The dancehall scene is inundated by rhythms, some of which define their producers and launch careers of many artistes. The Silent Project, a joint effort between A Team Music and Paul Platinum, is different in that it features established acts and producers.
Rellee “Rellee” Hayden represents the A Team while Paul “Platinum” Gavin is a member of the Platinum Kids with his brother Marcus.
“Technically, it’s the first time we collaborated on an actual project, but from time to time we would lend each other’s ears on creative works. It was the fourth of July 2017 and Paul had a small family get-together and we were tossing ideas back and forth for an artiste we were going to work with and the idea was born. We actually didn’t go forward with working with the artist and two years later and 11 artistes later ‘Silent’ was born,” Rellee explained.
Tifa with Man A Come Back, Rubbery by Spragga Benz, and Boom by Darrio are some of the songs on The Silent Project Relle and Paul Platinum hope to make some noise. Each song on the compilation has a ‘clean’ version.
Originally from Manchester, Paul Platinum and his brother have made a name in New York City dance circles as sound system selectors and show promoters. His productions include the Snake Wine and Fat Kat rhythms.
As an active member of the dancehall community, Paul Platinum believes having his ears to the ground is advantageous.
“To me, playing sound systems has been beneficial towards my music production because it’s a form of first-hand knowledge of what the people want to hear, what gets them moving. Then you take that first-hand knowledge and apply it to the music we make,” he said.
Rellee, who is American, has worked with a diverse batch of artists including Shaggy, Gyptian, Etana, Usher, Mary J Blige, and The B52s. He formed the A Team in 2002.
— Howard Campbell
