James Arthur is a singer-songwriter from North Yorkshire, England. His singing career kickstarted in 2012 after he won the 9th season of The X Factor. In 2013, he released his first studio album named “James Arthur”. This was followed by 2nd studio album “Back from the Edge” in 2016. Both the albums were certified ‘Platinum’ by BPI.
Sun Sign
Pisces
London, England, United Kingdom
Nationality
Education
James studied at Ings Farm Primary School in Redcar.
At the age of 9, he moved to Bahrain with his mother and step-father and was enrolled in a private institution called The British School of Bahrain for 4 years.
After he turned 14, his mother broke up with his stepfather and returned to live on the Coast road of Redcar. James continued his high school education at Ryehills School nearby.
Family
- Father – Neil Arthur (Frozen Food Company Delivery Driver, Former DJ, and Drummer)
- Mother – Shirley Ashworth (Sales and Marketing Professional, Former Model)
- Siblings –
- Neil Arthur (Older Half-Brother) (Professional Bookie based in Morecambe)
- (Older Sister) (Online Media Strategist at Visualsoft Ltd)
- (Neil’s daughter with wife Jacqueline, Younger Half-Sister)
- Jasmine Rafferty (Shirley’s daughter with ex-husband Ronald Rafferty, Younger Half-Sister)
- Neve Rafferty (Shirley’s daughter with ex-husband Ronald Rafferty, Younger Half-Sister)
- Others – Helen Arthur (Paternal Grandmother), Carol MacInnes (Paternal Aunt), Jacqueline Y Arthur née Hunter (Stepmother)
Manager
James Grant Management, London
Genre
Pop, R&B, Hip-Hop, Soul, Rock
Instruments
Vocals, Guitar
Labels
Sony (Germany), Syco Music (UK), Columbia Records (USA)
Girlfriend / Spouse
- Lucie Poole (2012) – Lucie was a dance teacher who met James when he used to make a humble living, singing and performing at pubs. She stood by the singer during his struggle period but differences developed once James got a call back to compete in The X-Factor auditions. As he got busier with the competition, he decided to end his relationship with Lucie.
- Chanelle McCleary (2012) – James met model and reality personality, Chanelle during a night out at a London pub while he was still competing in The X-Factor competition in 2012. They had a brief fling before going their separate ways.
- (2012) – After winning The X-Factor, James was frequently spotted partying and kissing The X-Factor host Caroline Flack but he denied being in a relationship with her. A few months later, the singer admitted that he was not in the right state of mind to have a committed relationship with Caroline, but she was definitely a serious girlfriend material.
- (2012) – The paparazzi spotted James on an intimate dinner date with swimwear designer and socialite, Kimberley in December 2012, but the couple did not date for too long since James was dating a string of women and was not ready for a monogamous relationship.
- (2013) – James’s management requested him to restrain his womanizing ways and in a response, he struck a friendship with former Celebrity Big Brother contestant, Lacey. The couple’s mutual attraction fizzled out after a few dates. In an interview, James conveyed that he lost his chance to have a serious relationship with another girl he was interested in because she got insecure of all the questionable tabloid stories that linked James with Lacey. He added that most of the link up rumors with Lacey was perpetuated by the glamour model herself for publicity.
- (2013) – In October 2017, James released his autobiography titled , in which James confessed that he was the hardest hit when singer Rita Ora broke his heart. The two dated on and off for a few months until Rita decided to break-up with James for good. James admitted he did not handle the rejection well and developed an addiction to weed and s*x for the following months.
- Miscellaneous Women (2013-2016) – Thereafter James slept with a series of glamour models and often hooked up with random women that eventually led to a number of public accusations by quite a few of them including beauty therapist Danielle Withey who claimed to have suffered disrespectful behavior by the singer and escort Ria Vincent. He separately got embroiled in a feud with glamour model Teddy Edwardes and Playboy model and briefly got involved with p*rn actress Lori Buckby.
- Jessica Grist (2014, 2016-Present) – Upset with the media coverage of his dating life, towards the end of 2013, the singer stated he continues to be the same simple, introvert artist that he was before he found fame. James further added that exaggerated link-ups to glamour models actually got in his way to maintain a steady relationship with a genuine girl. Although the identity of the said girl was not revealed, she was possibly professional dancer, Jessica Grist. James clarified that he reached out to other women only when he was not going out with Jessica and hence, never cheated on her. Though the couple’s demanding careers compelled them to break up towards the end of 2014, they rekindled their romance in September 2016. The dancer was spotted wearing a diamond ring on her ring finger at Arthur’s V Festival performance in Essex in August 2017 sparking engagement rumors. However, the couple denied making that commitment. Nevertheless, they continue to be together. In January 2018, Jessica posted a photo with James in the Maldives.
