James Michael Bay (born 4 September 1990) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. In 2014, he released his single " Hold Back the River", which was certified platinum, before releasing his debut studio album ''

Chaos and the Calm ''Chaos and the Calm'' is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter James Bay. It was first released on 15 December 2014 via Republic Records. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Album, while the song " Hold Back ...

'' (2014). The album went to number one in the UK and number 15 in the US. In February 2015, Bay received the

Brit Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

"Critics' Choice" award. At the

2016 Brit Awards Brit Awards 2016 was held on 24 February 2016 and was the 36th edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The awards ceremony was held at The O2 Arena in London and were presented by Ant & Dec. Award nominations wer ...

he received the award for Best British Male Solo Artist. Bay also received three nominations at the 2016 Grammy Awards, for

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...

Best Rock Album The Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre. Honors in sev ...

, and

Best Rock Song The Grammy Award for Best Rock Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rock music genre. Honors in several ...

. In May 2018, he released his second studio album, ''

Electric Light An electric light, lamp, or light bulb is an electrical component that produces light. It is the most common form of artificial lighting. Lamps usually have a base made of ceramic, metal, glass, or plastic, which secures the lamp in the soc ...

''.

Early life

James Bay was born to Jill, a former fashion illustrator for

Marie Claire ''Marie Claire'' is a French international monthly magazine first published in France in 1937, followed by the United Kingdom in 1941. Since then various editions are published in many countries and languages. The feature editions focus on wo ...

, and Nick Bay, a wine merchant. He has an older brother named Alex. Bay's parents brought him up in

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...

, Hertfordshire where he attended

Hitchin Boys' School Hitchin Boys' School (HBS) is an academy-status secondary school, with sixth form, located in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England. Founded in 1632 by John Mattocke, the single-sex school currently educates around 1,500 male pupils. The sixth fo ...

. Aged 11, Bay was inspired to play classical guitar after hearing

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

's "

Layla "Layla" is a song written by Eric Clapton and Jim Gordon, originally recorded by Derek and the Dominos, as the thirteenth track from their only studio album, ''Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs'' (1970). Its contrasting movements were compose ...

". He used an old rusty guitar with five strings he found in a cupboard in his house. Bay is a supporter of

Newcastle United F.C. Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

When he moved to study in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

at the

British and Irish Modern Music Institute The British and Irish Modern Music Institute, now styled as the BIMM Institute, is a group of eight independent colleges which specialise in the provision of creative education in Brighton, Bristol, London, Dublin, Manchester, Berlin, Birmingha ...

seven years later at age 18 he played the city's

open mic An open mic or open mike (shortened from "open microphone") is a live show at a venue such as a coffeehouse, nightclub, comedy club, strip club, or pub, usually taking place at night, in which audience members may perform on stage whether the ...

nights, on which he said, "That taught me a lot about writing and performing on my own and trying to hold my own". "I'm trying to make songs that make people feel something, and if I'm lucky, even move them". Bay caught the attention of

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

A&R after a fan uploaded a video to YouTube of him performing at an open mic in London, and within a week, he signed to the label. His first EP, ''The Dark of the Morning'', was released in 2013. Within a year, he was selling out his first UK headline tour.

Career

2013–2017: Career beginnings and ''Chaos and the Calm''

Bay released his debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

, ''The Dark of the Morning'', on 18 July 2013. His second EP, ''

Let It Go "Let It Go" is a song from Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney's 2013 computer-animated feature film ''Frozen (2013 film), Frozen'', whose music and lyrics were composed by husband-and-wife songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert L ...

'', was released on 12 May 2014. The ''Let It Go'' EP debuted in the top 10 iTunes album chart and the lead single, titled "

", peaked at number 10 in the UK charts. Bay has performed live on the

Burberry Burberry is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry headquartered in London, England. It currently designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats (for which it is most famous), leather accessories, ...

runway and has also recorded a Burberry Acoustic session. He toured with Hozier in 2014. Bay recorded his entire debut studio album ''

'' at Blackbird Studios in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

, with producer

Jacquire King Jacquire King (born January 11, 1967) is an American record producer, recording engineer and mixer. King has worked with such notable artists as Kings of Leon, Tom Waits, James Bay, Kaleo, Modest Mouse, Shania Twain, Buddy Guy, Norah Jones, ...

. It debuted at number one in the UK charts and has been certified X2 platinum. His single " Hold Back the River" peaked at number 2 in the UK charts and was certified X3 platinum. James Bay 2016 (9 von 12)

In January 2015, Bay released his fourth EP, ''Other Sides.'' He performed on the Pyramid Stage at

Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...

in June 2015. At the

in London on 24 February, he received the award for Best British Male Solo Artist, and also performed "

Love Yourself "Love Yourself" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Justin Bieber for his fourth studio album '' Purpose'' (2015). The song was released as a promotional single on November 9, 2015, and as the album's third official single on December 7, 2015. ...

" with

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

at the ceremony. Bay recorded a cover of the

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

song "

Hey Bulldog "Hey Bulldog" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles released on their 1969 soundtrack album '' Yellow Submarine''. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, but written primarily by John Lennon, it was finished in the recording studio by both L ...

