Meet James Violet of The Voice Season 17

The Voice

September 6, 2019 By Mark Franklin 0

James Violet earned a spot on The Voice Season 17. (NBC Photo)

His audition: James Violet, 20, of Syracuse, Utah, performed “Sweet Creature” by Harry Styles: A solid opening by James prompted a quick chair turn from Kelly Clarkson. The song didn’t offer many opportunities for vocal gymnastics, but James provided a hint of his vocal firepower late in the performance. And that was all it took to get chair turns from Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani as well. Gwen called his voice “soothing” and “emotional.” Kelly complimented his “nice-glass-of-wine vibe.” And Blake let Kelly derail his pitch. James opted for Team Gwen.

Here’s more about James.

* The 20-year-old from Syracuse, Utah, is also one of the Voice contestants who has already released music — in his case a seven-song EP called “404 Not Found” that came out in February.

* That project was released on James’ own “in full bloom” record label. Check out lead track “Bubblegum” below.

* James was born in Phoenix, but his family moved to Syracuse when he was very young. He calls the area where he lives “very untouched.” “There’s a lot of isolation, which is perfect for writing music,” James told The Voice.

* It’s in Utah that James joined his school band, playing clarinet, and eventually learned to play saxophone, ukulele, piano, and guitar as well.

* His early musical influences included Bob Marley, Aretha Franklin, The Beatles, Pearl Jam and would eventually grow to include a broader range of genres and more current artists.

* He posted his first cover to Twitter in 2015, marking his official start as a singer. Today he has more than 2,700 subscribers on his YouTube channel.

* James graduated from high school in 2017. Two weeks later, he moved to L.A., covering expenses by busking on the Santa Monica Pier.

* He eventually moved back home to complete the aforementioned EP. But he said he jumped at the chance to return to L.A. via The Voice to prove himself as a musician.

* According to his Voice bio, James is studying business marketing and works as a supervisor at a warehouse retail chain.