George Ezra's career story so far
He's one of our fave artists!
George Ezra is the brains behind for some of the biggest hits of the past few years, including tracks such as ‘Budapest’, ‘Shotgun’ and 'Green Green Grass', which totally dominated the airwaves and earned him two BRIT Awards nominations in 2023.
Along with that amazing voice, he is also a very talented songwriter and has co-written all three of his albums, 'Staying at Tamara's', 'Wanted on Voyage' and 'Gold Rush Kid', which all topped the UK charts.
In June 2024 George celebrated his 31st birthday, and a month later honoured the 10th anniversary of his debut album - so what better way to celebrate his music by reading up on his journey to success? Join us as we follow how the singer became famous; from releasing his debut album to winning awards - we have it all covered...
George Ezra's career journey so far 🎶
Early life
George moved to Bristol in 2011 to study at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute. George wasn't the only musical one in his family, his elder sister Jessica accompanies him on tour and his younger brother, Ethan, is a talented singer and songwriter under the stage name Ten Tonnes.
2013: First appearance at Glastonbury
George's music was first played on radio stations in 2012 - and as a result, George got his big moment; he was asked to play the BBC Introducing Stage at Glastonbury 2013.
2014: 'Budapest'
Following the release of George's hit single, 'Budapest' his career really started to take off. The iconic track reached Number 1 in several countries and was nominated for 'British Single of the Year' at the Brit Awards and the MTV VMA's.
2014: Debut album ‘Wanted on Voyage’
George's debut album included hits such as, 'Budapest', 'Blame it on Me' and 'Cassy O' and reached Number 1 in the UK charts.
2015: BRIT Award Nominations
At the 2015 BRIT Awards, George was nominated in four categories: Best British Album, Best British Male Solo Artist, Best British Single, and British Breakthrough Artist as a result of the success of his first album 'Wanted On Voyage.'
2017: Touring and Festivals
After a busy and successful few years George took some time off in 2016, returning to the charts in 2017 with single 'Don't Matter Now' as well as some live performances on a 'secret' tour through April, May and June.
George also went on tour and played a number of festivals in the summer of 2017 including, Sziget, V Festival, Way Out Festival and Lollapalooza.
2018: Second album and 'Shotgun'
George released follow-up album 'Staying at Tamara's' in 2018, featuring singles 'Paradise', 'Pretty Shining People' and 'Hold My Girl' which were all hugely popular among George's fans.
George then dropped 'Shotgun' which went on to become his first Number one song in the UK, Irish and Australian charts and was later awarded platinum certification here in the UK.
Following the success of 'Shotgun' George's second album 'Staying at Tamara's' reached Number One in the UK album charts in May 2018.
George then went on to tour the album and played a number of festivals including headlining the Neighbourhood Weekender.
2019: BRIT Awards and headlining Glastonbury
In 2019, George won 'British Male Solo Artist' at the BRIT Awards following the success of his first two albums and huge hits such as 'Shotgun' and 'Paradise' which dominated radio playlists and became two of the biggest tracks of the year.
George also launched his own podcast series 'George Ezra and Friends', which features conversations between George and his guests. He's previously interviewed the likes of Nile Rodgers, Lewis Capaldi and Ed Sheeran.
George also returned to play Glastonbury Festival in 2019, but this time he played the world-famous Pyramid stage on the Friday evening.
2021: George announces he's performing on the Glastonbury global livestream
In 2021, George announced on his Instagram that he was going on a hiking trip with his friends for a couple of months. Four weeks in, the singer revealed the exciting news that he was going to be performing at Glastonbury's global livestream on Saturday 22nd May.
2022: New single 'Anyone For You'
In January 2022, George revealed that he was making his grand return with a brand new single called 'Anyone For You'.
He released 'Anyone For You' on 28th January.
2022: George Ezra announces third album 'Gold Rush Kid'
On the day George Ezra released his comeback single he also announced his third album 'Gold Rush Kid' would be released in June.
2022: George Ezra performs at Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee concert
George Ezra was one of the many talented artists to perform at the Platinum Party at the Palace in celebration of Her Majesty's 70 year reign.
He took to the stage on 4th June to perform some of his biggest hits including his new song 'Green Green Grass'. He later wrote on Instagram: 'Here's that time we played at Buckingham Palace… won't forget that in a hurry 🎉 What an incredible honour to play at the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, thank you for having me x' (sic).
2022: George Ezra headlines at Finsbury Park
George Ezra played the biggest headline show of his career at Finsbury Park in London on Sunday 17th June. He closed the show after performances from the London International Gospel Choir, Mychelle, The Big Moon, Holly Humberstone, Mimi Webb, and Blossoms, with songs from his latest album as well as some of his biggest hits.
2022: George Ezra announces film End to End
George Ezra announced a film called End to End that was shown in cinemas. The film follows the singer's adventure as he walked the length of the country with his best friends to meet musicians and battle the elements.
2023: George Ezra is nominated for two BRIT Awards
George Ezra was nominated for two BRIT Awards in January 2023 - Artist of The Year and Song of The Year for 'Green Green Grass'. Sadly, he lost out on both to Harry Styles!
2024: 10-year anniversary of George's debut album 'Wanted On Voyage'
After staying rather quiet on his socials for over a year, George made his return in July 2024 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his debut album 'Wanted On Voyage'. The album was released on 30th June 2014, and sharing a post on 2nd July 2024, a post on George's Instagram read: 'George's debut album 'Wanted On Voyage' is 10 years old this week! Thank you for the memories.'
Over a decade after the album's release, it is now certified 5x Platinum in the UK, having spawned hit singles such as the 2x Platinum track 'Blame It On Me', and the 5x Platinum certified 'Budapest'. The album hit the Number 1 spot in the UK chart after its release, staying there for an impressive four weeks.
What did George Ezra do in 2023?
Following the success of his arena tour in 2022, George performed at several festivals in 2023. Backstage at the Isle of Wight Festival, George revealed that performing at festivals has given him some of the biggest 'pinch me' moments of his career.
What is George Ezra: End To End?
In April 2021, he revealed on Instagram that he was setting off on a long hiking trip with his friends. He announced he would be spending the next few months playing guitar, sitting by campfires and doing lots of walking with friends.
This adventure turned into a film called End to End, and the film was shown in cinemas for a few days in August and September 2022. The film follows George and his friends as they walk the length of Britain, meeting musicians and battling the elements.
He then revealed in January 2023 that his film End to End was heading to Prime Video, with the documentary then being released on 13th January.
Now read:
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Everything you need to know about George Ezra's third studio album 'Gold Rush Kid'