MUSICIANS from County Durham have taken inspiration from friendships, heartbreaks and even the pandemic to create a playlist of unique tracks that they have released to try and put the North East on the map for creative talent.

The ‘Platform North East’ project, which was set up by entertainment experts ISG late last year, became a free initiative to equip young vocalists with hands on experience in the music industry – giving them a chance to build into the ‘next big thing’.

Now that the scheme has been running for several months, each of the performers has left the process with a new, original piece of music that they had created and produced with the in-house team – which is now available across most streaming platforms.

Read more: The North East MPs that have claimed their TV licence back on expenses

Among the songs being released is ‘Take Two’ from 18-year-old Matthias Proud from County Durham, who describes his sound as emotional, hardcore rap.

Meanwhile, Peterlee rapper Lillin, 19, has been able to release the powerful track ‘Sorrow Mind’ from which he channels his emotions to create meaningful lyrics.

Acoustic pop artist Ezza, 17, also from Peterlee, features on the project; takes after her musical father and using life events to inspire her song ‘Playlist’.

The Northern Echo: Acoustic artist, Ezza, 17, is following in the footsteps of her musician father, and features on the playlist. Picture: ISG.Acoustic artist, Ezza, 17, is following in the footsteps of her musician father, and features on the playlist. Picture: ISG.

Elsewhere on the playlist, 16-year-old twin sisters Hannah and Grace Stobart, from Northumberland, perform as Twayn with their friendship-inspired track, What Dreams are Made Of, while County Durham pop singer songwriter Emily Bosher, 21, hopes her song, The One, will allow listeners to build their own stories around her lyrics.

Along with working on their tracks with ISG’s in-house production team, the eight performers took part in a variety of free workshops across the week, covering topics like song writing, vocal coaching, stage presence and how to market themselves on social media.

Paul Waite, CEO of ISG, is confident that the group have created powerful songs that will resonate with listeners.

Read more: Flats hit by vandals in Shildon in County Durham to be replaced

He said: “We couldn’t have asked for a better group of artistes to help us launch the first ever Platform North East programme.

“Everyone came to the project with a fantastic work ethic and a real passion to learn more about the industry and these eight tracks are a testament to all of the hard work they put in.

“We’re so excited to finally release the finished singles, which each have their own distinctive sound, and we can’t wait to see what each performer does next with the skills they learned over the week.”

The songs are available to purchase or stream across most popular music platforms and at www.platformnortheast.co.uk.

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

You can also follow our dedicated County Durham Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054