movement. In this regard, Roye Goldschmidt would be my ultimate coach. He specialises in movement and making the body stronger. Apart from that, I would love to watch another break crew to see how they do things." 

While we are daydreaming, what might life look like in five years? "By then I will hopefully have a degree in my pocket and be financially stable. I hope to have the space then to do the cool things I want to do. I want to learn how to engage with movement in a sustainable way, and continue to pass on this knowledge. The arts and culture sector remains elusive, I did learn that from the corona period. So I want more ownership and security over my work and income. I don't necessarily need to be the best anymore."