Pop
December 10 can be a modern day Busted but BIGGER! Producer PATCH reveals why boys are destined to be huge
Music producer PATCH is confident his proteges December 10 can be a huge boy band with a difference.
December 10 producer PATCH believes they can become one of the biggest and most unique boy bands in the world - because they play their own instruments.
The studio wizard has been working with December 10 - comprised of Cruz Lee-Ojo, Danny Bretherton, Hendrik Christoffersen, John Fadare, Josh Olliver, Nicolas Alves and Sean Hayden - since they were put together on Netflix series Simon Cowell: The Next Act.
PATCH believes December 10 can be huge and what makes them different to other boy bands is that they can play 14 different instruments between them, which means they have the potential to an evolved version of a group like Noughties band Busted.
In an interview with Contact Music, he said: "I’ve heard a lot of people say ‘boy bands’ are out. I’m like, ‘No, there has to be boy bands forever!’
"I was working on Britain’s Got Talent and America’s Got Talent doing behind-the-scenes kind of bits. Obviously it’s Simon Cowell and I got a call from one of the execs who said, ‘We’re doing this Netflix show about this boy band, do you want to jump on board and help us with some of the musical parts of the show?’ I ended up working on some covers in the show and I was brought in to work on that. Backing tracks, doing mixing, stuff like that, making sure all the boys’ voices shine. Tweaking things, just making them sound great, basically.
“I met the boys at Metropolis Studios in Chiswick and we had two days recording for the show. And more recently I’ve been contributing behind-the-scenes stuff for their tour and live shows which has been another amazing experience. They are super-fun, really high energy. I hope they do really, really well.
“They were jamming in the down time of the sessions we were doing and some of them are pretty good musicians. That is definitely an avenue they should pursue. They could be like Busted, but there’s seven of them."
December 10 / Credit: Nikola Lamburov
PATCH has been impressed with the vocal abilities of all the boys - who have just released new single Infinity (123) - but he thinks that Josh could be the heartthrob of December 10.
When asked who he thinks could be the breakout star of the seven members, he said: "I thought Josh could be a contender. Amongst the artists I work with of a similar age they do favour Josh. He could break a few hearts!
“When I worked with him he’s got a great voice for pop. Sean and Nicholas are great too, they're all great. They all have their strengths.
“There is a political element to who gets what lines. All of them have their strengths so I think it’s just finding the right moments to make them all shine. That comes from the writing of the songs. To date, they have done really well."
Away from his work with December 10, PATCH has teamed up with viagogo to give heartbroken music fans the chance to turn their break-up stories into professionally produced tracks.
Following new research that found almost half (45 per cent) of Brits believe they have enough material from past relationships to pen their own break-up song, the world’s leading ticket marketplace viagogo is launching viagogo’s Heartbreak Sessions, a once in a lifetime chance for music fans to turn their tears, torment and turmoil into a professionally produced track with PATCH.
On Saturday 20th, Sunday 21st and Saturday 27th June, a hitmaking team will be on hand to help budding artists turn their break-up inspired stories into fully produced tracks. The team of professional singers and songwriters and producers will elevate a fans’ life experience into a song, all shareable on Spotify.
Inspired by the global reaction to Lily Allen’s unfiltered take on heartbreak in her West End Girl album, viagogo commissioned a poll of 2,000 UK adults to explore how the nation turns to music during moments of emotional upheaval.
Seven in ten (70 per cent) say the best songs are born out of real heartache, while over half (51%) say it’s the messy, chaotic endings that produce the songs we keep coming back to.
Two in five (39 per cent) would like to tell their side of a break-up properly, in the way artists do in their songs, believing that turning heartbreak into music would help them process how they feel (42 per cent), while 29 per cent would like to create a heartbreak track or album.
The superstar production team at viagogo’s Heartbreak Sessions also includes award-winning British songwriter Conan Mac who has collaborated with the likes of Bastille, Lucky Love and Issac Frank, as well as working across major labels including Sony Music, Warner Music Group and Capitol Records.
As well as London singer-songwriter GLOWE (Georgia Lowe) - no stranger to writing songs about heartbreak and its aftermath. The Stronger By The Day artist made her debut at Glastonbury last year, and has supported the likes of Pixie Lott and Paul Carrack.
viagogo’s study also uncovered the ingredients of the perfect break-up song: it lasts exactly 3 minutes and 2 seconds, features vocals centred on empowerment and moving on, and is best listened to in your bedroom. Female artists topped the heartbreak charts, with 32% saying women make the best break-up songs, compared to 11% for men.
Lily Allen’s Pussy Palace, Adele’s Someone Like You and Beyoncé Irreplaceable feature in the Top 10 list of tracks that newly single Brits have been turning to in 2026 to navigate heartbreak and move on.
Revealing how he got involved in viagogo’s Heartbreak Sessions initiative, PATCH said: "It’s been inspired by Lily Allen’s latest album and we’ve come up with this amazing idea to let the public do that.
“We want to bring in a team of writers, producers, singers and taking people’s stories and turning them into bangers basically. I was like, ‘That sounds like a lot of fun, let’s do it.’
“I have to make at least 20 which will be hilarious, so there will be a big double deluxe album at the end of it on Spotify.
“In this day and age, bang enough on TikTok and suddenly it’s viral."
PATCH also revealed that his personal break-up song is Clean Bandit's 2017 single I Miss You.
He said: "I’ve only ever had one break-up and I listened to a Clean Bandit song called I Miss You, it’s got a heart-wrenchingly sad intro and then it goes into this crazy reggaeton dance beat. It really takes you through the emotions. You cry and then you dance.
“I don’t know if heartache is better for songs but obviously music is universal in terms of feelings and people consume music for different reasons at different times. Which is why you can have a piano ballad that makes you want to cry and then an absolute banger that makes you want to dance. I think genuine heartbreak if you experience it I think you can make genuine and touching music from that. You can also write a song about heartbreak having never gone through it. But if you have experienced genuine heartbreak you can write really emotional and amazing pieces of music."
