Hold Back The River

James Bay grew up in the English town of Hitchin listening to James Taylor and Bob Dylan, before studying guitar at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music. The bluesy singer-songwriter first gained some traction after playing right before The Rolling Stones during the band's 2013 Hyde Park shows. He also had a hugely successful run of support slots with Tom Odell, John Newman and Kodaline. Bay's big breakthrough came when he was named Critics Choice 2015 by the Brit Awards panel. The award is almost a guarantee of success - Adele, Jessie J, Ellie Goulding and Sam Smith have all won the prize early in their careers.

Bay's debut single "Let It Go" was iTunes single of the week. This is his second single, which peaked at #2 on the UK singles chart.

James Bay told The Sun about the song: "I wrote it after my first really busy period as an artist, when music had taken me around the world for the first time, and at the end of the year, I've become really eager to see friends and my family properly. 'Hold Back The River' is a metaphor for that feeling."