James Reid (born 25 May 1974) is a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and

video producer Video production is the process of producing video content for video. It is the equivalent of filmmaking, but with video recorded either as analog signals on videotape, digitally in video tape or as computer files stored on optical discs, hard dri ...

, best known as the lead singer in the band

The Feelers The Feelers is a New Zealand pop rock band formed in the early 1990s in Christchurch by James Reid (singer/guitarist) and Hamish Gee (drums/guitar). History The Feelers was signed by Warner Music and released their first album, '' Supersyste ...

. Reid is regarded as one of New Zealand's most successful songwriters and rock musicians, having formed

in 1992, which went on to sell more albums than any other New Zealand band to date. Reid was also a producer for the band, and is an experienced video producer. In November 2013, Reid released his first solo album, entitled ''Saint''.

Early life

Reid was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 25 May 1974. With distant Scottish and French heritage, he has four siblings; two older sisters and two older brothers. Coming from a talented family, his older brother Donald Reid is also an accomplished musical artist. He developed an interest in music as early as four years old, learning to play his first song, " Dip your hips baby". Reid was sent to a religious boarding school as a child, attending church daily and joining the choir. As a teenager he attended Christ's College, then went on to study fine art and film at the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was ...

Personal life

Reid is living in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand. He describes his vocal range as soprano.

Influences

Reid has listed several bands and musicians as influences in his music, including

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His musical style consists of folk, pop, rock, and, later in ...

Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

and

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...

. He considers his favourite genres to be "pop, rock, indie, and country".

Career

The Feelers (1992–present)

Reid formed

in 1992 with guitarist and drummer Hamish Gee. The band released their first album, '' Supersystem'', in 1998, and went on to release four more by 2011. Reid's musical career has led to five number one albums on the NZ Music Charts, as well as eight music awards with The Feelers, including winning Songwriter of the Year in the 1999

New Zealand Music Awards The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...

Broken Records

Since the mid-2000s, Reid has spearheaded Broken Records, an Auckland-based label that works with New Zealand rock bands, including The Valves. This is not to be confused with the Christian label of the same name, which closed in the early 1990s.

Solo career

In 2013, Reid released his first solo album, entitled ''Saint''. The album was notably different from his work with The Feelers, featuring a more delicate acoustic sound. It was released on 22 November on iTunes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reid, James 1974 births APRA Award winners Living people New Zealand musicians People educated at Christ's College, Christchurch