Jessie James (singer)
Encyclopedia
Jessica Rose James, is an American country pop
singer and songwriter. Having auditioned for and being rejected by most of the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fifteen, James began working on refining her craft with Karla Wallace of Yellow Dog Records. One of her songs attracted the attention of a record executive who got her signed to Mercury Records. Prior to 2011, James recorded as Jessie James and released her self-titled debut album
in 2009.
, Italy. She began singing at the age of two and won her first talent contest in Baker, Louisiana
at the age of nine singing "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart
". She told her mother about the show after hearing about it from her grandmother. By then, she had already been writing songs on a plastic guitar and performed at SeaWorld
and a Republican Convention. James relocated to Warner Robins
, Georgia
in 2000. At age fifteen, she made weekly trips to Nashville to hone her songwriting. She had auditioned and was turned down by almost all the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee
, with one label head offering a development deal instead.
James was introduced to Karla Wallace of independent label Yellow Dog Records
at seventeen who helped her with her songwriting and singing. One of her songs, "Gypsy Girl", written with two writers from Yellow Dog had been pitched to American Idol
contestant and winner, Carrie Underwood
, who put it on hold for her record, made it into the hands of record executive David Massey who brought her to the attention of L.A. Reid. She auditioned for Reid singing her song, "My Cowboy", produced by John Rich
. James soon inked a contract with Mercury Records
. Her debut album, Jessie James was released in August 2009, debuting at number twenty-three on the Billboard 200
. The music on the album was a fusion between country and pop music, with more emphasis placed on the latter as dictated by her label. The album featured writing credits from James and seasoned pop songwriter Kara Dioguardi
and Mitch Allan
among others. Its first single, "Wanted
" had been released in April and peaked at number forty on the Billboard Hot 100
. She later performed in the Middle East with singer Kid Rock
and comedian Carlos Mencia
for US troops stationed overseas.
James began working on her second album in 2010, initially planned to be released in late summer. The album was to be of the same country-pop sound as her debut, with James being given more leeway by Mercury in incorporating country sounds. First single, "Boys in the Summer" released in June, was a minor country success but failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Following the commercial disappointment of the single, she signed with country label Show Dog-Universal Music
, which had facilitated the country release of "Boys in the Summer", in November. After switching labels, James began working on a country genre album, Sweet American Dreams and began recording in April 2011. She had previously described herself in an interview as "a country girl at heart," having grown up listening to the genre, preferring it to pop.
, as she was in the step team in school. Initially, she faced opposition for her soul music inspired vocal runs when trying to get signed in Nashville. She has listed Christina Aguilera
, Bobbie Gentry
, Janis Joplin
, Shelby Lynne
, and Shania Twain
as influences. Initially, she also stated that she wanted a career similar to those of Gentry and Twain, who were signed to pop labels but found crossover success in both country and pop music.
, who is a starting wide receiver for the Denver Broncos
of the National Football League
.
featuring Jessie James)
Country pop
Country pop, with roots in both the countrypolitan sound and in soft rock, is a subgenre of country music that first emerged in the 1970s. Although the term first referred to country music songs and artists that crossed over to Top 40 radio, country pop acts are now more likely to cross over to...
singer and songwriter. Having auditioned for and being rejected by most of the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fifteen, James began working on refining her craft with Karla Wallace of Yellow Dog Records. One of her songs attracted the attention of a record executive who got her signed to Mercury Records. Prior to 2011, James recorded as Jessie James and released her self-titled debut album
Jessie James (album)
Jessie James is the debut self-titled album by American country-pop singer-songwriter Jessica James. The album was released on August 11, 2009 under Mercury Records...
in 2009.
Life and career
James was born April 12, 1988 in VicenzaVicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
, Italy. She began singing at the age of two and won her first talent contest in Baker, Louisiana
Baker, Louisiana
Baker is a city in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States, and a part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,793 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Baker is located at...
at the age of nine singing "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart
I Want to be a Cowboy's Sweetheart
"I Want to be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" is a country and Western song written and first recorded in 1935 by Rubye Blevins, who performed as Patsy Montana. It was the first country and Western song by a female artist to sell more than one million copies....
". She told her mother about the show after hearing about it from her grandmother. By then, she had already been writing songs on a plastic guitar and performed at SeaWorld
SeaWorld
SeaWorld is a United States chain of marine mammal parks, oceanariums, and animal theme parks owned by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. The parks feature captive orca, sea lion, and dolphin shows and zoological displays featuring various other marine animals. There are operations in Orlando,...
and a Republican Convention. James relocated to Warner Robins
Warner Robins, Georgia
Warner Robins is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located primarily in Houston County with a small portion in Peach County. The city has its own metropolitan statistical area . As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 48,804...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
in 2000. At age fifteen, she made weekly trips to Nashville to hone her songwriting. She had auditioned and was turned down by almost all the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, with one label head offering a development deal instead.
James was introduced to Karla Wallace of independent label Yellow Dog Records
Yellow Dog Records
Yellow Dog Records is an American independent record label based in Memphis, Tennessee that features authentic American music - blues, jazz, soul and Americana...
at seventeen who helped her with her songwriting and singing. One of her songs, "Gypsy Girl", written with two writers from Yellow Dog had been pitched to American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
contestant and winner, Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Marie Underwood is an American country singer-songwriter and actress who rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of American Idol, in 2005...
, who put it on hold for her record, made it into the hands of record executive David Massey who brought her to the attention of L.A. Reid. She auditioned for Reid singing her song, "My Cowboy", produced by John Rich
John Rich
John Rich may refer to:* John Tyler Rich, US Congressman* John Rich , television and film director* John Rich , American musician* John Rich , 18th century theater manager and father of English Pantomime...
