DJ and producer Joel Corry has been an unstoppable force this year.
His hit single Lonely (via Perfect Havoc/Asylum) went Platinum and was named the biggest new release of 2020 by a UK artist by the Official Charts Company in the first half of the year, peaking at No.4 in April and selling 741,798 copies to date.
And now Corry has made an even bigger chart hit with his MNEK collaboration Head & Heart.
Following its release on July 3, the track has gone on to spend five weeks at No.1 on the Official Singles Chart, earning both artists their first chart-topping single and moving 434,168 sales so far.
The track sees Corry team up once more with Lonely co-writer Rob Harvey.
“Rob is such a special guy, there are too many amazing things I could say about him, he's just such a talent,” said Corry. “He's just one of those people that, when you're in a room with him, you can just get talking and suddenly it gets really deep. He's an emotional guy and such a creative, I love working with him and we click so much and talk to each other every day on WhatsApp."
The song was in the works with Corry for nine months as he bided his time to let Lonely shine on the charts, and co-writer Harvey was there every step.
“To work with him again on Head & Heart has been special," he said. "It's gone through a massive development stage and Rob's been there with me the whole way. I feel amazing that he's having success as well; he's been there in the game for a long time. We're doing it again with Head & Heart so it's really nice for me to see him getting all the success as well.”
MNEK was next to hop on board, contacting Corry in the midst of lockdown after hearing the track in its early stages.
“The demo got into MNEK’s hands and he messaged me on Instagram," said Corry. "First of all, I was like 'Jesus MNEK’s just messaged me!' I’ve been a big fan of his for years and then he was like, 'I love this Head & Heart track'. I was like, no way, how does the universe work like this?”
After the song had gone through its evolution, Corry knew the track needed a new vocal and he’d just been handed the perfect fit.
“I said it was missing the pre-chorus," said Corry. "So he sent me back his full re-vocal plus he had written the new section and as soon as I heard it, slam dunk, that was it.”
Corry got his hands back on the stems, and after a few tweaks the song was ready. The pair worked around the Covid restrictions throughout the process.
“I worked with MNEK on a daily basis, it was really nice to keep in touch with him during lockdown, obviously we couldn't connect in the studio," said Corry. "And here we are, the track's out and I couldn't be any happier with how it's turned out. I'm just grateful and feel really lucky to work with someone like MNEK.”
Corry said the positive reaction may be partly a result of the pandemic.
“This year has been a tough year for everybody, and I feel like this track has come at a good time because it's definitely a positive message," he said. "With the uplifting vibes it has, I think people are connecting with that side of it. It’s just a feelgood banger for summer 2020.”
See the latest issue of Music Week for our Hitmaker interview with Joel Corry.
* To make sure you can access Music Week wherever you are, subscribe to our digital issue by clicking here.
FOLLOW 
