It’s remarkably rare for an artist to burst onto the music scene with a silhouette so recognisable that the album art on his second-ever single, Hold Back the River, featured nothing more than an outline of a pinched fedora and the suggestion of some long, flowing locks.
Such was the success of the young busker from Hitchin, who had spent his days after university frequenting the open mic scene of Brighton – trailing from one pub to the next (oftentimes they were next door to one another) guitar in hand, fedora bought on a whim locally firmly on his head.
There was something instantly alluring and oh-so-2014 about Bay’s look, sound and energy which rightfully garnered attention from record label executives, but he didn’t stick with it for long. The otherwise understated, world-famous indie rockstar underwent a surprise Bowie-inspired shift for his sophomore album in 2018 and cropped his signature locks short while sporting more daring looks.
Bay spent time removing himself from constraints unintentionally created, producing some brilliant art in the process, but has ultimately landed comfortably in an aesthetic place which is relatively similar to where he started – for now.
It’s clear that Bay’s lyricism and musicality stem from so much more than diarised poetry, but instead offer a palimpsest perspective which encompasses over a decade of singing, writing, exploring literature and watching films. He’s still incredibly young, just 34, but has in the last few years embarked on a very new, beautifully exciting journey – that of fatherhood.
Before we can even begin the interview, Bay notices the Fender Telecaster on my wall, and just as it's coming to a close, he manages to decipher the blurry artwork next to the hanging guitar. It’s a setlist from The Rolling Stones’ Twickenham show back in 2018, I confirm, and Bay thrusts his hands into the air in celebratory delight. “I knew I could recognise Ronnie Wood’s handwriting from a mile away,” he says, before coyly asking, “Did you happen to see the support act that night?”
Despite owning this setlist for six years, I had neglected to remember before hopping onto the Zoom that ‘Beasts of Burden, with James Bay’ had been scrawled by Wood about halfway down the setlist. I’d caught his collaborative performance (having only remembered thanks to Bay), but embarrassingly missed his opening act. Thankfully, I think all is forgiven.
How would you describe your style evolution over the last decade or so?
“Intentionally chameleonic. If you go way back, I was a teenager with long hair and a guitar – and that was typical. No disrespect to everyone doing it, but I was one of them, and I wanted to stand out. It’s not like nobody had worn a hat before, but I chose to, at the age of about 18 or 19, always perform wearing a hat.
“There'd been a sort of blues guitar player from America who I became a fan of when I was a teenager, and I liked his wide-brim, Fedora-type hat. And as kids do, I was directly inspired. I think because I wore it all the time, constantly, that’s why it stood out. Nobody had told me to do it, but when I got a record deal and management, nobody told me to take it off.
“Then, when I moved away from the sounds of my first album, that’s when I started to become a bit of a chameleon. I cut all my hair off – I’m a Bowie fan and love the idea of being able to shape-shift. I really wanted to feel different. Eric Clapton has had so many haircuts over his career, that some people don’t even recognise him in certain pictures. I’m a big fan of all of that, and I wanted to taste it.
“I did this one shoot in a diamond-encrusted Gucci top. I had a pair of jeans half made from denim, half from another pair of leather zip-laden trousers. And for a minute, I didn’t wear the hat. I held onto that for a while after moving away from the [Fade Out] period – but I’ve sort of landed back on wearing the hat and having the longer hair.”
Are you willing to divulge the creator of that original fedora?
“The hat that I’ve been known for wearing I bought in 2014. I’d been wearing a brown one that I bought in Brighton when I was 18 before that. My one alternative is by a brilliant bloke called Patrick at Redbelly Hats in America, he makes these beautiful artisan hats in all different patterns and burns the edges. One day I would like to move away from the shape, the size and the silhouette of the hat that I’ve always worn, but I just feel so right in it.”
What’s your go-to guitar for writing and performing?
“I can't help but answer this question with my very trusted 1966 Epiphone century, which is a red sort of hollow-bodied electric guitar. The hollow body is beautiful because, with a lot of electric solid bodies, you have to plug them in to really hear anything. But with this one, you can hear it like it's an acoustic, and you can plug it in and get all noisy with it.
“I found it when I went to meet this record label in New York, the one that went on to sign me. They sort of kicked me out of the room and kept my managers back, and just said – hey, go see New York. Walk around Manhattan. I went straight to this place on Bleecker Street, and I walked in and fell in love with this instrument and could not afford it at all.
