Never one to rest on his laurels, singer, songwriter, producer, vocal coach, music director and performer, RJ Benjamin’s used 2020 well, and in the process, he took stock of his rich archive and compiled 12 classic gems, dusted them all off, and has proudly delivered a spring clean aptly dubbed, The House Features.

Since his vocal coaching and production of the DHL Stormers and Friends recording, in early March 2020, RJ’s been rifling through his past, remembering when he had hair and the joys of producing profound house tracks, many of which have never been made available on streaming platforms.

“The first mission was locating every single house music track I featured on and that wasn’t available for fans to stream,” RJ recalls. “In total there were seven. Once I had those, it made sense to add the other prominent features I had been on during my years doing house music and create a compilation.”

Thanks to the team at Soul Candi (@soulcandi), RJ set to work, putting together a compilation of some of his best house music features. Songs like “Slowly” by DJ Kent (@djkentsa), “You Take Me Higher” by DJ Giggs Superstar (@djgiggssuperstar) and Stax, the original version of “Enough” by V Underground (@v_undergroundutr), “Say Yeah” by Nutty Nys (@nuttynys), The DJ Giggs Superstar Remix of “Soulful Love” and the Chris Zen (@chris_sen_za) remix of the Shaun Duvet (@shaunduvet) & Simon Malherbe (@simonmalherbe) track “Free Your Mind”.

This cathartic collection now complete, RJ’s house era also features DJ Kuchi (@djkuchi), the late great Rowick Deep (@rowickdeep) and Dr Duda (@dr_duda) in amongst these now streaming anthems.

“I think many artists, during this pandemic and varying stages of lockdown, found themselves with time on their hands to reflect on their past and back catalogues,” RJ explains. “I realised that so many of the tracks I had recorded during my house-era, between 2009 and 2010, weren’t available to stream, including some of the most popular songs I’ve ever featured on, most notably a song called ‘Change the World’. Once I was able to make that song available, I decided to make it one of my missions this year to get everything else uploaded. Also given that ‘catalogue is king’, when every stream counts that tiny bit more towards a bigger total, it made sense to have everything that is an income stream available, especially during a time when artists survival options are still extremely limited.”

As to what makes a classic house track stand out a solid decade after it first hit the airwaves is something RJ finds challenging to articulate. “I’m not sure I have a solid answer,” he admits. “That said however, I think, particularly in South Africa, a solid “groove” or “beat” is fundamental. Without it, your track is doomed. Add to that a vocalist who can write simple/catchy melodies that anyone can sing along to, and you’ve got a winner. Lyrics are secondary.”

This compilation ultimately ensures that every house track that RJ Benjamin sang on is now available to stream. “I walked away from the house music genre many years ago, for personal reasons, but now that I’m a little older and a little more chilled about life and music, I’m open to a few more house music features down the line.”

With RJ’s house well and truly in order, he’s now squarely focused on knocking the lights out once more, come 2021. “I’m busy working on an album of all-new original songs,” he reveals. “The plan is to release a full album in the latter half of 2021, while releasing several new singles along the way.”

In the meantime, keep it tidy and make RJ‘s The House Features, home.

https://smarturl.it/Thehousefeatures

#housemusic #southafricanhouse #southafricanhousemusic #sahouse #sahousemusic

See RJ’s full biography here.

For interview opportunities, photographs or additional information, please contact:
Martin Myers
martmyers@gmail.com
083 448 4475