Behind the Creative Partnership of F2Freestylers
Performing as a duo is twice as entertaining – and twice as challenging. This is how we, the F2Freestylers Billy Wingrove and Jeremy (Jez) Lynch, approach creative teamwork.
Building on our combined passion, experience, and skills in freestyle football, we officially launched F2Freestylers on YouTube six years ago. By blending technical difficulty with brilliant synchronization, our goal is nothing less than to design and deliver the best football show in the world.
After opening the show at the World FIFA Ballon D’or in 2010, we knew we were on to something unique. Since then, we’ve been fortunate to collaborate with sporting legends such as Pele, Messi, Neymar, Suarez, and the All Blacks along with a host of leading brands and personalities. Neither of us could have done it alone. We believe performing as a double act is twice as entertaining and fun – and twice as difficult.
Here’s what we’ve learnt about creative teamwork through freestyle football.
1. Respect each other’s strengths
Billy: Chemistry and compatibility is everything when we perform as a duo, and also when we produce content for our fans on social media. Having known each other for nearly ten years, we’ve developed an understanding through open communication and collaboration.
Nonetheless, we approach projects from two distinctly different angles: I am the more practical one, focused more on planning and technical aspects, while Jez leads on the creative side, concentrating on the overall presentation.
Jez: Our skills and interests complement each other, which means we don’t cross over or confuse the other one. Respect is very much at the heart of the F2 ethos.
2. Ideation starts from knowing the fans
Jez: Our approach to creativity is simple: Through experience and trial and error, we’ve learnt what works, so we’re aware of what our audience wants. Whenever we get external ideas or come up with new ones ourselves, we first filter them through the lens of our audience: Would our fans be into it?
Once we agree that the core of the idea makes sense, we then dial up our imagination and introduce something fresh, something that has never been done before. The result is a unique point of view, and a trigger for our fans to engage with the content, be it videos or photos or live shows.
3. Brainstorming requires downtime
Jez: For us, brainstorming usually takes place when we are traveling, in a car, train, or plane. Basically, whenever we have some spare time to think and work through ideas, free from distraction.
Billy: This is the minimum expectation we set ourselves, and it’s what keeps us where we are in terms of audience and reach. Currently, we have over 9 million social media followers. The F2 YouTube channel alone has 4 million subscribers and over 1 billion video views to date.
4. Common vision minimizes conflicts
Billy: We have known each other for a long time and worked on projects all over the world. This lengthy experience has taught us what the other one expects. Luckily, we rarely find ourselves in a situation where we cannot reach an easy compromise.
Jez: Having a consensus on what’s best for both our brand and partners helps. Even if we have different ideas to start with, it’s easy to discuss, agree, and adapt our thinking – as long as we’re clear on our vision and goal. It all comes back to knowing our fans, and understanding what they expect from us.
F2Freestylers Practice Session
TAKE A DEEP DIVE INTO OUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO CREATIVITY
Creativity requires focus, passion and above all, practice- take it from those who know.
Unleash Your Inner Creator
EXTERNAL REFERRALS
F2 Freestylers: 10 mind-blowing corner goals! | XTREMFOOTBALL