Gavin James (singer)
Gavin Wigglesworth,[1] known professionally as Gavin James, is an Irish singer-songwriter. In March 2013 and March 2016, he won two Choice Music Prize Irish Song of the Year award.[2]
Gavin James | |
|---|---|
.jpg.webp) Gavin James performing in 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gavin Wigglesworth[1] |
| Born | 5 July 1991 Dublin, Ireland |
| Genres | Pop, acoustic |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) |
|
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | gavinjamesmusic |
Early life
Gavin was born in Dublin on 5 July 1991 and grew up in a household surrounded by music. Gavins' dad would play Cat Stevens, Sam Cooke and Bob Dylan whilst his sister Emma sang and toured with a musical in Ireland.[1] James' great-grandparents were opera singers and his grandfather was a stand-up comedian and whistler.[3]
James began playing music in a rock band at the age of 8 and writing his own songs. The rock band was short lived, after a falling out over an alleged "paranormal experience". However James continued to perform solo, playing numerous gigs for years and building his audience. By age 21 he had begun focusing on his songwriting and playing open mic nights. In 2013, James independently released the single "Say Hello", which won the Meteor Choice Award for Song of the Year. By 2015, James had signed deals with Sony in Europe and Capitol Records in the US.[4]
Musical career
In the spring of 2015, James appeared on US television's Shark Tank and released a four-track EP titled For You. Later that year, he was invited to open for chart-toppers Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith on their respective tours, and released singles including "Bitter Pill" from his full-length studio debut of the same name.
James released his debut album and homage to Alanis Morissette Bitter Pill on 20 November 2015 through Warner Ireland. It was awarded Platinum certificate for sales in Ireland. Subsequently, Bitter Pill has won the Choice Music Prize for Best Single released in 2015.[5]
In May and November 2015, James appeared on James Corden's Late Late Show[6] and Jimmy Kimmel in December 2015.[7] In January 2016 James appeared on the BBC One Show, C'est A Vous and RTÉ and was included in Buzzfeed's[8] and The Sun's 'Ones to Watch 2016' lists.[9]
He has been supporting act for Kodaline, Tori Kelly,[10] Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran on their tours.[11]
Spotify selected Gavin James to be a 'Spotify Spotlight Artist of 2016,' and he has total streams of over 1.5 Billion. On 21 January 2016, James set off on his debut European headline tour, starting with three sold out back-to-back dates at the Olympia Theatre in Ireland. James travelled back to America to support Ben Rector on his US tour in March 2016. James' cover of David Bowie's "Changes" relaunched the new Virgin Radio UK at 11 am GMT on 30 March 2016, he later performed live and was interviewed for the show.[12]
On 7 October 2016, James sold out Shepherd's Bush Empire in London and he headlined his first arena show at 3Arena on 9 December in Dublin and played to 15,000 fans.[13] James also won the 'Breaking Artist' award at the 2016 Music Business Worldwide A&R Awards on 2 November.[14]
James collaborated with Australian hip hop trio Bliss n Eso on the ARIA award-winning song "Moments" in 2017.
2015–present: Bitter Pill, Only Ticket Home, Boxes and The Sweetest Part
Work began on James' debut album Bitter Pill in 2015. It was recorded in London and Los Angeles with producers Fraser T. Smith and Cam Blackwood. James said of the album: "I've always wanted to hear how my songs would sound properly produced, but I didn't want them to lose the edge they had live. We recorded the song Bitter Pill first and once we found the sound for that the rest was easy." Bitter Pill was released in Ireland on in November 2015 and was subsequently certified Platinum. It was later released worldwide in March 2016.[15] Album track "22" was later used in the 10th episode of the 13th season of the American TV series House Hunters.
In October 2017, James released the lead single "Hearts on Fire" from his second album.[16] In April 2018, he released the single "Always", which was a radio hit across Europe and Brazil.[17] Third single "Glow" was released in September 2018,[18] followed by the release of James' second studio album Only Ticket Home in October.[19]
In October 2020, James released his album, "Boxes." It reached #1 on the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) charts.[20]
In July 2022, James released his album "The Sweetest Part". It reached #1 on the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) charts.
