Shawn James (musician)

Shawn James (born September 23, 1986) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He performs both solo and with his backing band, The Shapeshifters.

Shawn James
James performing in February 2017
James performing in February 2017
Background information
Born (1986-09-23) September 23, 1986
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • singer
  • songwriter
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • piano
  • drums
Years active2012–present
Labels
  • Parts + Labor
  • Raleigh Music Group
Websiteshawnjamesmusic.com

Early life

James was born in Chicago on September 23, 1986,[1] and was raised by Greek immigrants[2] on Chicago's South Side.[3] As a child, he attended a local Pentecostal church, where he sang in the choir. He also took opera, orchestra, and singing lessons in high school.[4]

Career

James started his career working as a sound engineer at music studios in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2012, he moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas, to pursue his own career as a musician. In the beginning, he busked around downtown Fayetteville. From there, he started playing in local venues and recording his own songs in a bedroom studio.[4] Later in 2012, he released his first studio album, Shadows. In 2013, he began working with his backing band, The Shapeshifters.[3] He has since released three more solo albums, a live album, and five albums with The Shapeshifters.[5] He also maintains his own record company, Shawn James Music.[3] He achieved some notability in October 2015 when the music video for his cover of A. A. Bondy's "American Hearts", which was filmed in a wolf sanctuary, went viral after being posted on Reddit.[6]

In December 2016, James had his biggest breakthrough when his 2012 song "Through the Valley" was covered by the character of Ellie in the reveal trailer for the 2020 video game The Last of Us Part II.[7][8] This led to the song topping Spotify's viral chart in the UK,[9][10] eventually garnering over 60 million streams across Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube.[11] On June 5, 2020, he released a re-recorded version of the song in the run-up to the game's release two weeks later.[12] The day before the game's release, a cover of the song by Australian musician Tash Sultana debuted on PlayStation Australia's YouTube channel, accompanied by a Last of Us Part II-themed music video.[13] James' original recording of the song can briefly be heard playing on Ellie's headphones during the game's opening sequence.[14]

James' music has also been featured on Discovery Channel's reality show Yukon Men,[15] the CBS legal drama series Reckless,[16] and the Showtime comedy-drama series Shameless.[17] He currently has a publishing deal with Raleigh Music Group,[18] and signed to Parts + Labor Records in 2018.[19]

Personal life

James and his long-time girlfriend, Michelle, have been together since 2003 when they were both teenagers. They reside in Seattle.

Discography

Solo
  • Shadows (2012)
  • Deliverance (2014)
  • On the Shoulders of Giants (2016)
  • The Dark & The Light (2019)
  • The Guardian Collection (2020)
  • A Place in the Unknown (2022)

The Shapeshifters
  • The Wolf (2013)
  • The Bear (2013)
  • The Hawk (2014)
  • The Covers (2014)
  • The Gospel According to Shawn James & The Shapeshifters (2015)

References
  1. "Shawn James solo bio". Shawnjamesmusic.com. Archived from the original on July 4, 2018. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  2. "Shawn James - Livestream from the Lodge". YouTube. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  3. "Shawn James". Shawnjamesmusic.com. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  4. Hall, Mary (April 12, 2017). "Passionate, raw sound brings Bourbonnais musician national recognition". The Daily Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  5. "Shawn James". AllMusic. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  6. Bartholomew, Dustin (October 28, 2015). "Video of local musician Shawn James singing in a wolf sanctuary goes viral". Fayetteville Flyer. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  7. Imms, Jason (December 7, 2016). "The Last of Us Part 2 Trailer Track Reaches No. 1 on UK Spotify Viral 50 Chart". GameSpot.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  8. Kain, Erik. "What 'The Last of Us 2' Reveal Trailer Tells Us About Naughty Dog's New Game". Forbes.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  9. James, Shawn [@ShawnJamesMusic] (December 7, 2016). "Through the Valley is #1 on the viral Spotify U.K. charts!!!! Thank you all so much! t.co/6O9bx7MlMx" (Tweet). Retrieved February 5, 2021 – via Twitter.
  10. "Spotify's Top 10 most viral tracks". Fox News Business. December 20, 2016. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  11. "Shawn James". Shawnjamesmusic.com. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  12. "Shawn James - "Through the Valley" - Official Music Video". YouTube. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  13. "The Last of Us Part II | Tash Sultana covers 'Through The Valley'". YouTube. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  14. "When does Ellie play this song?". Reddit.com. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  15. "Shawn James". IMDb.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  16. "Music by Shawn James". Tunefind. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  17. ""Shameless" Love Songs (In the Key of Gallagher) (TV Episode 2015)". IMDb.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  18. "Raleigh Music – Shawn James". Raleighmusicgroup.com. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  19. "Singer/Songwriter Shawn James Signs to Parts + Labor Records". Pandlrecords.com. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
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