Catching Up With Colton Ford

For most of my readers, Colton Ford will need no introduction. As one of the most well-known names to come out of gay adult film, Colton Ford starred in several successful films over a brief period of time, but music has always been where his heart is. While other artists find the transition from the adult film industry to pop music to be complicated, if not impossible, Colton has been one of the few who to achieve any level of success.

Colton cites some very big names in music and film as his major influences: “I love Manhattan Transfer, 30′s-40′s swing music, jazz, Judy Garland and the whole MGM musical thang.  Love Bette Davis, Meryl Streep, Cary Grant, Robert De Niro.  Of course, my close friends and family,” he reveals. It’s no surprise Colton is influenced by the likes of Judy Garland and Cary Grant. He recently made his off off-Broadway debut in Little House on the Ferry, a musical about a weekend away in Fire Island, New York, and stared in a documentary titled Naked Fame, which chronicled his transition from porn to pop.

Ford has found support from one of the biggest pop music icons: Cyndi Lauper, who not only brought Colton on-board for her True Colors Tour, but also featured the adult film actor-turned-singer in the music video for her 2008 No.1 dance hit “Into The Nightlife”. “Such a great experience, and Cyndi is all that and a bag o’ chips!  She’s so sweet and so talented, and her energy seems limitless.  She’s one generous spirit and just great people,” Ford recalls. “Her manager, Lisa Barbaris, has been so supportive, and everyone associated with the tour was a pleasure to work with.  It was an awesome experience all around!”

Among his accomplishments, Colton names joining the True Colors tour, working with the legendary Frankie Knuckles and Chaka Khan as major highlights: “Being signed to Denise Rich, paired up with Frankie Knuckles and securing 2 major label deals in the 90′s were all memorable milestones for me,” Colton recalls. “Being a part of Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors Tour was definitely a highlight. Singing with Chaka Khan was another. And, honestly, just being able to release the music that I have, and know that I’ve reached a lot of people in the process is brilliant!”

Thanks to a little help from dance music icons Razor N’ Guido and Wawa, Colton, who describes his music as dance/pop, is back with a double A-side single. The release consists of “The Music Always Gets You Back,” a collaboration with  Razor N’ Guido, and the Wawa produced track “Let Me Live Again.”

Speaking about working with the iconic Razor N’ Gudio and super duo Wawa, Colton says: “I’ve known Guido since 2003, and we’ve collaborated on a couple of things through the years (he was also featured in my 2003 documentary, Naked Fame).  When he and Razor reunited, we all talked about collaborating on something together and this album was a great opportunity for us to do just that.  My manager, Bill Coleman, also manages Wawa and has had them do several remixes for me.  It seemed like a natural progression for us to do something original.”

As I said when the double A-side was released last month, I think it’s the strongest material Colton has ever released and, if given the chance, the songs could easily find a home on dance and pop radio.

Colton has already teamed up with so many talented, big name producers and vocalist over his music career. So, who else would he like to work? “Well I’ve been fortunate to have worked with some amazing artists throughout my career, both known and unknown.  Frankie Knuckles and I never got to release the tracks we worked on for his second album (before the plug was pulled).  I know we both feel it would have been great to be able to release something and essentially complete what we started way back when,” he explains. “Love Darkchild/Rodney Jerkins and Brandy.  Would love to do something with either one of them!  They’re both amazing!  Jay Z and Beyonce would be a great pair to collaborate with. Hello!”

Colton Ford will release his new album The Way I am, which features collaborations with Chris Willis (David Guetta), Nervo (Kesha, Britney Spears), Wawa (Kylie Minogue) and Redtop (Beyoncé, Taio Cruz), sometime next year. Both “The Music Always Gets You Back” and “Let Me Live Again” are both out now on iTunes.