James Hype reveals the emotional story behind his biggest headline gig
It started back in Lockdown
Last weekend, James Hype played his biggest headline gig so far, and reflecting on the amazing experience, he's opened up to his fans, with an emotional and inspirational post.
The DJ, who's known for hits such as 'More Than Friends', 'Ferrari' and 'Drums' with Kim Petras, revealed how the story leading up to his gig at Drumsheds in London, started four years ago, as the UK went into Lockdown.
Taking to Facebook to share a lengthy message, James explained: 'The story begins back in 2020. The pandemic hit and i went from DJing every weekend to having ZERO gigs and ZERO income. I didn't have loads of money saved and honestly i was scraping around to survive.' (sic)
He went on to reveal how he decided to start live streaming sets he performed from his flat, which he shared with his videographer, continuing: 'I had a youtube channel at the time that i uploaded DJ clips to and i decided to set up a live stream on the channel. I lived in a small 2 bedroom flat with my videographer and we moved around the whole living room to turn it into a DJ setup. We taught ourselves the streaming software and the equipment needed to do it, the time came around and we connected to our first ever live stream.
'I expected a few hundred viewers but within an hour we had 3000 viewers watching live. Playing to people from all over the world with a live chat was actually sick and i fell in love with live streaming. For the next 2 years i streamed for >4 hours per week and never took a day off from the schedule.
'We found the most amazing community of music lovers from all over the world and the Hypefam was born.'
WATCH: James Hype's live stream from April 2020
WARNING: THIS VIDEO CONTAINS STRONG LANGUAGE
James went on to reveal how after the world began to open up again he started to get booked for gigs around the world, however he struggled to get booked for gigs in the UK.
'I was playing amazing shows all over Europe, North & South America and even Asia but for some reason nobody in the UK - My home country, wanted to book me,' James explained, going on to say: 'At the end of 2023 my manager called me and told me about a crazy idea that he had. There was a new venue called Drumsheds that was in an old Ikea, the biggest indoor rave you can imagine. It holds 15,000 people.'
The DJ ended his message explaining how it felt to headline a gig to 15,000 people, joined by his parents and team: 'Saturday came around and it was the day of the show, so many people i know from the UK music industry were there backstage to witness this, i also had my parents there and the whole team i work with to make this whole project.
'I stepped up to the side of the stage for the start of my set and the emotion was high, Meduza was playing before me and he came off stage and hugged me, he said "bro, this is your country, these are your people, go and give them the best fxxking show of all time" I had sunglasses on but i was crying behind them.
'I can't explain how it feels to sell 15,000 tickets in your home country that has never really accepted you. But i hope this video can.' (sic)
James' event at Drumsheds took place on 27th April to a sold-out venue, and the full set is now available to stream on YouTube.
WARNING: THIS VIDEO CONTAINS STRONG LANGUAGE
You can hear songs by James Hype on Northsound 1.
Take a look through some of James Hype's biggest songs:
James Hype featuring Harlee - 'Afraid'
James Hype and Harlee released 'Afraid' in 2020. At the time of the release, James said of the song: "I'm really excited to get 'Afraid' out, as I feel it is a massive evolution for me as an artist, especially working with someone as talented as Harlee on something fresh and new, but with a little more depth than people might expect."
The song has now had more than 2.5 million views on YouTube.
Watch the music video on YouTube.
James Hype featuring Craig David - 'No Dramas'
Back in 2018, James Hype and Craig David teamed up for 'No Dramas'. The duo's music video has had more than seven million views on YouTube, which saw the pair performing their song in front of crowds at TS5 pool party Ibiza.
Watch the music video on YouTube.
James Hype featuring Kim Petras - 'Drums'
'Drums' features Kim Petras on vocals, and has the distinctive sound of a James Hype song, but also samples Justin Timberlake's 2002 classic 'Like I Love You'. Taking to Instagram on release day, James revealed to his fans how he managed to get Justin Timberlake to agree to the sample on his new song.
Watch the visualiser on YouTube.
James Hype featuring Kelli-Leigh - 'More Than Friends'
James released 'More Than Friends' with Kelli-Leigh back in 2017, the song peaked at Number 8 in the UK, and Number 1 in the UK Dance Chart. Sampling En Vogue's 'Don't Let Go (Love)', the song was a big hit.
Watch the lyric video on YouTube
James Hype featuring Miggy Dela Rosa - 'Ferrari'
In 2022, James Hype released his smash hit 'Ferrari' with British singer Miggy Dela Rosa. The song was a Top 10 hit here in the UK and reached Number 1 in Belgium, The Netherland and Italy. The song samples 'I Need a Girl (Part Two)' which was released in 2002 by P. Diddy and Ginuwine featuring Loon, Mario Winans, and Tammy Ruggieri.
Listen to the song on YouTube.
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