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Jose James Biography

Vocalist

Jose James, born on January 20, 1978, is a talented vocalist whose music style blends jazz, soul, and funk elements, winning the hearts of many fans.

Related Quotes

“I actually started the whole project some years ago with a live debut at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. The focus was mainly on my favorite period of Billie Holiday, which was the late-50s Verve recordings, with essentially a small version of the Count Basie band.”

Years Whole Focus Periods Band Projects Late Years Ago My Favorite Versions Holiday Debut Brussels

Author:Jose James

“I love that [ late-50s Verve recordings] - to me, that's the epitome of vocal jazz. It's my favorite style and era of it.”

Style Late Jazz My Favorite Eras Vocal Epitome

Author:Jose James

“I really pulled from that repertoire that Billie Holiday was singing, and the way she sang it. It's sort of this beautiful, not really midpoint, but a period of her career where she really still had her voice. She had that deep wisdom that we've come to associate her with. To me, that's her at the height of her powers.”

Way Stills Beautiful Voice Careers Periods Singing Height Holiday Associates

Author:Jose James

“I feel like, in many ways, Billie Holiday's still very under-appreciated as an artist. People focus on her voice, and all of the very recognizable vocal things that she does, which are great. But I wanted to, with this project, start the conversation again about her as a radical feminist, as a civil rights activist - taking a stance. And also just [her] being a non-conformist.”

“If you look at the other singers of Billie Holiday's time, they were really trying to entertain. They were trying to make people feel good. They were singing fast - and she was singing the blues.”

People Ifs Feels Trying Looks Singing Singers Feel Good Holiday Singing The Blues

Author:Jose James

“[Billie Holiday] was keeping it super real, and you can feel that to this day. Everything that she sang, she believed in. So I had to pick songs that I felt the same about.”

Feels Real Song Felt Picks Holiday This Day

Author:Jose James

“I also tried to focus on songs that Billie Holiday wrote, songs that she had a hand in shaping, like "Strange Fruit"; songs that were written for her or songs that she wrote herself, like "Fine and Mellow" or "God Bless The Child."”

Children Hands Song Focus Written Strange Fine Fruit Holiday Bless God Bless Mellow

Author:Jose James

“The other songs [of Billie Holiday] - "Body and Soul" is like the standard - I also wanted some songs that I knew I would sound good on, as a producer. It's been the same nine songs since I debuted it back in 2012.”

Soul Body Wanted Song Sound Standards Nine Producers Holiday

Author:Jose James

“For better or for worse, I think my approach to jazz is very traditional, in one sense, but is [also] very out of fashion today. It's about the musicians, and it's about that magic that happens in the moment.”

Thinking Moments Happens Today Magic Fashion Approach Musician Jazz Traditional Fashion Today

Author:Jose James

“When I sort of step in my jazz world, it's somewhere between instrumental jazz and vocal jazz.”

World Steps Jazz Vocal

Author:Jose James

“I go by the "Miles Davis school of production and band-leading", where you pick the best musicians you can, you provide them with a minimum of direction, and you just let the music happen. I've seen it work time and time again.”

Happens School Band Musician Picks Productions Miles Minimum

Author:Jose James

“For me, the difference between a musician reading an arrangement on a piece of paper, and them closing their eyes and listening to what's happening around them and responding to it, is huge.”

Eye Reading Differences Pieces Huge Listening Paper Musician Happenings Arrangements Closing Responding

Author:Jose James

“Once I had the band, Jason [Moran] and John [Patitucci] and Eric [Harland] - it's very exciting to have that trio of just world-class guys - I already knew it was going to be fantastic. I didn't really tell them anything about it. They didn't know what they were going to play beforehand.”

Knows World Play Guy Class Band Exciting Fantastic Jason Eric World Class Trios

Author:Jose James

“Jason [Moran] and John [Patitucci] and Eric [Harland] knew it was a Billie Holiday tribute. I'm sure they assumed it was going to be like another singer date, where we just have a bunch of charts and they write them down and they got paid and kind of moved on. There's nothing wrong with that, but it's not what I intended.”