. James soon inked a contract with Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
. Her debut album, Jessie James was released in August 2009, debuting at number twenty-three on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. The music on the album was a fusion between country and pop music, with more emphasis placed on the latter as dictated by her label. The album featured writing credits from James and seasoned pop songwriter Kara Dioguardi
Kara DioGuardi
Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, composer and TV personality. She writes music primarily in the light pop-rock, dance, and R&B genres. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; her songs have appeared on more than 159...
and Mitch Allan
Mitch Allan
Mitch Allan, is the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of punk rock band SR-71, and the lead guitarist and backing vocalist of power pop project Satellite.-Biography:...
among others. Its first single, "Wanted
Wanted (Jessie James song)
"Wanted" is the debut single from American country-pop singer-songwriter Jessica James' self-titled debut album.-Song information:The song is produced by Mitch Allan and co-written by Jessie James, American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, Mitch Allan and David Hodges ."Wanted" was officially released...
" had been released in April and peaked at number forty on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. She later performed in the Middle East with singer Kid Rock
Kid Rock
Robert James "Bob" Ritchie , known by his stage name Kid Rock, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and rapper with five Grammy Awards nominations...
and comedian Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia
Carlos Mencia , born Ned Arnel Mencia, is a Honduran-born American comedian, writer, and actor. His style of comedy is often political and involves issues of race, culture, criminal justice, and social class...
for US troops stationed overseas.
James began working on her second album in 2010, initially planned to be released in late summer. The album was to be of the same country-pop sound as her debut, with James being given more leeway by Mercury in incorporating country sounds. First single, "Boys in the Summer" released in June, was a minor country success but failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Following the commercial disappointment of the single, she signed with country label Show Dog-Universal Music
Show Dog-Universal Music
Show Dog-Universal Music is an American independent record label specializing in country music artists. It was formed from the merger of Show Dog Nashville and Universal South Records in 2009...
, which had facilitated the country release of "Boys in the Summer", in November. After switching labels, James began working on a country genre album, Sweet American Dreams and began recording in April 2011. She had previously described herself in an interview as "a country girl at heart," having grown up listening to the genre, preferring it to pop.
Musical style and influences
James co-wrote the majority of the songs on her debut album. The album is of a country pop fusion genre, revealing her taste for not only country music, but pop and soul music as well. The beat for "Blue Jeans" was a recording of James steppingStepping (African-American)
Stepping or step-dancing is a form of percussive dance in which the participant's entire body is used as an instrument to produce complex rhythms and sounds through a mixture of footsteps, spoken word, and hand claps...
, as she was in the step team in school. Initially, she faced opposition for her soul music inspired vocal runs when trying to get signed in Nashville. She has listed Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
, Bobbie Gentry
Bobbie Gentry
Roberta Lee Streeter , professionally known as Bobbie Gentry, is a former American singer-songwriter notable as one of the first female country artists to compose and produce her own material...
, Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, Shelby Lynne
Shelby Lynne
Shelby Lynne is an American singer, songwriter and actress. The success of the 1999 album I Am Shelby Lynne led to her winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, even though she had been active in the music industry for some time...
, and Shania Twain
Shania Twain
Shania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
as influences. Initially, she also stated that she wanted a career similar to those of Gentry and Twain, who were signed to pop labels but found crossover success in both country and pop music.
Personal life
James is currently dating Eric DeckerEric Decker
Eric Decker is an American football wide receiver for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League . He was drafted by the Broncos in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft...
, who is a starting wide receiver for the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Peak positions |
|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
||
| Jessie James Jessie James (album) Jessie James is the debut self-titled album by American country-pop singer-songwriter Jessica James. The album was released on August 11, 2009 under Mercury Records... |
|
23 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US Pop Mainstream Top 40 (Pop Songs) The Mainstream Top 40 is an airplay chart from Billboard magazine, and is also known as Pop Songs on billboard.com. It was often mistaken for and confused with the now discontinued Pop 100 Airplay chart... |
US Dance |
US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
|||||
| 2009 | "Wanted Wanted (Jessie James song) "Wanted" is the debut single from American country-pop singer-songwriter Jessica James' self-titled debut album.-Song information:The song is produced by Mitch Allan and co-written by Jessie James, American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, Mitch Allan and David Hodges ."Wanted" was officially released... " |
40 | 23 | 18 | — | 82 |
|
Jessie James | |
| "I Look So Good (Without You)" | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| "My Cowboy" | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| 2010 | "Boys in the Summer Boys in the Summer "Boys in the Summer" is a single by American country-pop singer Jessica James.-Song information:The song was produced by John Fields and co-written by Jessie James and James Michael. The country mix was produced by Mark Wright, released through Show Dog-Universal Music. The song went for adds at... " |
— | — | — | 58 | — | Non-album song | ||
| 2012 | "Say My Name" TBD | ||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | "Wanted" | Travis Kopach |
| "I Look So Good (Without You)" | Chris Baldwin | |
| "My Cowboy" | Colin Tilley | |
| 2010 | "Boys in the Summer" | Roman White Roman White Roman White is a music video director who has directed most of Carrie Underwood's videos. He has also directed music videos for Kelly Clarkson, Josh Groban, Kellie Pickler, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and more... |
| "Dear John" | Roman Dent |
Other appearances
2010: "Come Undone" (My Darkest DaysMy Darkest Days
My Darkest Days is a Canadian rock band based in Toronto, consisting of lead singer Matt Walst, lead guitarist Sal Costa, Bassist Brendan McMillan, Drummer Doug Oliver, and keyboardist Reid Henry...
featuring Jessie James)