The Vanguard Project is the partnership between BCee and Villem. It gives the two producers a shared outlet for drum and bass, with soulful vocals and rolling rhythms sitting alongside the individual identities listeners know from their solo work.
The project grew through regular studio time. BCee has described their pre-pandemic routine of working together every Tuesday, an arrangement that let ideas develop week by week. Family commitments later changed that schedule, but he confirmed in 2024 that the partnership was still making and releasing music.
Early EPs on Spearhead Records established the name. Volume Two, released in July 2016, includes Want U Back, Karma, Freedom Fighters with David Boomah, and Stitches with Jemimah Read. The guest voices give the record different moods, while the production keeps the songs connected.
The attraction of The Vanguard Project is hearing two experienced producers make decisions together. Their joint records have their own character, with a strong melodic centre and drums that keep them grounded in the dance. The Tuesday sessions explain something of that ease: the partnership was built through time spent making music, not just two names appearing on a sleeve.
