Steve James
Origin: United States
In timeless fashion, it all happens by hand. Steve James brings a whole lot of heart to electronic pop via his artful piano playing, deft instrumentation, and seismic range. The 20-year-old Johnstown, PA born and Los Angeles-based artist, vocalist, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and DJ strikes a delicate balance between dancefloor energy and organic spirit. As a result, he shares a new kind of sonic story relative to his own unbelievable come-up thus far…
“It’s a different combination of influences,” he says. “I grew up in dance culture, so I really like energy, but I’ve been writing pop music for the past few years, so I also love songs that can be stripped down to nothing more than a piano and a vocal. It’s electronic dance music with a singer-songwriter quality. I want to bridge the gap with real piano, real drums, real guitar, and analog recording highlighted by the elements. I have the chance to control the vibe, explore relationships, and welcome people on a physical and emotional journey.”
As far as his journey is concerned, he went from studying classical piano at four-years-old to performing Coldplay as a child in Johnstown, PA. At the age of twelve, he picked up his first synthesizer and went on to start doing remixes inspired by Avicii and Afrojack. His remix of ZHU’s “Faded” caught fire in 2015, topping HypeMachine and becoming a mainstay on SiriusXM’s BPM. On a trip to Los Angeles, he met songwriter extraordinaire Poo Bear and co-wrote and co-produced “Purpose” from Justin Bieber’s chart-dominating multiplatinum album of the same name.
Opting to drop out of high school and move West, Steve spent the next four years grinding in the studio and on-stage. He collaborated with Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha on the double-platinum smash “In The Name of Love.” In the aftermath, he delivered showstopping DJ sets on tour with Garrix, The Chainsmokers, Matoma, and worldwide.
In between, he produced “Power” for Little Mix and produced and wrote “Middle of the Night” for Vamps, “Morphine” for Lights, and more. 2019 sees him properly add “vocalist” to a rotating list of roles on his official debut for Casablanca Records.
“I’m a very meticulous producer,” he explains. “I’m super nitpicky and detail-oriented, so it took me a minute to get used to the process. I’m starting to love my voice though. I really get to give everyone my story now.”
With his +1 EP on the horizon, Steve James delivers a real and relatable story that crosses genres and generations.
“It always goes back to putting people in a mindset,” he leaves off. “We listen to music to hype us up or chill us out. Music gets those emotions out. I want to give listeners different avenues to explore their feelings. I feel like my generation understands this. It can be really challenging, but I want to offer an outlet. I’m with you. I’m like your plus one.”
