10 Things You Should Know About Luke James
Find out what all the buzz is about.
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10 Things You Should Know About Luke James - He's a singer-songwriter and rising talent who's poised to be the next big thing in R&B. Before the Music Matters artist delivers his debut television performance on BET Honors, get to know why big names like Justin Bieber and Chris Brown have already been working with him.(Photo: Dave M. Benett/Getty Images)
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Early Beginnings - While in high school in 2001, James joined a local trio that started performing around New Orleans, opening for acts like Brian McKnight.(Photo: Brad Barket/PictureGroup)
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Three's a Crowd - While in the group James was discovered by Frank Gatson, a creative force behind En Vogue, Tyrese, Beyoncé and Michael Jackson. Gatson dedicated a year to grooming James into the artist he had the potential and raw talent to become.(Photos: John Ricard / BET)
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Transformation - As the first step in his transformation, James moved to L.A. after his high school graduation and began singing backup for Tyrese.(Photo: Vivien Killilea/WireImage)
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Say It in a Love Song - The singer-songwriter would later go on to pen songs for artists like Chris Brown ("Crawl"), Britney Spears "Kill the Lights" and Justin Bieber "That Should Be Me."(Photo: Mercury Records)
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Dynamic Duo: Luke & Q - Some may remember that before branching out as a solo act, the New Orleans native was originally signed to J Records as one half of the R&B duo Luke & Q.(Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images For BET)
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Made to Love - After a lot of hard work with Gatson, James signed a deal with Island Def Jam/Universal by way of producer Danja's New Age Rock Stars imprint. His upcoming album, Made to Love, will be his debut on the label.(Photo: AdrianSidney/PictureGroup)
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Who Will Run the World? - As James works to raise his visibility and broaden his fan base he knows he already has an ally in Beyoncé, who featured him prominently in her "Run the World (Girls)" music video. (Photo: Adrian Sidney/PictureGroup)
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Inspiration - James says that he grew up listening to everyone from Marvin Gaye, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes to Willie Nelson and Alabama. He mentions Prince, Donny Hathaway and Otis Redding among his greatest influences as well.(Photo: Mercury Records)
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Showtime at the Apollo - James first knew that he wanted to be a singer when he had an "A ha!" moment while watching an episode of "Showtime at the Apollo" at age 11.(Photo: John Ricard / BET)