“I had dinner with the label that night, and we got on so well. I can’t remember what I talked about, but I must have been going on about this guitar because when I got home, my managers called and said they had a package for me. I went to their office, and there was this huge box. The record label bought me the guitar. It wasn’t a bribe, but I did call them back with the fancy guitar in hand and say yeah, let’s do this.”
What are your songwriting essentials?
“Idle time. I'm a dad, so that makes the schedule even fuller. So I've learned to get better at coming up with ideas like between washing up and bedtime, between checking in to the hotel and checking out the next morning. Those are the moments when there's nothing on the agenda, and that part of my mind opens up.
“It’s also about variety. Whether it's podcasts, reading or films – like I watched All of Us Strangers the other day and I was so inspired by the visuals, the film quality and the vivid heat of the colours. I’m trying to drink all that stuff in. It’s typical stuff – movies, books and records. The other day I bought this John Lee Hooker record on a whim because my dad was a huge fan when I was growing up. That’ll definitely inspire. That’s songwriter central.
“Imagery helps too. My friends buy me photo books – like this one by a photographer like Saul Lighter called The Unseen. He took all of these photos between 1948 and 1960 in Manhattan, and just captures the pure romance of the city.”
How would you say becoming a father has influenced your songwriting?
“It’s sharpened the tools of songwriting. I move a lot quicker within the songwriting arena – I don’t linger. I know it’s influencing and changing my songwriting style. It’s a wild ride.”
Do you have any pre-show rituals?
“Bring the energy down. If the live experience is spiky and exciting, I want the pre-show to be prickly. We don’t go all the way to spiky – about 75 per cent, whereas the live show is 100. I don’t want to be too relaxed, because then I’ll walk on asleep. I’d compare it to that moment on an airplane when it's taxiing – you’ve left the gate and the engines are cooking.
“Lots of people say, you know, I do a meditation, and then I have this drink and that drink, and that's cool, but I think it's just that you’ve got to feel good. I was talking to Dermot Kennedy, who I really admire, and I asked him the same question. He said he just has to make sure he’s relaxed and hydrated because that way he can sing better. If you’re too tight, you’ll snap.”
What are your self-care essentials?
“I’m 34 and it was probably only 10 years ago that I started moisturising my face. Credit to my wife. Washing, moisturising my face – I mean, pretty basic stuff but I can’t go to sleep without that. There’s this one Bumble and bumble thing that I use on my hair, but I’ll honestly wash my hair with anything. I’ll use the hotel shampoo and conditioner every time. Because London water is so hard, anywhere with soft water, I love.
“Self-care is hard though. A lot of my life is about excitement and chaos, so I’ve still got an improving relationship with self-care. Therapy is a f****r but thank god it exists. I also have to shout out the wonderful Rebecca Dennis who I’ve been seeing for a number of years, who has this transformational breathing method. I found out about her through Fearne Cotton’s podcast six or seven years ago.”
Do you have a signature scent?
“I’m a bit late to this party, but I’ve been rocking Santal 33. I remember hugging Sam Smith on a couple of occasions and just being like, what are you bathing in? It’s perfect. I don’t know whether they still wear it. Natalia Dyer too, when I met her I was like, what is this scent? Between the two of them, I had to try it. Before that, I used Malin + Goetz Dark Rum.”
What’s the one book you think everyone should read?
“I read this book when I was 20 and I still bang on about it. I’ve read it once since, and I’m sure it’ll be different again if I read it now. Another Country by James Baldwin. It’s so hard not to say Giovanni’s Room or If Beale Street Could Talk. I adore all of his work. But Another Country absolutely rocked my world at that age, and there’s not a single sentence in that book that couldn’t be a song. It’s shaped me as a creative in so many ways. It’s so beautifully, brutally honest about life.”
What’s one album that changed your life?
“This is obviously the most brutal question to ask a musician. Between the ages of 19 and 21 when I moved to Brighton, I’d gone to Uni, I’d moved out of my parents’ house and lived in this little attic room. I was busking and playing up to three open mic nights in one night if I could. I was doing my 10,000 hours to get my writing and performing chops in.
“But one time I walked down the lanes and there was this record shop which is still there. I bought Bill Withers Live at Carnegie Hall, 1972. That record was a bit of a mentor for me, as a performer. There are so many other answers, but that one came to mind immediately.”
James Bay’s new album ‘Changes All The Time’ is out on October 4, and tours throughout the UK in February 2025.
