Roy Kerr, aka the Freelance Hellraiser, is one of the creators of the UK bootleg ( mashup) scene.

Career

Under the Freelance Hellraiser name, Kerr gained fame with a mashup in 2001 called "A Stroke of Genius", which combined an

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

edit of

The Strokes The Strokes are an American rock band from New York City. Formed in 1998, the band is composed of lead singer and songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikolai Fraiture, and drummer Fabrizio Mor ...

' track " Hard To Explain" with

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

's pop hit "

Genie in a Bottle "Genie in a Bottle" is a song by American singer Christina Aguilera from her self-titled debut studio album (1999). It was written by Pam Sheyne, Steve Kipner and David Frank, and produced by Kipner and Frank. The song was released on May 11, 1 ...

". Although originally greeted by a cease and desist order by

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

(the label which both Aguilera and The Strokes are signed to), he went on to remix Aguilera's single " Fighter", as well as tracks for

Placebo A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like saline), sham surgery, and other procedures. In general, placebos can af ...

and ex- Verve frontman

Richard Ashcroft Richard Paul Ashcroft (born 11 September 1971) is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and occasional rhythm guitarist of the alternative rock band The Verve from their formation in 1990 until their original split in 1999. So ...

. "A Stroke Of Genius" was later dubbed as "the song that defines the decade" by ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''. In 2006, he released his album ''Waiting for Clearance'', featuring such artists as Jan Hammer,

Iain Archer Iain Archer is a writer, producer and solo artist from Bangor, Northern Ireland. He is a two-time Ivor Novello Award winner, winning the 2004 Album Award – ''Final Straw'' by Snow Patrol and Most Performed Work in 2016 for Grammy nominated ...

and Snow Patrol frontman

Gary Lightbody Gareth John Lightbody (born 15 June 1976) is a Northern Irish singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the alternative rock band Snow Patrol. He has also founded the musical supergroups The ...

. The next year he formed Kid Gloves with Anu Pillai, writing and producing two songs for Ladyhawke's gold-selling eponymous debut album, including the single "Paris Is Burning".

Collaborations

In 2004, he was commissioned by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

to remix some lesser-known McCartney tracks as preshow entertainment for his tour of that year. Those tracks, and several more, were released under the name

Twin Freaks ''Twin Freaks'' is an album by Twin Freaks, a duo composed of Paul McCartney and Freelance Hellraiser (Roy Kerr), released on 13 June 2005. History and structure McCartney and Kerr created the double vinyl album as a continuation of Kerr's colla ...

. In 2009, Kid Gloves contributed to

Little Boots Victoria Christina Hesketh (born 4 May 1984), better known by her stage name Little Boots, is an English electropop singer-songwriter and DJ. She was previously a member of the band Dead Disco. Since performing as a solo artist she has releas ...

' gold-selling debut album, '' Hands'', writing and producing her duet, "Symmetry", with

The Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album ''Dare' ...

Phil Oakey Philip Oakey (born 2 October 1955) is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the lead singer, songwriter, and cofounder of British synth-pop band the Human League. Aside from the Human League, Oakey has enjoyed an ...

Discography

Albums (as the Freelance Hellraiser)

* ''Waiting For Clearance''

Singles (as The Freelance Hellraiser)

* "Want You To Know" * "We Don't Belong" * "Weightlessness" * "You Can Cry All You Want"

Remixes (as The Freelance Hellraiser)

- "Check The Meaning" *

- " Fighter" * Arthur Baker - "Glow" *

- "English Summer Rain" * The Reindeer Section - "Your Are My Joy" * Ian Brown - "Northern Lights" *

Editors Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, or ...

- "

Blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

" * Just Jack - "Triple Tone Eyes" * The Darkness - "Girlfriend" * Snow Patrol - "Hands Open" * Iain Archer - "When It Kicks In" *

Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), known professionally as Siouxsie Sioux, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. She was the lead singer of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees (1976–1996). They released 11 ...

- "

Here Comes That Day "Here Comes That Day" is a song co-written and recorded by Siouxsie Sioux, Siouxsie, for her 2007 solo album ''Mantaray (album), Mantaray''. It was released as the album's second single in the UK on 29 October 2007. It was critically acclaimed ...

" * My Robot Friend - "Rapture" * Cuban Friends - "My Love Is Alive" *

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the " Queen of Latin Music" and is n ...

- "Objection" *

The Verve The Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Simon Tong later became a member in ...

- "

Love Is Noise "Love Is Noise" is a song by English alternative rock band the Verve, the second track on their fourth album, ''Forth'' (2008). It was released as the first single from the album on 3 August 2008 as a digital download, with the physical release ...

" *

Sophie Ellis-Bextor Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded Ellis-Bextor went solo and ach ...

- ''

Wanderlust Wanderlust is a strong desire to wander or travel and explore the world. Etymology The first documented use of the term in English occurred in 1902 as a reflection of what was then seen as a characteristically German predilection for wandering ...

'' (remixed the whole album)

DJ mixes

* ''

Mixmag ''Mixmag'' is a British electronic dance and clubbing magazine published in London. Launched in 1983 as a print magazine, it has branched into dance events, including festivals and club nights. History The first issue of ''Mixmag'' was prin ...

'' 50 Big Tunes 2003 Cover CD * 45 Special 2001 Bootleg Mix

Singles (as Kid Gloves)

* "Music Power" (2011) * "Bare Knuckle" (2010)

Production (as Kid Gloves)

Cheryl Cole Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. Born and raised in Newcastle upon Tyne, she rose to fame in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstar ...

and

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent r ...

- " Ghetto Baby" * Ladyhawke - " Paris Is Burning" * Ladyhawke - "Paris Is Burning (Remix)" * Ladyhawke - "Manipulating Woman" *

- "Symmetry (featuring Phil Oakley)" *

- "Not Now" * VV Brown - "Game Over" * Arsenal - "Lokemo"

Remixes (as Kid Gloves)

Black Kids Black Kids are an American indie rock band. Formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 2006, the group consists of singer/guitarist Reggie Youngblood, keyboardists/backup singers Ali Youngblood and Dawn Watley, bassist Owen Holmes, and drummer Kevin Sno ...

- "Look At Me" *

Santigold Santi White (born September 25, 1976), known professionally as Santigold (formerly Santogold), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. '' Billboard'' presented her in 2022, saying: "Spanning punk rock, hip-hop, and dance music, S ...

- "Lights Out" * Arsenal - "Estupendo"

Albums (as Twin Freaks)

* ''

'' (2005)

Singles (as Twin Freaks)

* " Really Love You" * "What's That You're Doing"

References

External links

Freelance Hellraiser's MySpace pageReview of "A Stroke of Genius" in the Village Voice
;Interviews

The Some Assembly Required Interview with The Freelance Hellraiser (2006).
Q&A with Freelance Hellraiser on Music Towers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freelance Hellraiser British mashup artists Remixers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)