Meet Jamie Grey, Redcar’s singer-songwriter. He has been capturing people’s imagination with his emotionally driven powerful vocal delivery coupled with his melodic hooky songs. His style predominantly through use of acoustic guitar and piano is at the core singer/songwriter but he flirts in several sub genres from straight pop to folk, soul, as-well as RnB.
After a busy 2024, Jamie will be taking his live performance to London for Abbie McCarthy’s Good Karma Club on October 29th – with tickets on sale now! We spoke to Jamie in anticipation of this gig.
Hi Jamie – thanks for chatting with us! How has your 2024 been so far? Any highlights?
2024 has been amazing so far. I will always remember this year as the year my live career started. Meeting my agents, Industry Live Agency and then you guys at SJM has meant that I’ve played more shows than ever before. I feel like I’ve grown so much as a performer because of that and it’s forced me to work on things that could be better. I’m always looking for ways to level up and improve as an artist and playing so many shows with my band as well as solo has meant I’ve had to be adaptable and understand what and when works for what type of show I’m playing.
Let’s take it back to 2019 when you released your first independent single ‘Arms Around You’. The track was an instant hit and has surpassed over 12 million streams on Spotify alone… can you talk us through that period of your career and how that felt?
I didn’t really understand what was going on to be honest. I was still figuring out how streaming and self releasing worked. I also didn’t know how to really record and mix songs properly so me and my friend Anders were just writing and throwing stuff out. I remember the song had been out a week and I had an email from Spotify saying it had been added to the editorial playlist ‘Sad Songs’
I thought oh ok cool, what’s this about? When I checked the playlist it had 1.5 million followers and Arms Around You was like third on the playlist after Harry Styles and Justin Beiber. It was crazy, the song just started streaming loads and then on my socials everyone was messaging me about it. Definitely an amazing way to start!
You released ‘Out of my Head’ this month! What can you tell us about the inspirations behind the track?
To be honest, the track was part of my album but because of the way streaming has gone, me and my new management have decided to release all the songs as singles. This one I wrote a few years ago now and I always loved the different side of me it brought in the production. We’ve used it in our set as an opener at times and it’s felt great. It’s a very honest song, I’m a deep thinker and admittedly an over thinker and the song talks about how your brain can play tricks on you at times.
We’re so excited that you’ll be performing in London at Abbie McCarthy’s Good Karma Club on the 29th of October … what can fans expect from your live performance?
They can expect me to leave it all on the line for sure. I’ve definitely got this mindset right now to play every show as if it’s my last chance I’ll ever get to perform. I also enjoy being on the bill with other talented acts as it pushes me to be my best. I wanna show people the full scope of what Jamie Grey is. The different sides to my artistry and all of the emotions that go on within me. I can’t wait!
What is your favourite track of yours to play live, and why?
Do you know what, I’ve been asked that before and I always find it tricky to answer. To be honest my favourite is usually always the newest song haha. I love bringing something new in as I’m addicted to writing songs. I have songs of mine that personally hold a deeper feeling for sure like ‘Water’ and ‘Here Now’ but to play live is usually always the newest!
Thanks Jamie! We can’t wait to see what you get up to for the rest of 2024
Cheers guys, I’m really excited. There’s a great momentum right now and I have a team around me of truly good people that I’ve always wanted to find. Let’s goooooo.