Roy Kerr, also known as the Freelance Hellraiser, is an English DJ, producer, remixer and one of the creators of the UK bootleg (

mashup Mashup may refer to: * Mashup (culture), the rearrangement of spliced parts of musical pieces as part of a subculture * Mashup (education), combining various forms of data and media by a teacher or student in an instructional setting * Mashup (mus ...

) 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 or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...

edit of

the Strokes The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...

' track " Hard to Explain" with

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...

's pop hit "

Genie in a Bottle "Genie in a Bottle" is a song by the American singer Christina Aguilera from her debut studio album, ''Christina Aguilera'' (1999). Pam Sheyne, Steve Kipner, and David Frank wrote the track; the latter two produced it. The singer herself also ...

". Although originally greeted by a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the oth ...

order by

RCA RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded in 1919 as the Radio Corporation of America. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westinghou ...

(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 ( ) can be roughly defined as a sham medical treatment. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like saline), sham surgery, and other procedures. Placebos are used in randomized clinical trials ...

and ex-

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * '' The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee h ...

frontman

Richard Ashcroft Richard Paul Ashcroft (born 11 September 1971) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter. He formed the alternative rock band the Verve in 1990 and served as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist throughout the band's lifetime. Ashcroft was ...

. "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 Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

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

Jan Hammer Jan Hammer () (born 17 April 1948) is a Czech-American musician, composer, and record producer. He rose to prominence while playing keyboards with the Mahavishnu Orchestra during the early 1970s, as well as with his film scores for television an ...

Iain Archer Iain Archer is a Northern Irish writer, producer, singer and songwriter from Bangor. 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 nominat ...

and

Snow Patrol Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish–Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in 1994 in Dundee, Scotland, consisting of Gary Lightbody (vocals, guitar), Nathan Connolly (guitar, backing vocals), and Johnny McDaid (piano, guitar, keyboards, backi ...

frontman

Gary Lightbody Gareth John Lightbody (born 15 June 1976) is a Northern Irish 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 Reindeer Section and T ...

. The following 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 global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

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 coll ...

. In 2009, Kid Gloves contributed to

Little Boots Victoria Christina Hesketh (born 4 May 1984), known professionally as Little Boots, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ. She was previously a member of the band Dead Disco. Since performing as a solo artist, she has released four albums: ''H ...

' gold-selling debut album, ''

Hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "han ...

'', 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 music, electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their t ...

's Phil Oakey.

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 Ian George Brown (born 20 February 1963) is an English musician. He was the lead singer and the only continuous member of the alternative rock band the Stone Roses from their formation in 1983. Following the band's initial split in 1996, he be ...

- "Northern Lights" *

Editors Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, 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, organization, a ...

- "

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 is com ...

" *

Just Jack Jack Christopher Allsopp (born 12 May 1975), known by the stage name Just Jack, is an English musician from Camden Town, London. He first came to prominence with the release of his 2007 single " Starz in Their Eyes", which reached number two on ...

- "Triple Tone Eyes" * The Darkness - "Girlfriend" *

- "Hands Open" * Iain Archer - "When It Kicks In" *

Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), better known by her stage name Siouxsie Sioux (, ), is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence as the leader and main lyricist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, who w ...

- "

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

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

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

- "Objection" *

The Verve The Verve were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones (musician), Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Sim ...

- "

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 releas ...

" *

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 vocalist of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo and ...

- ''

Wanderlust Wanderlust is a strong desire to wander or travel and explore the world. The term has its roots in German Romanticism. Etymology The first documented use of the term in English occurred in 1902 as a reflection of what was then seen as a chara ...

'' (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 printe ...

'' 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. She rose to fame as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: The R ...

and

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Lana Del Rey discography, Her music is noted for its melancholic exploration of Glamour (presentation), glamor and Romanc ...

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

- "Symmetry" (featuring

Phil Oakley Philip Oakey (born 2 October 1955) is an English singer-songwriter who is the frontman and co-founder of the synth-pop band the Human League. Aside from the Human League, he has enjoyed an extensive solo music career and has collaborated with n ...

) * Little Boots - "Not Now" *

VV Brown Vanessa Brown (born 24 October 1983), known professionally as VV Brown, is a British indie pop singer-songwriter, model and record producer. Early life Vanessa Brown was born in Northampton, England. She is the eldest of six siblings; her moth ...

- "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 Sn ...

- "Look at Me" *

Santigold Santi White (born September 25, 1976), known professionally as Santigold (formerly Santogold), is an American singer and songwriter. Her debut studio album, '' Santogold'' (2008), was released by Atlantic Records and met with widespread critica ...

- "Lights Out" * Arsenal - "Estupendo"

Albums (as Twin Freaks)

* ''

'' (2005)

Singles (as Twin Freaks)

* "

Really Love You "Really Love You" is a song written by Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr—their first-ever shared credit—and originally released on McCartney's 1997 album ''Flaming Pie''. In 2005, a reworked version was released as a limited edition 12" v ...

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

References

External links

Freelance Hellraiser's MyspaceReview 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 English DJs English record producers British remixers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)