Growing up listening to metal and pop punk, it was not until his later teenage years that he found a love for electronic music. Ben Pearce developed his DJ talents after spending many years running and performing at a successful club night, becoming an underground name on the Manchester, UK scene.
In 2011, along with Chris Farnsworth, Pearce helped establish the record label and agency, Purp & Soul. Alongside Pearce’s own output, Purp & Soul have released tracks by artists such as Tim Green, La Fleur and Dirt Crew.
Pearce began to release his own tracks in 2012, with a remix of Native Underground’s “Close” showing his ability to reimagine songs tastefully into his unique style. His first EP, “What I Might Do,” on MTA Records, became a huge success in 2013, reaching number 4 in the Beatport chart within a few days, also entering the mainstream pop charts at number seven in the UK. The track turned the heads of a number of top DJs, with Seth Troller, Jamie Jones, Maya Jane Coles and Pete Tong all supporting the release.
Pearce has since released several remixes on Southern Fried Records, as well as on Purp & Soul. Constant touring helped to raise his profile globally, also bolstered by opportunities to share the stage with industry greats. Seth Troller, Eats Everything and Theo Parrish have all taken to the stage to share sets with Ben Pearce.
British DJ and producer Ben Pearce has had a relatively seamless accent to the top since breaking out a couple of years ago. The Purp & Soul co-founder is, of course, best known for his debut 2013 single ‘What I Might Do’ (originally released on the 2012 EP of the same name), which became something of a mainstream-underground crossover hit, reaching number seven in the UK chart. However, Pearce is so much more than this one song, as good as it is. I was actually pretty surprised that this song rose up the chart as it did, albeit gradually, as I had mainly encountered him at alternative club nights – the sort that tend to take place in a trendy, underground basement type venue (the grittier, the trendier). Ben Peace’s brand of deep house is fluid and changeable, depending on where he’s playing. When I saw him DJ at one of his short lived residency shows in Brixton (at a place formerly called Brixton Clubhouse), which featured Seth Troxler as a secret special guest, he more or less did a straight-up house set, mixing in plenty of disco and funky soul. I have also seen him mess around with rock and hip hop, but he is at his best when subtly meandering through progressive and deep house. Definitely a DJ worth checking out.