In his home in West Hollywood, lightning struck Paul Freeman.
Not literally, of course, but it might as well have been. Tucked away in his home recording studio, Paul had just met with his fellow songwriter and collaborator CiCi Ward when the song “Wreck” sprang into being.
Paul was taken aback. Here was something unexpected and new; electrifying and divergent. Yet, the song brought with it a sense of familiarity. An echo of the music of Paul’s childhood. His roots. His original passion for music. He had no idea the the impact that this new song would have on his life and the journey he was about to embark on. A journey that would result in a new musical identity and a new direction.
Born in Wales, Paul was for the most part raised by his mother. Even as an infant, Paul showed a propensity towards music. Records were often played at home, and Paul was enchanted by musicians such as T-Rex, Dire Straits, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney and Wings. In fact, the song Band on the Run was the only thing that would put him to sleep… much to his mother’s chagrin.
Paul first stumbled into musicianship accidentally. At the age of 10, he was riding his bicycle through town when he discovered a guitar in a nearby dumpster. He was instantly obsessed, teaching himself to play along with his favorite records. His fascination was cemented into a lifelong obsession when he signed up for a school talent show during his first year of high school. The performance was an unmitigated disaster. “I tanked,” Freeman remembers. “My legs shook with nerves. But the moment it was over, I immediately wanted to do it again.”
Inspired and wholly committed to his dreams, Paul moved to London at the age of 16. He got a job as a carpet fitter and joined a band called Drexel. For two years, the band cut their teeth around London before Paul and the lead singer started a new band: Boedekka. It wasn’t long before the duo were signed to Boy George’s label. Boedekka recorded and released two albums. Paul’s songwriting process soon began to garner attention from other artists in the London scene and he began to write on other projects.
One such project would have a life changing effect on Paul. While writing with British artist Mark Owen, Paul was flown out to Los Angeles to work with producer Tony Hoffer at Sunset Sound. Paul stayed at a house in the Hollywood Hills, where the team would collaborate for 8 or 9 days and then break while Mark returned to the UK. Paul was left to his own devices in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles gave Paul a sense that ‘anything is possible’ and he knew he wanted to continue songwriting there. The stars aligned and – due to his work in London as a songwriter – he was offered a publishing deal with Warner Chappell. Paul immediately asked if he could sign out of the LA office. Those early years in Los Angeles brought with him tremendous growth as he wrote with artists such as Meatloaf, Deana Carter, and Gabe Dixon. All the while, Paul benefitted from the mentorship of Judy Stakee, who offered ‘brutally honest’ feedback and guidance. Stakee introduced Paul to many songwriters and helped to get his songs into film and TV. She even sent his EP along to the legendary Clive Davis, which resulted in Paul getting signed as an artist and touring with artists such as Chris Cornell, The Who, and Brandi Carlile. While those accomplishments would create many career highlights for Paul, he artistically couldn’t escape the notion that there was more musically that he had yet to explore.
Paul began to work with manager Jen Florez in 2023. She recalls: “At that time, he had a complete Paul Freeman record 100% completed. He played it for me and as beautiful as it was (and still is) it just felt like it was missing something. It needed those certain tracks to really stand out in a saturated music market. I wanted him to stay true to who he was as an Artist, while creating music that fans can genuinely connect with.” His manager quickly started setting up songwriting sessions for Paul and he dove in head first. Paul soon co-wrote and produced for Nick Howard (Season 2 winner of The Voice of Germany) to submit for Eurovision. A particularly fruitful meeting though happened in Nashville, when he worked with songwriter CiCi Ward in addition to Joe King (of The Fray). Paul and CiCi became fast friends, which led to their session in July of 2023, when they would write “Wreck”. Jen was ecstatic to hear the new song. “When “Wreck” was created, he instantly played it for me and I remember being blown away. He had found his signature sound! He let his guard down, followed his instincts and created this incredible piece of art where each element of the song complemented the other. This is what we both had been waiting for. However, it was nothing like the current record he presented to me so I jokingly said that he should go write 10 more of those.”
“Wreck” was only the beginning of what would become a frenzied, inspired storm. Many more songs sprang into existence. Paul knew all at once that this was a new project and allowed the songs to simply be what they wanted to be. He was rejuvenated. Elated. “It felt like I was allowing my true self to be seen,” Freeman explains. “Before it felt like there was a filter that I didn’t realize was even there. But now, I was finally allowing myself to be myself.”
This is the moment that Freeman’s alter-ego, Welsh Wolf, was born. For Paul, the project felt like a physical transformation and a return to his roots. He was that young child in Wales strumming away on his guitar from the dumpster… but this time he could do so with more deliberation and in a succinct, clear way.
Paul is currently wrapping up mixes on Welsh Wolf’s debut record and will begin to release his first single in the Fall 2024. With a new lineup of stellar Los Angeles musicians, he is preparing to begin performing live and sharing that side of himself that he has never had a chance to share before; that enthusiasm and love for music that you can only experience when you find your first guitar in a dumpster.