James Vickery

British singer James Vickery is a dusky balladeer with a hypnotic sound steeped in shimmering electronica and contemporary R&B. Vickery first garnered attention for a series of singles, including “Lately” and “Until Morning,” all of which paved the way for his 2021 full-length debut Songs That Made Me.
A native of South London, James Vickery was born with a hearing impairment and worked with a vocal coach while growing up. It was through this process that he discovered his gift and love for singing. By the early 2010s, he was accompanying himself on acoustic guitar and singing his own soul-inflected tunes. His early career consisted of participating in various television musical competition shows, including The X Factor and Open Mic UK. Successful performances on these shows brought Vickery new connections, including collaborative work with guitarist Phil Braithwaite and vocalist Lance Ellington. Perhaps the biggest connection for Vickery came in the form of a collaboration with indie electronic hitmakers Disclosure, who used his vocals on their track “Flow” in 2015. By the next year, even more doors had opened for the young singer, and in addition to further collaborations with established names, he released his debut solo track, “Epiphany,” in November of 2016. Early in 2017, he released his debut EP, Complexion, which featured the single “Lately,” produced and co-written by Maths Time Joy.
The following year, he returned with a second EP, Until Morning. Around the same time, he appeared on the YouTube channel COLORS, where he performed the EP’s title track (released as Until Morning: A COLORS Show. The video went viral, amassing over 17 million views and building international buzz for Vickery. It was on the heels of this appearance that he signed record and publishing deals with Los Angeles’ Th3rd Brain and RocNation. In June 2021, he released his debut full-length album, Songs That Made Me, which included guest appearances by EARTHGANG, Musiq Soulchild, and Rob Araujo & Jack Dine. ~ Matt Collar & Fred Thomas