A dance music producer who was born and bred in Bolton will be releasing a recreation of a Michael Jackson classic as part of a collaboration.
Soulfuledge, real name Russell Pollitt, has been producing music for a decade, specialising in "the more soulful end of dance music".
The 43-year-old from Heaton began his career with a remix of Luther Vandross hit "Never Too Much" on American record label Quantize recordings.
With a background working at a music distribution company, Russell now runs two of his own record labels, as well as making music.
Recently, he has been collaborating with Colchester-based blues singer Kerrie Masters.
He said: "I’ve been into the more soulful end of dance music since around 1996. I work for an independent dance distribution company as my day job, so my productions initially started as an extension from that really.
"The first thing I ever released for people to actually buy was a remix of Luthor Vandross’s ‘Never Too Much’ on a big American record label in 2013 – that was quite a special moment.
"I’ve done a stack of original tracks and remixes for labels all around the world since then and also run two of my own record labels, Nyte Music and Soulfuledge Recordings."
He added: "I reached out to Kerrie on a bit of a whim really – I’d heard the music she’d recorded a few years back, musically it was quite different to the style I work with but I could tell with the tone and character in Kerrie’s voice that she’d be a perfect fit for my music.
"The first track we worked on together, 'Down In Flames', flowed beautifully, Kerrie got the vibe ridiculously quickly and the whole project was wrapped up in a few weeks.
"From there she asked me to remix a bunch of her own original material and the whole thing has snowballed from that point pretty quickly.
"We're currently working on a few different cover versions, including a new remake of Michael Jackson's 'PYT', as well as a bunch of original, new material."
Russell and Kerrie are set to perform together at The Alchemist in MediaCity on Saturday, August 26.
Russell said: "It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work we’ve both put in this year. It's a venue I know really well as I DJ there quite regularly, so introducing Kerrie and what she does live into the mix is going to make for a really special night."
Kerrie spoke about the show, which will be her debut in the North.
She said: "New audiences and new venues always give me a buzz of nerves and adrenaline.
"I’m mega excited to be meeting Russell for the first time and actually performing our tracks live together.
"Russell is so talented. He has been really patient with me, especially as dance music isn’t a genre I have explored before. We have a good rapport with each other’s best interests in mind.
"It’s a collaboration the whole way through which can be a bit of a rarity in music. I feel extremely fortunate to be working with him."
Kerrie also spoke about the upcoming Michael Jackson cover:
She added: "There are some artists that you just don’t attempt to cover, MJ being the main one.
"However, once we decided to give 'PYT' a go and played with some vocal ideas, I think, and I hope others think, that we were respectful of the original - not attempting to replicate it and not attempting to change it."
To hear Russell and Kerrie's work together, visit https://linktr.ee/nytemusic
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