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An Evening With James Riley
February 9 @ 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
An Evening With James Riley
Friday, February 9th at 7:30 pm
Tickets: $30 & $24 for REP Members
James Riley is a modern troubadour, songwriter, and guitarist from London, UK. Declared “a folk genius” by BBC Wales, Riley has won millions of fans with his Americana songcraft, charismatic storytelling, and enchanting performance style. His first album, Transatlantica, was produced in Nashville and released to critical praise in 2020. During the UK’s Covid shutdown, Riley launched Rooftop Assembly, a series of live-streamed concerts from his rooftop that drew national media attention. When not on tour, Riley works as choir leader at Heart ‘N Soul, an award-winning creative community and arts charity serving people with autism and learning disabilities.
Featuring Escape To Create’s Artist-in-Residence
James Riley, UK Musician, London Troubadour
James Riley’s debut album Transatlantic was cut in Nashville and released to widespread critical acclaim in early March 2020. Almost immediately, months of tour dates and festival performances scheduled throughout the UK were abruptly cancelled by the pandemic. During Britain’s lockdown, Riley’s response to the extended isolation was to mount rooftop performances as means of maintaining connection to his community through music. rooftop sessions, his livestreamed concert series, drew neighborhood crowds, quickly went viral, and built a ever-expanding fan base of millions.
Post-pandemic, Riley has toured between New York and Nashville and continues to perform throughout the UK. In 2023, he was an official showcase artist of London’s Americana Festival and the famed Glastonbury Festival where he played his award-winning songs before crowds of 30,000 and more. Despite a demanding tour schedule, Riley continues serving his community as a choir leader at Heart ‘N Soul, an award-winning creative community and UK arts charity serving people with autism and learning disabilities. While in Seaside, Riley is writing songs and music for a second album.
Escape To Create and The REP are thrilled to showcase Riley’s “fiendishly proficient” guitar style, versatile repertoire, and dreamy poetic lyrics that span genres and generations.
Partners in Celebrating Artistic Excellence
Seaside’s nationally recognized multidisciplinary arts residency Escape To Create brings innovative musicians, writers, filmmakers and artists center stage at The REP Theatre each year. For additional information on Seaside’s unique cultural legacy and Escape To Create’s 2024 guest artists visit www.escape2create.org