Writing Kind Paid Down And Moved Singers Bunch Holiday Tribute Jason Eric Moved On

Author:Jose James

“There used to be a club in new york called Bradley's - I've never been there, it closed in the 80's - but I used to study with Junior Mance, and he would tell me about Bradley's. It was a very important place for a generation of jazz musicians in New York. It was really all about pianists there.”

Important Used Study Generations New York Musician Jazz Clubs Used To Be Juniors Jazz Music Pianist Jazz Musician

Author:Jose James

“Chico Hamilton told me, "The first take is important in jazz because that's where the real emotion is." That's your true response to what's happening, and everything else after that, your brain is involved because you have something to reference.”

Firsts Important Real Emotion Brain Involved Happenings Jazz Response Hamilton Real Emotion

Author:Jose James

“All my stuff is pretty seamless - like now, while I'm touring [Yesterday I Sang The Blues], today I'm going to go in the studio, I'm writing my next one. For me it's continual.”

Writing Today Next Stuff Studios Yesterday Touring Seamless One For Me

Author:Jose James

“I'm pretty much always planning two albums ahead.”

Two Albums Planning

Author:Jose James

“I've sort of realized there's a definite pattern to my output at this point: there's an album that everybody sort of loves, that's a real balance between the old and new, like The Dreamer or No Beginning No End, like a blend of jazz and hip-hop, or r&b and soul and hip-hop.”

Real Soul Ends Balance Jazz Patterns Hip Hop Albums Hips Hops Dreamer Definite Output Old And New

Author:Jose James

“There's a more experimental album that follows that, which is like Black Magic and While You Were Sleeping. Then there's a return to jazz, For All We Know and Yesterday I Sang The Blues. It wasn't like a planned thing, I just kind of realized it when I made a list of my albums. Like, oh wow, this is exactly what I did before.”

Knows Kind Made Black Sleep Magic Return Jazz Albums Lists Yesterday Wow Black Magic

Author:Jose James

“I'm working with a producer, Scott Jacoby, who co-wrote "Trouble" off No Beginning No End. Without giving away too much, it's a definite pop/r&b vibe, pretty strong melodies, and definitely about songs.”

Giving Ends Song Strong Too Much Trouble Pops Producers Melody Definite

Author:Jose James

“When I start working on a new album, I kind of stop listening to a lot of outside stuff just so I can kind of focus.”

Kind I Can Stuff Focus Listening Albums

Author:Jose James

“I'm listening to a lot of Drake, and a lot of Frank Sinatra just because it's his centennial also. I'm going to be doing some tributes to him this year. I love that Beck album. It was funny to me because my two favorite albums of the year were definitely the Beyonce album and the Beck album.”

Years Two Listening Albums Frank Tribute Beyonce Centennial

Author:Jose James

“The level of musicianship in New York is the highest in the world. It's tough to get into. You start gigging making 50 dollars a night, or playing for nothing to get to something. It's insane. It's like being a modern dancer, or something - the hardest thing to make money from.”

World Night Modern Tough Insane Making Money Dancer

Author:Jose James

“I really like the complexity of jazz, the emotional depth; I feel like there's no other music that's really as satisfying as jazz.”

Emotional Jazz Complexity

Author:Jose James

“For me jazz is kind of an extension of hip-hop. Kind of the sad thing is that a lot of jazz people just listen to jazz, and a lot of hip-hop people just listen to hip-hop, and there's not a lot of crossover, unfortunately.”

People Kind Jazz Just Listen

Author:Jose James

“I don't get writer's block. I don't try to write anything; when something comes, I write it. I just practice and when I get an idea I write it down.”

Writing Trying Block

Author:Jose James

About the Author

Born: January 20, 1978
Known for: Vocalist
Quotes: 27

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