" for the 2016 TV series ''

Beat Bugs ''Beat Bugs'' is an animated children's television series, created by Josh Wakely, and produced for Netflix by Grace: A Storytelling Company and Thunderbird Entertainment since 2016. The series is centred around five young anthropomorphised inse ...

''. He recorded a cover of the

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the lat ...

song "King's Highway" for the 2017 Disney/Pixar film ''

Cars 3 ''Cars 3'' is a 2017 American computer-animated sports comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The sequel to ''Cars 2'' (2011) and the third installment of the ''Cars'' film series, the ...

''. It is heard in the film and is included on the official soundtrack album.

2018–2019: ''Electric Light''

Bay released his second studio album, ''

'', on 18 May 2018. It peaked at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart and 21 on the US Billboard 200. The album has notable pop and R&B influences, and was noted for its "hip hip style spoken-word skits" during intervals. The lead single, " Wild Love", was released on 8 February 2018, and peaked at 39 on the UK Singles Chart and 17 on the US Adults Top 40. Bay released a duet version of the album's third single, " Us", performed on ''

The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...

'' with

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

in May 2018. Bay released a single, "

Peer Pressure Peer pressure is the direct or indirect influence on peers, i.e., members of social groups with similar interests, experiences, or social statuses. Members of a peer group are more likely to influence a person's beliefs, values, and behavior. A g ...

", on February 22, 2019, featuring artist

Julia Michaels Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio and Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Julia'' had been in use throughout Late Antiquity (e.g ...

. On 10 May 2019, he released his third EP, '' Oh My Messy Mind'', the first record of his to be immediately released on

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

. On the same day, the single "

Bad Bad or BAD may refer to: Common meanings *Evil, the opposite of moral good * Erroneous, inaccurate or incorrect * Unhealthy, or counter to well-being * Antagonist, the threat or obstacle of moral good Acronyms * BAD-2, a Soviet armored troll ...

" was released.

2020–present: ''Leap''

In the spring of 2020, Bay began making his third studio album in Nashville at the historic

RCA Studio A RCA Studio A is a music recording studio in Nashville, Tennessee built and founded in 1964 by Chet Atkins, Owen Bradley and Harold Bradley. Originally known simply by the name " RCA Victor Nashville Sound Studios" (or “RCA Studios” for short ...

alongside producer

Dave Cobb Dave Cobb (born July 9, 1974) is an American record producer based in Nashville, Tennessee, best known for producing the work of Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile, John Prine, Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell, The Highwomen and Rival Sons . Cobb i ...

, and collaborated with Brandon Flowers of

the Killers The Killers are an American rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingd ...

during recording. He released the single "Chew On My Heart" in July 2020. Later that month, he streamed a live performance in support of the #SaveOurVenues campaign, to support efforts against the economic threat posed to grassroots venues during the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

pandemic.

Gear

Bay endorses and plays

Tone King Tone King is a manufacturer of vacuum tube guitar amplifiers and stand-alone attenuators located in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. Tone King was founded by Mark Bartel in 1993 in Kingston, New York Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulst ...

amplifiers, a boutique amplifier brand of Premier Builders Guild. In 2017, he released his Epiphone Signature "1966" Century Outfit, an accurate recreation of his customized 1966 Epiphone Century guitar which has James Bay's "Hat Man" logo on the headstock and custom strap.

Personal life

Bay has been in a relationship with Lucy Smith, a music promoter, since he was 17 years old. The couple have a daughter, named Ada Violet Bay, born in October 2021. They got married in August 2022.

Discography

;Studio albums: * ''

'' (2014) * ''

'' (2018) * '' Leap'' (2022)

Tours

Headlining

* Chaos and the Calm Tour (2015–16) * Electric Light Tour (2018–2019) * Leap Tour (2022, upcoming)

Opening act

* Toured with

Kodaline Kodaline () are an Irish rock band. Originally known as 21 Demands, the band adopted their current name in 2012 to coincide with the changing of their music. The group comprises Steve Garrigan, Mark Prendergast, Vincent May and Jason Boland. Ga ...

UK and Ireland (2013) * Toured with Hozier North America (2014) *

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...

–

1989 World Tour The 1989 World Tour was the fourth concert tour by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, in support of her fifth studio album, '' 1989'' (2014). Swift announced the tour's first dates in North America, Europe, Japan, and Oceania in November a ...

(Europe) (2015) *

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

No Filter Tour The No Filter Tour was a European/North American concert tour by the Rolling Stones which began on 9 September 2017 in Hamburg, Germany. The tour was scheduled to conclude in 2020 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour ...

(2018) *

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...

÷ Tour The ÷ Tour (pronounced "Divide Tour") was the third world concert tour by English singer and songwriter Ed Sheeran, in support of his third studio album, '' ÷'' (2017) (pronounced "divide"). Comprising 260 shows, it officially began on 16 March ...

(Europe) (2019) *

The Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing toge ...

Brightside World Tour The Brightside World Tour was the fourth concert tour by American folk rock band The Lumineers, in support of their fourth studio album, '' Brightside'' (2022). The tour began on February 24, 2022, in Nottingham, and concluded on September 3, 202 ...

(2022)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bay, James 1990 births 21st-century English singers Brit Award winners English male singer-songwriters English tenors Living people Male guitarists People from Hitchin Republic Records artists 21st-century guitarists 21st-century British male singers