Popular Leeds United star revealed to be working on original music with local DJ in Elland Road downtime

Earlier this week, the 21-year-old somewhat unexpectedly revealed on social media he is the owner of race horse 'Bopedro' which competed at Lingfield Park, ridden by champions Irish jockey Oisin Murphy, last Sunday. The Frenchman's extra-curricular activities do not stop there, though, as producer and sound engineer Zak Taylor tells the YEP.

The youngster, who told the YEP earlier this year that playing with a smile on his face is the only way he knows how, has recently reached out to Rap Aware Studios in Leeds, spending time in the recording booth with engineer Taylor while the pair work on creating new music.

"He's come a couple times now to the studio," Taylor says, going by the moniker ZT Beats (@ztbeats) on Instagram. "Each time, we've made more than one song. I think he's just trying to work on his craft at the minute, I'd say.

"I run the account for [Rap Aware Studios] and he messaged on a random Wednesday and asked if he could do a session, quite a late session, like 10 o'clock at night. We ended going back and forth and getting it booked in."

While not an ardent football supporter, Taylor says he was taken by surprise that Leeds' club record signing had reached out to book a recording slot with him, while friends questioned the validity of the striker's Instagram approach. The Birstall-resident now mixes Rutter's vocals and produces instrumental beats while the striker records self-penned lyrics in the studio.

"Everyone's been going crazy about it. I showed my mum and dad the messages and they freaked out, they were proper happy for me. All my friends are really big Leeds fans and they didn't believe it to be honest.

"When I first got the message, I told one of my friends and he just didn't believe me at all. When I was in the studio, I actually had to take a selfie with Georginio!

Away from the mic, the France U21 international has won the hearts and minds of Leeds supporters with his displays at Elland Road and further afield this season, earning a recall to Thierry Henry's Les Bleuets squad earlier in the campaign. He has contributed to 16 goals in 32 appearances across all competitions, rewriting his United story after a difficult first six months in West Yorkshire.

"He's a really nice guy, really down to earth, he's always smiling as well, you'll never see a frown on his face," Taylor adds.

"We go in and I ask him what's the plan for today and we'll get up some instrumentals he wants to use and rap over or sing over. He'll go straight in, we'll record all his vocals then I'll go into mixing it, making it sound good and then usually have a chat at the end to see what his plans are. I think he's just unsure at the moment with his plans for the music, I don't know whether he wants to release or not.

"I'm pretty sure he writes his own [lyrics]," Taylor says, albeit with the caveat that Georginio's 'bars' are in French and therefore no guarantee he isn't sampling others' work. "From what I know, he writes all his own music."

There are few Leeds players currently more popular than the team's chief creator, a fact not lost on the Frenchman's producer and sound engineer. Passionate about his craft from early teenage years, Taylor is grateful for the chance to make music alongside a high-profile individual and shares a productive working relationship with the United forward, particularly after a period in which he was discouraged by peers.

"This is the biggest thing to happen to me in music," he says. "I tried to be a DJ and making music but got bullied out of it - then lockdown started and I just put my mind to it."

"If you've got a passion for something, don't let no-one stop you. For a few years I was put off it because of bullies in high school but I put my head in the game for the last few years and it's starting to pay off."

While there is not yet an official release for Georginio's collaboration with ZT Beats, Taylor regularly posts teaser clips on social media platform Instagram. Sooner rather than later, though, the Leeds squad's jack-of-all-trades could be creating something of a different kind for fans to enjoy.