A mix of children and teens tighten their drum straps and latch on an array of colorful drums in preparation for a Monday night practice. Heather Watkins, a spunky instructor, equipped with sweats, sneakers, and a commanding voice, lays out the ground rules and expectations for practice. “Do not fight. Do not complain if you’re sweaty. Just keep going and we’ll have a good time,” she said to her students. This is most definitely a Loco Bloco practice.

Loco Bloco, a San Francisco based performing arts program, teaches African, Latino, and indigenous dance, theater, and percussion to mainly low-income youth of color. Everyone is welcome to join and participants can get involved and perform in a short time span from when they began.

Shannon Jones, 11, started taking classes at Loco Bloco at the beginning of this year and learned how to play several different drums. She performed in May at the San Francisco Carnaval Parade, Loco Bloco’s largest performance. “I loved the energy. Everyone was so happy,” she said.

“Loco Bloco is a place where youth can go and feel safe, loved, and valuable,” says Watkins. “I feel strongly about being a voice for young people. This place is a way and place to tell them, ‘You’re valuable. You’re perfect as you are.’ The world out there is telling them to by this and do that, but I encourage them to do what they want to do.”

The program is also aimed at connecting kids, teenagers, and young adults to their cultural heritage. Pedro Gomez, a current instructor and co-director of the music program, said that many young people are out of touch with their cultures. “Kids are pressured to conform to pop culture and make money from an early age. Sadly, tradition gets lost in the process,” he said.

Futhermore, Jose Carasco, the co-founder and executive director of Loco Bloco thinks there are too few arts programs for youth. He helped establish the program so kids of color can have a place to learn the arts and have fun, while getting in touch with their ethnic heritage.

“It’s just fun,” says Antwan Stanbery, a 17-year-old drummer in the teen ensemble, “Drumming relieves a lot of stress.”

The group performs at large events such as the San Francisco Pride Parades and won the third place in the San Francisco Carnaval Parade this year. The combined dance and percussion creates a bold sensation. “Loco Bloco is a group of youth so loud that nobody can ignore it,” said Carrasco, “and our bright costumes are a huge part of the sound, movement, and color in performances.”

Loco Bloco also holds its own performances. “We get invited to perform at large private and public events, but we also have a number of our own small events, directed mainly at the families of the participants,” said Carrasco. “Our main audience is comprised of our tight knit community and families. We are well-known in our surrounding districts, so we really speak to the audience during our performances.”

Founded in 1994, Loco Bloco has evolved and grown throughout its 12 year span. It started out as a small group in the Mission District with weekly classes, and now has expanded to become a community of about 7,500 participants, including Windsor Loco, a Loco Bloco branch in Santa Rosa.

The teen ensemble will be doing a youth exchange with various groups in Northern California, including Windsor Loco. “The idea is to meet with other youth groups up north and take classes together,” said Watkins.

On June 30, at the New College of California, all are invited to come at 8:30 p.m. to watch “Radio Café,” featuring the sounds of Loco Bloco. The event will be broadcast live on KPFA 94.1 FM.