José James

José James is a master of reinvention. Over the past 13 years as a singer, producer, and label owner, he's proven himself capable of covering wide swaths of terrain: traditional jazz standards on his debut The Dreamer; Bill Withers and Billie Holiday covers on Lean On Me and Yesterday I Had The Blues; and atmospheric soul on the No Beginning No End series. He’s done it all while keeping his voice in the center, a smoky baritone the likes of Gil Scott-Heron and Terry Callier that cuts through the lush instrumentals beneath it. The approach has led to a vast discography with various entry points—each album is different yet no less vibrant. For his new album, Merry Christmas from José James, the singer applies his unique vision to familiar source material—holiday favorites like “Let It Snow” and “White Christmas.

A jazz artist for the hip-hop generation, José James artfully blurs the lines between traditional and contemporary jazz, hip-hop, soul, funk, pop and rock. He has released 11 critically-acclaimed albums in as many years for labels such as Brownswood, Impulse, Blue Note and his own co-founded Rainbow Blonde Records, and is the recipient of both the Edison Award and L'Académie du Jazz Grand Prix. James has collaborated with many notable artists such as Flying Lotus, Robert Glasper, Lalah Hathaway, Ledisi, Aloe Blacc and Jason Moran.

A celebrated international performer, James has presented his work at venues such as The Kennedy Center, Hollywood Bowl, Ancienne Belgique and Billboard Live Tokyo, and has performed as a guest artist with McCoy Tyner, Laura Mvula and the Jazz at Lincoln Center, Melbourne Symphony and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestras.