BLAZE The bright lights of Manhattan look far away from New Jersey for a kid with big dreams. Growing up with his very cool Mom in Newark, young Kevin Hedge became the resident DJ at "rent parties" she would throw to try and make some extra money during lean times. Kevin then became a small-time DJ around New Jersey and always dreamed of making it across the river in Manhattan. Hedge eventually hooked up with friends Josh Milan (a former gospel singer and church organist) and singer Chris Herbert to form a musical group called Blaze (the name is a nod to Earth Wind & Fire, a group idolized by Hedge and Co). In 1986, the trio started to write, produce and remix their own material as well as songs for other groups. Early one Sunday morning in 1987, still living at home with Mom with not much else going on, Hedge got an enthusiastic call from a friend who had just left the legendary Paradise Garage nightclub in Manhattan. Hedge learned that the DJ there Larry Levan played Blaze's first track "Whatcha Gonna Do" (with vocals by Colonel Abrams) at the Garage the night before and most importantly, the crowd went crazy for it. Hedge went to the club the next week and heard Levan play his song not once, but 5 times during the night. Pinned up against the wall of that magical club with the speakers blasting his song, Kevin had an epiphany. That was the first time that Hedge thought he had something going with Blaze and this event gave him hope to keep at the music career. Hedge volunteered at a record store in NJ called Movin' Records and through the owner met WBLS Radio DJ Timmy Regisford. Regisford became a big-brother figure to Hedge and procured writing and production work for Blaze with several different major labels. Regisford subsequently got them a lucrative recording and publishing deal with Motown Records. Blaze authored a number of deep house anthems from the 1980s and '90s, including "If You Should Need a Friend" and "My Desire" by Amira. During the 90s, Milan and Hedge continued to produce and record, both separately and together (Herbert left the group). In 1994, they wrote and produced the UK Top Ten hit "Hideaway" by De'Lacy which sold more than 3 million copies worldwide. Three years later, Blaze added Tee Alford and returned with another club hit ("Lovelee Dae") and their second full-length, Basic Blaze was released (recorded for the UK-based Slip'N'Slide label). A Blaze retrospective appeared in 1999. Their next project was "Natural Blaze: The James Toney Jr. Project" which was released in 2000 on Japan's Life Line Records and served as a tribute to a dear friend. Blaze's next proper album project was entitled "Spiritually Speaking" which was released in September 2002 by the UK label Slip N Slide. Spawning the huge dance floor hits and "Breathe" and "Do You Remember House" featuring the smug vocals of Blaze collaborator Palmer Brown. Another highlight of the album is the sweet "I Think Of You" featuring the lovely vocals of Amira once again. This album proved Blaze's songwriting prowess since it offered a diverse array of song styles, not just the soulful house they are known for all over the world. The album is rich with R&B tracks, the Amira ballad and the rhythmic instrumental "Gloria's Muse (The Yoga Song). West End Records released a special US edition of the album, including a second bonus disc of classic Blaze tracks not available anywhere else on CD. As is fitting for an artist who has created dance-floor fillers for almost 20 years, Kevin Hedge maintained involvement in the legendary New York City underground Saturday night dance party The Shelter for almost a decade. As producer and creative director of the party, Kevin brought an array of fabulous performers to play live at the club like Mary J. Blige, Ashford & Simpson, Stephanie Mills, Femi Kuti, Grace Jones and Patti Labelle. The success of this long-running party lead to the creation of Club Shelter in January of 2002. He was the co-founder and an active owner in its first year of existence along with DJ Timmy Regisford and Freddy Sanon, the manager of the Shelter 157 Records label. After creating the blueprint for Club Shelter and directing the club's first year, Hedge decided to leave the nightlife business to his partners and concentrate on what he does best, making music. Milan and Hedge are working on array of remixes and are currently finishing up their next album tentatively titled "Blaze Jazz." The duo plans to do a tour with a live band upon the album's release. Kevin Hedge is also busy as President of seminal dance music label West End Records. Hedge plans to release soulful house singles and create a new imprint label called West End Tracks. In addition, West End Records will release a mix CD by Hedge, house music compilations highlighting New York's best underground producers and artist albums all profiting West End founder Mel Cheren's AIDS charity organization "24 Hours For Life." This fall, New York City label King Street Sounds will release an album written and produced entirely by BLAZE featuring underground dance music legends Ultra Nate, Joi Cardwell, Barbara Tucker, Byron Stingily, Arnold Jarvis and Kenny Bobien. All proceeds from the album will benefit LIFEBEAT. For More Information on BLAZE please contact: Rob Wunderman — Remix Projects / DJ Bookings robw@kingstreetsounds.com   |   212.593.3737 Lyn Woods — West End Records lyn@westendrecords.com   |   212.367.3737