A Birchington fitness instructor and DJ has landed a record signing with a label headed by star music producer and DJ Paul Oakenfold.
Ray Mitchell, who runs Bounce Beyond fitness and exercise sessions in schools and the community with wife Karen, teamed up with remix artist Adam White to create Otago which will be released by Perfecto Records on December 2.
Dad-of-two Ray has been a DJ for more than 20 years. He has also been a head of PE and assistant head teacher, a former national high jumper and volleyball player and can now add music producer to his tally of achievements.
He said: “After DJ’ing for over 20 years, the next logical step to take on my journey was to learn to produce music, it was just finding the time.
“Lockdown gifted me the opportunity to down tools and pick up something new so I threw myself into learning to produce.
“I am autistic and with autism comes a gift, commonly a gift is something like music or art, unfortunately for me this wasn’t the case, mine was perfectionism!
“Otago was the first track I made and after it sitting on the hard drive for 18 months, I took the leap of faith and sent it over to a friend of mine called Adam White.
“Although the melody and ideas behind the track were strong, it lacked a certain something that Adam said he could bring to the record, so he came on board to collaborate with me.”
Adam is an artist already signed to Paul Oakenfold’s Perfecto Record label. After playing the Otago track Paul agreed to sign it to the label.
Oakenfold, is a record producer, remixer and trance DJ who has provided remixes for artists including U2, Moby, Madonna, Britney Spears, Massive Attack, the Cure, New Order, the Rolling Stones, the Stone Roses and Michael Jackson
And Ray is already at work on his plans for 2023.
He said: “ I’ve already finished my second track which was inspired by a recent trip to Amsterdam and secured an online DJ residency with Trance Rush UK, so 2023 for the DJ & producer Ray Mitchell.”
Bounce Beyond classes are held at Drapers Mill school in Margate on Tuesday and Thursday at 6.30pm and Saturday at 9.30am
Book at: www.bounce-beyond.co.uk
