#Song1098

We've covered the Lumineers (#Day3) and Noah Kahan (#Song904) so let's focus on James Bay. James was born in Hertsfordshire in east England to a fashion illustrator for Marie Claire and a wine merchant. After hearing Eric Clapton's "Layla" at age 11, James grabbed an old rusty guitar with five strings he found in a cupboard and began to teach himself to play. At 18, he moved to Brighton for college and played open mic nights. A fan-uploaded video caught the attention of an A&R record man, who signed him within the week. Within a year of releasing his first EP, he was selling out his first UK headline tour. His full length debut in 2014 went double platinum and "Hold Back the River" from the album went triple platinum as a single.