New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Three-time GRAMMY Award-nominated and BRIT Award-winning multi-platinum singer, songwriter, producer, and guitarist
James Bay releases the official music video for his new single "One Life."
On the "
One Life" video Bay said: "From the moment I was presented with the idea for the video I was totally moved. It just felt right; the perfect way to tell the story of the song. The actors and directors did a beautiful job and I'm so excited for you to see it. Hope you love it x"
Bay previewed the "
One Life" last week with a heartfelt note on socials talking about the inspiration behind the song - his relationship with his longtime girlfriend Lucy. On the song Bay said: "This is a song I wrote about me and Lucy. We first got together at 16 and have been together ever since. She's supported me since day 1. From open mic nights, right through to my biggest shows. It's been one adventure after another, but now we're on the biggest one of all. Raising our beautiful daughter Ada."
Bay will release his highly anticipated third full-length album, Leap, on July 8th via Mercury/Republic Records. Pre-order and pre-save Leap.
For Leap, Bay worked with some of the most sought after producers and songwriters in a mixture of in person and remote sessions in Nashville & London including Foy Vance [Ed Sheeran], Dave Cobb [Brandi Carlile, Chris Stapleton], Ian Fitchuk [Kacey Musgraves,
Brett Eldredge], Joel
Little [Lorde, Taylor Swift] & Finneas [Billie Eilish, The Knocks]. Check out the full tracklist below!
To announce the album and this next chapter, Bay shared a powerful letter on social media where he talked about his mental journey towards the making of this next body of work. Read the letter below and on social media.
It arrives on the heels of "Give Me The Reason." The latter has already gathered nearly 10 million global streams and right out of the gate, Rolling Stone detailed how the single captures "that feeling of being on the verge of letting go of someone, while looking for any excuse to give it another try." NME dubbed it "bittersweet," and mxdwn noted, "the song opens up with his iconic voice that ignites the listener." "
Give Me The Reason" was recorded at both Blackbird studios in Nashville and in London with producer Gabe Simon[Lana Del Rey, Maroon 5, Calum Scott] and co-written with Foy Vance and features Ian Fitchuk on drums.
This summer
James will be joining The
Lumineers on their 2022 Brightside World Tour where he will be joining them on nine dates including Nashville's Bridgestone
Arena on
September 1st and Chicago's Wrigley Field on
September 3rd. See full dates below.
In 2019 I was really struggling. I started writing songs to try and help me deal with fear, anxiety and problems with self-confidence. Feelings that run deep, that I've never wanted to share. Somehow, it all turned into some of the most hopeful and uplifting music I have ever made.
I didn't realize I was only halfway through making my third album when I came across John Burroughs' quote "leap and the net will appear". It was in a book about creative rediscovery and those words really sparked something in me. I was reading it because I was lost, feeling worthless. By 2020 I'd written a new batch of sad songs. I recorded them and thought the record was done. Then suddenly the world shut down and I couldn't tour my new music. All I could do was stay home and write more. That's when the album really started to take shape. It turns out there is light to be found even in the darkest moments.
I spend a lot of time (too much time) tangled up in negative thoughts. It's so easy to spiral. But during all that extra time writing, I decided to embrace my sadness rather than fight it and I began to recognize what lifts me up when things get tough. Suddenly I was pushing the boundaries of my writing in ways I never had before. I looked around at the people in my life that love and care about me the most and for the first time ever, I found a way to write from that emotion. I've always been afraid to go to those places, be that vulnerable; to say I love you, I need you and thank you in my writing.
It was so freeing to celebrate those people in my life that I love the most, that hold me up when I really need it. They're the ones who give me the courage to go for it, to dare. When I can't see the net, they give me the courage to leap.
Leap Tracklist:
"
Give Me The Reason"
"Nowhere Left To Go"
"Save Your Love"
"Everybody Needs Someone"
"
One Life"
"Silent Love"
"Love Don't Hate Me"
"Brilliant Still"
"
Right Now"
"We Used To Shine"
"Endless Summer Nights"
"
Better"
For as much as
James Bay upholds traditions of timeless songcraft, the UK singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer also confidently challenges himself and popular music. He spikes a tried-and-true style with clever lyricism, honest confessions, and instrumental proficiency. On the heels of his platinum- certified 2015 debut
Chaos And The Calm, he garnered GRAMMY nods in the categories of "Best New Artist," "Best Rock Album," and "Best Rock Song" for the gold-selling single "Hold Back The River." Meanwhile, "
Let It Go" went triple-platinum. Nominated for dozens of awards, he took home two BRIT Awards, two Q Awards, and top honors at the Ivor Novello Awards and ECHO Awards. Tallying nearly 7.5 billion streams by 2022, he has performed on Saturday Night Live, The
Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel LIVE!, and Late Night with Seth Meyers. He has notably dueted with numerous musical icons including
Alicia Keys on The Voice, asked to join
Mick Jagger while supporting The
Rolling Stones at Twickenham Stadium in London, and joined
Sheryl Crow on stage after performing his own set at Eric Clapton's 2019 Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas, TX. In addition to selling out shows on four continents, Epiphone honored him with his own Limited-Edition
James Bay Signature "1966" guitar. Following the success of 2018's Electric Light, he deconstructed his sound to its bare essentials on the Oh My Messy Mind EP a year later hitting nearly 550 million global streams. It yielded the hit "Peer Pressure" [feat. Julia Michaels], generating nearly 350 million global streams, received critical acclaim from Time, Rolling Stone, and Billboard and the next year
James opening up for
Ed Sheeran on his 2019 record-breaking stadium run. In 2020,
James released his new single "
Chew On My Heart" which has already hit nearly 90 million streams , delivered a historic performance on the top of the London Eye for The Late Late Show with
James Corden, performed on The Today Show, Mahogany Sessions and a full concert on YouTube in support of #SaveOurVenues. He also created his own virtual event to share his music to fans during the pandemic,
James Bay - Live At Shakespeare's
Globe which was a full concert event livestreamed at the historic venue. Last year, he guested on Maisie Peter's song "Funeral," which was featured on Apple TV+ original series "Trying: Season2" soundtrack.
To set the tone for the new year and his next chapter of music
James recently finished a sold out "New Songs & New Stories" solo tour across the UK in support of Independent Venue Week. On the tour he returned to numerous independent music venues where he first got his start as an artist- performing with just a microphone & a guitar - and previewed new music set to come in 2022...
