Биография

Taking tips from his hero Johnny Cash, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, James Smith cut his teeth performing for rowdy crowds of misfits and rebels. But this wasn’t down at Folsom Prison, it was on the creaky stage of the notorious East Ham Working Men’s Club. “I loved it,” says the hard-grafting 21 year old East End native. Born to a taxi driver mum and market trader dad, James was raised in Upton Park, East London. Having picked up a guitar aged 9, he was only 14 when he began smuggling himself into venues, becoming a regular on the local pubs and club’s scene playing all over the East End. Partial to a bit of cheeky backchat, James was kicked out of school at 15 and ended up joining his dad selling soap on the market stalls in Green Lanes. It was then he found the time to dig deep into the soulful sounds of Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Paolo Nutini, Mark Ronson and Michael Kiwanuka, Equipped with an enviable knowledge of old soul, James began writing songs about lost love with all the power and sentiment of the greats but for a new generation. Over the last year, Smith has steadily built up a cult following releasing songs under the radar including the viral hits Tell Me That You Love Me and T-Shirts amassing an incredible 200 million total streams across all tracks. There’s also been a string of sold out shows in London (Omeara, Dingwalls) as well as Europe (Amsterdam, Hamburg and Berlin), an early sign of this young talents global appeal.