James Blake (musician)

Early life

Blake was born on 26 September 1988 in Enfield, London, the only child of musicians James Litherland and Helen Litherland. He showed early musical aptitude, received classical piano training, and attended Grange Park Primary School and The Latymer School. He earned a degree in Popular Music from Goldsmiths, University of London, where he co-hosted "Bass Society" music nights featuring artists such as Distance, Skream, and Benga.

Career

For a university assignment he submitted the Klavierwerke EP, which received high marks. The CMYK EP followed in 2010 on R&S Records; its title track was selected as Record of the Week by Nick Grimshaw. In September 2010 Zane Lowe chose Blake's cover of "Limit to Your Love" as his "Hottest Record in the World"; the single debuted at number 47 on the UK Singles Chart.

Blake was nominated for the BBC's Sound of 2011, placing second, and was runner-up for the Brit Awards' "Critic's Choice" in December 2010. In January 2011 he won Single of the Year for "CMYK" at Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Awards. His early EPs appeared on several year-end best-of lists, including Pitchfork's top 50 albums and top 100 tracks of 2010.

Musical style

Blake is a baritone. His early releases are experimental and electronic, influenced by UK bass music such as dubstep and 2-step garage, with obscured and processed vocals, vocal samples from '90s R&B, prominent sub-bass, and sparse rhythms. Journalists described his work as "post-dubstep." By his 2011 debut album, his vocals and piano became more prominent and traditional song structures emerged, reflecting gospel and soul influences.

His second album Overgrown integrated electronic approaches with balladry and soul-inflected vocals. Music critic Mark Fisher wrote that listening to Blake's records in sequence is like hearing a ghost gradually assume material form. Dash Lewis of Pitchfork summarized his career as a journey from club deconstructionist to pop auteur. His 2023 album Playing Robots into Heaven marked a partial return to his electronic club roots.

Blake was formatively influenced by the sparse dubstep of Burial and Digital Mystikz, as well as Stevie Wonder, D'Angelo, Joni Mitchell, and Sly Stone. He cited the Jimi Hendrix live album Band of Gypsys as a primary inspiration for his live performances.

Awards and nominations

Blake was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2011 for his self-titled debut album and again in 2013 for Overgrown, winning the latter. The judges described Overgrown as "late-night music for the digital age." He was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2014 Grammy Awards and has won two Grammy Awards from nine nominations, along with a Latin Grammy Award and three Brit Award nominations.