James Michael Bay is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was born and raised in Hertfordshire, or rather in Hitchin, where he went to school for boys.
James Bay became interested in music at a young age. The first and main instrument that interested him was the guitar. The biggest inspiration for this was Eric Clapton - a famous guitarist and blues musician who is included in the list of 100 best guitarists of all time and occupies the second position there. Hearing his song "Layla", James immediately fell in love with her. Since then, music has completely filled his life. Of course, the guitar was quite an expensive pleasure, but he was able to find an old guitar in his own home.
In order to succeed in music, he understood that he needed musical education. To do this, he chose the British-Irish Institute of Contemporary Music. In parallel with his studies, he developed practical musical abilities by playing at various events. It was at one of these events that people from Republic Records A&R noticed him, or to be more precise, a video of his performance. They liked the harmonious combination of virtuoso guitar playing and a voice that fascinated the audience. After a while, they signed a contract and began active cooperation.
In 2013, James Bay released his first EP called "The Dark Of The Morning". Although this was only the first serious work of the artist, he still managed to gain quite a good local popularity and even start touring the UK.
Soon after releasing the first EP, James released the 2nd EP called "Let It Go". This collection of songs became a real hit and was even able to enter the top 10 iTunes album charts. The EP's main single, "Let It Go", became wildly popular in the UK and abroad. For example, a music video on YouTube alone already has more than 360 million views.
Of course, after such success, it's time to release the first full-fledged album. This album was "The Chaos and the Calm", which was released in 2015. Although it was only James Bay's first album, it became wildly popular with both ordinary listeners and critics and was even nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Album. After such success, the singer decided not to hurry with the second album and released his next EP "Other Sides".
The next album, called "Electric Light", was released in 2018. Like his previous album, "Electric Light" gained popularity almost immediately. Although it was similar to "The Chaos and the Calm" in its basis, yet his style was quite different. Although it was basically electronic and indie rock, many songs were strongly influenced by genres such as pop and even R&B. Like last time, the album gained the most popularity in the UK, where it even managed to take 2nd place in the Official Albums Chart List.
In recent years, although James has not released a large number of songs, he still continues to work on new projects. He still mostly releases EPs that contain about six songs. It is already known that James Bay is already working on his third studio album.
Among his latest successful songs is "Chew On My Heart". To date, there are several versions of this song, including acoustic and even remixes. Of course, COVID-19 in 2020 brought a lot of misfortune for all people, including musicians who lost the opportunity to hold concerts and other mass events that could promote their business. As a result, many people began to offer their ideas on how to give people small concerts, and streaming became the most obvious and best option. For example, #SaveOurVenues was called upon to support such events during difficult times. James Bay became one of those who agreed to speak in support of this company.
Given the success that this artist achieved with only one old guitar and an unbridled desire to play music, we can say with confidence that his success will only grow in the future. In 7 years, he managed to release 2 full albums and a huge number of EPs, each of which has at least one undisputed hit. Whether it's an acoustic performance or a full-fledged arrangement, in any case, songs by James Bay will sound incredible. Moreover, his friendly nature makes it easy to find common ground with anyone in the industry and create unforgettable joint projects. One of the latest such projects was a joint single by James Bay and Maisie Peters called "Funeral". As always, you can watch the news from James Bay on the pages of his social networks or on the artist's official website.
