Featuring superb offerings in ‘A Year Ago’, ‘Blindside’, ‘Just Us’, Homecoming’, ‘Sleepwalking’ & the album’s upbeat title track Bitter Sweet Love, the new record is James back to his very best, producing thirteen bites of world class music.
The singles have been lighting up the airwaves over the past few months, and this past weekend saw James as a guest on Sunday Brunch, with an appearance on Michael McIntyre’s Big Show on BBC 1 this Saturday.
All the action follows a series of in-store performances across the UK this week that saw James showcase stunning acoustic sets to fervent fans.
James began sessions with different producers to see who could click with his vision. His final stop was in L.A. with Steve Solomon, with whom he co-wrote his 2016 megahit ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’. Back in Britain, James attempted to write with more producers, but none came close to his bond with Steve, who flew over to finish the album at Miloco Studios in South London last summer, and produce a mature body of work, full of depth and oozing the impeccable songwriting quality that has defined James’s esteemed career to date.
2024 will also see a major world tour, in which multiple dates including UK arenas, sold out instantly, including London’s Wembley Arena, with The O2 now added. This was then followed by the announcement of a massive homecoming show at Middlesborough’s Riverside Stadium on Saturday 8th June 2024. This will be James’ biggest headline show to date and will see him joined by special guests McFly and Lauran Hibberd.
James is one of the world’s biggest streaming artists, with over 38 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone. James has scored 4 top 10 albums, with 2016’s Back From The Edge hitting the Number 1 spot and over his career has collaborated with the likes of Anne-Marie, Sigala, Rudimental, Marshmello & many more.
‘Say You Won’t Let Go’ became his breakthrough hit in the US. It was officially the UK’s most streamed song in 2016 and has gone on to be enjoyed via 4 billion streams while the song’s official video has achieved 1.5 billion views on YouTube.
Earlier this year, the track became his first RIAA Diamond Single with 10 million certified units – making James one of just 100 recipients of an RIAA Diamond Single certification in the programme’s history.
Other huge hit singles include: ‘Impossible’, ‘Can I Be Him’, ‘Sun Comes Up’, ‘Naked’, ‘Empty Space’, ‘Rewrite The Stars’, ‘Falling Like the Stars’, ‘Train Wreck’ and ‘Lasting Lover’, which are all certified platinum records. The song ‘Cars Outside’ off the new album is currently becoming another global hit for James.