Singles and EPs
The Mark McCabe remix of "Nervous (The Ooh Song)" has been streamed over 170 million times to date and certified double platinum in Ireland, Sweden, Norway and Holland.[21]
Winter Songs, a collection of Christmas songs recorded by James, was released in November 2016 and achieved over three million streams on Spotify as well as airplay across Europe and the US.[22]
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE [23] |
BEL (Fl) [24] |
FRA [25] |
NL [26] |
SWI [27] |
UK [28] | ||
| Bitter Pill |
|
5 | 33 | 170 | 17 | 28 | 52 |
| Only Ticket Home |
|
2 | — | — | 86 | 31 | — |
| Boxes |
|
1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| The Sweetest Part |
|
1 [29] | — | — | — | 47 | — |
Live albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| BEL (Fl) |
NED | ||
| Live at Whelans |
|
70 | 35 |
Extended plays
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Remember Me | 2014 |
| For You | 2015 |
| The Book of Love EP |
Remixes
- 2015: For You (Remixes)
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE [23] |
BEL (Fl) [30] |
BEL (Wa) [31] |
FRA [25] |
NED Dutch Top 40 |
NED Single Top 100 [32] |
NOR [33][34] |
SWE [35] |
UK [36] | |||
| "Say Hello" | 2012 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "The Book of Love" | 2014 | — | 10 | 22 (Ultratip) | — | 35 | 31 | — | — | — | Bitter Pill |
| "For You" | 2015 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Bitter Pill" | 49 | 4 (Ultratip) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "22" | — | 53 (Ultratip) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Nervous" | 28 | 4 (Ultratip) |
47 | 10 | 5 | 20 | 5 | 17 | 79 | ||
| "Nervous (The Ooh Song)" (Mark McCabe Remix) |
2016 | ||||||||||
| "I Don't Know Why" (Danny Avila Remix)[37] |
2017 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Hearts on Fire" | 92 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Only Ticket Home | |
| "Always"[17] | 2018 | 53 | 25 (Ultratip) | — | 51 | — | — | — | —[upper-alpha 1] | — | |
| "Glow" | 65 | 41 | — | — | 26 [39] | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Faces" | 2019 | — | 31 (Ultratip) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Boxes"[40] | 2020 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | TBA |
| "Better"[41] (with Sam Feldt) |
2022 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | TBA |
| "Anyway" (with Gabrielle Aplin)[42] |
2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | TBA |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE [23] |
NOR [33] |
SWE [35] | |||
| "Tired" (Alan Walker featuring Gavin James) |
2017 | 78 | 5 [43] | 21 [44] |
Non-album single |
| "Innocent" (Alok and Yves V featuring Gavin James) |
2018 | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released. | |||||
Other charted songs
| Title | Year | Peak positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRE [23] |
BEL (Fl) [30] | |||
| "Fairytale of New York" | 2016 | 77 | — | Non-album singles |
| "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | — | 21 (Ultratip) | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
Notes
- "Always" did not enter the Swedish Singellista Chart, but peaked at number one on the Swedish Heatseeker Chart.[38]
References
- "Gavin James". Hot Press. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "And the Winners Are ..." choicemusicprize.com.
- "Gavin James Plus Guest Support". Brudenell Social Club. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Gavin James signs to Sony Music in Europe – Collective Management & PR". Collective Management & PR. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "2015 Shortlist | Choice Music Prize". choicemusicprize.ie. Archived from the original on 31 January 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Gavin James renews acquaintances with James Corden | Music | News | Hot Press". Hot Press. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Gavin James to perform on Jimmy Kimmel tonight | Music | News | Hot Press". Hot Press. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "15 Artists To Look Out For in 2016". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Gavin James featured as 'One To Watch' by The Sun | Good Soldier Songs". goodsoldiersongs.com. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Gavin James: 'There was no plan, let alone a master plan'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "One to watch: Gavin James". London Standard. 3 July 2015.
- "VIDEO: We're back - relive the launch of Virgin Radio UK". Virgin Radio UK. 30 March 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- "Kodaline and Gavin James set to rock the 3Arena tonight for 2FM Xmas Ball". independent. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- "The A&R Awards: All the winners from a big night for the UK music biz". Music Business Worldwide. 3 November 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- "Gavin James – Biography | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
- "Hearts On Fire - Single by Gavin James on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 27 October 2017.
- Murtagh, Natasha (13 April 2018). "Gavin James releases highly anticipated new single 'Always' | Music | News". Hot Press. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
- "Glow by Gavin James on Amazon Music". Amazon UK. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "Only Ticket Home by Gavin James on Amazon Music". Amazon UK. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
- "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- Nervous - The Ooh Song/Mark McCabe Remix, retrieved 15 June 2020
- Winter Songs, retrieved 15 June 2020
- "Discography Gavin James". irish-charts.com. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- "Ultratop Belgian Charts". Ultratop. Ultratop.
- Lescharts.com: Gavin James discography
- "Gavin James - dutchcharts.nl". Dutch Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
- "Gavin James Switzerland Discography". hitparade.ch/ Hung Medien.
- "Gavin James Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company.
- "Top 100 Artist Album, Week Ending 29 July 2022". IRMA. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
- "Gavin James discography". ultratop/be/nl/. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- "Gavin James discography". ultratop/be/fr/. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- "Gavin James discography". ultratop/be/fr/. Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- "Gavin James discography". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- "VG-lista – Gavin James". VG-lista. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
- "Gavin James discography". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
- "CHART: CLUK Update 23.07.2016 (wk29)". Official Charts Company. Zobbel.de. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
- "I Don't Know Why (Danny Avila Remix) - Single by Gavin James". Apple Music. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- "Veckolista Heatseeker – Vecka 16, 20 april 2018". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
- "Gavin James – Glow". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
- "Boxes - Single by Gavin James". Apple Music. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- "Sam Feldt and Gavin James Unite for Emotive Anthem "Better"". The Music Essentials]. 9 September 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
- "Gabrielle Aplin teamed up with Irish singer-songwriter Gavin James to release a new version of "Anyway"". PM Studios. 10 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
- "VG-lista – Alan Walker feat. Gavin James / Tired". VG-lista. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
- "Sverigetopplistan – Sveriges Officiella Topplista". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 10 June 2017.