The celebrated dance vocalist teams with producer Porky Paul for a feel-good house release featuring remixes from Ruff Loaderz and Blakk Habit
There are certain voices in dance music that don’t need much of an introduction. For generations of house fans, Colette Van Sertima has one of them.
From her memorable contribution to the O.T. Quartet club anthem “Hold That Sucker Down” to the underground favorite “Life’s A Bitch,” Van Sertima has been part of a dance music story that stretches across decades. But her newest release isn’t interested in looking backward.
It’s called “Live For The Moment,” and the title pretty much says it all.
Produced by Porky Paul and written by Van Sertima and Paul, the new single is a celebration of being present, taking chances and refusing to let life pass by while waiting for the perfect time to actually live it.
It’s an uncomplicated idea, but that’s part of what makes the record work.
Van Sertima brings warmth and soul to the track, delivering the lyric with the confidence of a singer who has lived enough life to understand the message behind it. Against Porky Paul’s polished house production, her vocal feels both familiar and fresh—a connection to classic dance music without turning the record into an exercise in nostalgia.
That balance is particularly fitting for Van Sertima.
Her history is tied to a period when house records weren’t simply songs; they became part of club culture. “Hold That Sucker Down” remains instantly recognizable to longtime dance audiences, while “Life’s A Bitch” developed its own following after its original 1990s release and has since found renewed life through a contemporary reworking.
“Live For The Moment” takes that history and moves forward with it.
The release gets an additional boost from a pair of remixes that approach the song from very different directions.
Ruff Loaderz turn up the house energy with a remix built for busy dancefloors and late-night sets. Blakk Habit heads somewhere else entirely, bringing UK Garage rhythms into the mix and giving Van Sertima’s vocal a different kind of swagger.
The result is a release capable of moving comfortably between house and garage audiences while keeping the vocal—and its message—at the center.
And that message might be the most important part of the record.
Dance music has always been about escape, freedom and losing yourself in a moment. “Live For The Moment” takes that idea beyond the club. It’s about appreciating where you are, saying yes when opportunities arrive and remembering that waiting for life to begin is a pretty good way to miss it.
For an artist with Van Sertima’s history, there’s something especially satisfying about that sentiment.
She has already made records that people remember. She has already been part of songs that found their place in dance music history. “Live For The Moment” isn’t asking listeners to revisit any of that.
It’s asking them to turn the music up and enjoy what’s happening right now.
With Porky Paul behind the production and Ruff Loaderz and Blakk Habit adding their own club-ready interpretations, Colette Van Sertima has returned with a record that celebrates exactly what dance music has always done best:
Making the moment feel like the only place worth being.
Stream “Live For The Moment” by Colette Van Sertima here:
