Tyler James

Tyler James emerged as an East London roustabout whose rakish style echoed that of American pop contemporaries such as Jason Mraz, Justin Timberlake, and Gavin DeGraw. He first drew attention after releasing the buoyant, R&B-flavored single “Why Do I Do?” in 2004, although his recording efforts had begun three years earlier only to be stalled by label complications. A contract with Island Records finally cleared the path for that debut track, which was followed by additional releases including “Just Around the Corner,” “Nothing,” and a cover of White Town’s 1997 hit “Your Woman.” The long-delayed album Unlikely Lad surfaced digitally in 2005 yet made no impact on the UK charts, after which Island dropped him and his momentum evaporated.

The 2011 death of longtime friend Amy Winehouse—who had trained alongside him as a teenager at the Sylvia Young Theatre School—prompted James to resume his career. He auditioned successfully for the BBC series The Voice UK, was selected for will.i.am’s team, and ultimately finished third. In July 2012 Island Records welcomed him back, and the resulting album A Place I Go, co-written and produced with Guy Chambers and will.i.am, appeared that October.