THE winner of last year’s Hunts Post Almost Famous Song Competition is set to release her debut album next month.

THE winner of last year’s Hunts Post Almost Famous Song Competition is set to release her debut album next month.

Katrina Polfrey, 23, of High Street, Offord Darcy, has funded the record herself and is eagerly anticipating its release on September 13.

Four years in the making, Believe was recorded by N7 Productions at Town House Studios Shepherds Bush, before they moved to Canalot Studios in London and finally to the world-famous Ealing Film Studios.

Katrina, who works as a witness care officer for the Witness Care Scheme, has previously released an EP called Easy Way Out in 2008, which had huge success on iTunes.

As well as paying for studio time and a producer, Katrina had to pay for a promotional photo shoot and for the albums to be printed.

She said: “It’s too scary to work out how much I’ve spent on the album but it’s a lot. Hopefully it will all be worth it though! It was a lot of fun but a lot of hard work too and I learned a lot.”

She continued: “I’m very excited. A bit nervous but mostly excited because you don’t really know what people are going to think. I have written 10 of the 11 tracks so it is quite a personal album. I didn’t consciously set out to write any of the songs, I didn’t sit down and say ‘Today, I am going to write about this’ but listening back to it now I think ‘Oh, maybe that song was influenced by this, and that song was influenced by this’.

“Since I was really young, I have just wanted to be a singer. After my A levels, my mum and dad asked if I wanted to go to university but I just wanted to pursue my music career. They have both been really supportive, taking me to gigs and things, and hopefully they are proud of me and like what I have done.”

Katrina describes the album as pop-based, with a few ballads and two jazzier tracks and likens some of the music to Pixie Lott.

She said: “There’s also a lot of piano, because I like the sound.

“I used to listen to a lot of Beverley Craven (mainly influenced by my mum!) and I like Lucie Silvas and Christina Aguilera, for her lyrical style.”

She added: “It’s the most surreal experience to type your name into play.com and see your own CD come up. I will never get tired of it!”

Katrina impressed judges at The Hunts Post’s Almost Famous competition in December with her original song, What Gives You The Right. She won a day’s professional recording and mixing at Half-Ton Studios in Milton, a photo shoot and an appearance on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

The former Godmanchester Primary School and Hinchingbrooke School pupil has regularly performs at local gigs and charity events, including The Hunts Post’s first ball in aid of the New Life Appeal.

INFORMATION: Believe is out on September 13 retailing at �9.99. You can download it from iTunes, Napster and Tesco online or buy her album on CD at Amazon and Play.com. For more information see www.katrinapolfrey.co.uk