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Pierced left ear
- Heavily tattooed body including both arms, hands, and torso
- Also had a tear tattoo right below his right eye, now faded light owing to a laser tattoo removal procedure
- Usually sports a beard and also likes to wear a lot of rings and chains during his public appearances
Brand Endorsements
Part of Pepsi’s, The Sound Drop campaign (2017)
Religion
Non-religious / , leaning towards Christianity
Best Known For
Winning season 9 of the singing reality competition, The X Factor (2012)
As a Singer
His debut single was the cover of a song called Impossible originally sung by Barbadian singer Shontelle. The song became the fastest and highest selling single of all time in The X-Factor’s history among all winner’s singles.
His debut studio album was eponymously called James Arthur (2013) and entered the UK Albums chart at #2. It was the 30th best-selling album of 2013.
First TV Show
James was one of the performers in Great Performances in February 2007 aired on PBS network.
Personal Trainer
- James stated in an interview that he has a very addictive personality which influences his dietary habits as well.
- The X-Factor victory brought with it a considerable income way above James’ struggle period. Hence, when particularly on tour, he would have Burger King for breakfast, KFC for lunch and Domino’s Pizzas for supper.
- Over-indulgence in fast food led to a massive weight gain.
- The singer also has a history of drug abuse and gambling addiction. He used anti-depressants to cope with the feelings of intense loneliness brought about by overnight fame.
- One day, James saw the Netflix documentary What the Health and felt the need to make a positive change. He was also influenced by his drummer who followed a and decided to try out and stick to the plant-based lifestyle himself in early 2017.
- After almost a year, James shared that going vegan helped him lose a considerable amount of weight.
- He follows a moderate exercise routine whenever his schedule allows it to complement his healthy dietary routine.
James Arthur Favorite Things
- Alcoholic Drink – Pale Ale Beer
- Swear Word – F***
- Sport – UFC
- Movie – Trolls (2016)
- Genre Of Music – Old school R&B
- Food – Bread
- Pizza Topping – Extra Cheese
- Actor –
- Emoji – Eye roll
- Place For A Movie Date – Odeon Cinemas, The Lounge in London
- Celebrities – and
- People, He Admires The Most – All his sisters
- American City – Los Angeles
- Social Media App – Twitter
- Coffee – Decaf
- Rapper –
- Musical Influence –
Source – , , Hollywood Life,
James Arthur Facts
- He started writing and recording songs at the age of 15.
- Before competing in The X-Factor, James performed all over North England as a solo artist and was a part of several bands namely, Moonlight Drive, Cue the Drama, Save Arcade and Emerald Skye.
- James briefly lived a life of luxury in Bahrain when his mother got married for the second time to Ronald Rafferty. After the couple divorced, James could not cope returning to a basic, working-class life in England. He often lashed out at his mother in anger that frequently got him kicked out of his own home.
- The singer described himself as a difficult teenager who skipped school, stole food, and unintentionally got into fights during night outs.
- During his teens, he also got addicted to smoking cannabis to cope with his perpetual feeling of anxiety.
- Throughout his time on The X-Factor, James was on a heavy dose of anti-depressants.
- In 2011, James cracked the auditions for The Voice UK but did not make it past the final 200 contestants.
- He has the words ‘love’ and ‘hate’ tattooed on his knuckles.
- In week 7 of The X-Factor competition, James was in the bottom two. He is the only contestant who has recovered from that position to go on and win the competition.
- In November 2013, James faced a lot of criticism for using homophobic lyrics in his song. A rap aimed as a comeback towards rapper Micky Worthless that used homophobic slurs created so much social media outrage that iTunes had to offer refunds on his debut studio album.
- Mentor ’s recording label, Syco dropped James Arthur in 2014 following his controversy-ridden bad judgment calls. However, after the singer got sober and clean of drugs in 2016, he signed with Sony (Germany) and restarted his career in Europe. His comeback performances also won over Syco to sign him again as an artist.
- As a celebrity who openly shared his struggle with anxiety and depression, in September 2016, James became an ambassador for a mental health charity called SANE.
- Visit his official website @ jamesarthurofficial.com.
Featured Image by James Arthur / Instagram
Facts of James Andrew Arthur
- Gender Male
- full nameJames Andrew Arthur
- middle nameAndrew
- nicknamesJames
- birthplaceRedcar Town, North Yorkshire, England
- Date of Birth March 02, 1988
- Age 36 years 6 months
- Horoscope Pisces
- Lucky Number 4
- Lucky Stone Aquamarine
- Lucky Color Sea Green
- Best Match for Marriage Cancer, Scorpio
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundWhite
- nationalityAmerican
- net worth$562,500
- professionSinger, Songwriter
- weight82 kg or 181 lbs
- height6 ft 2 in or 188 cm
- hair colorDark Brown
- eye colorBlue
- body type / buildAverage
- motherShirley Ashworth
- fatherNeil Arthur
- favorite moviesTrolls (2016)
- favorite foodBread