meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

James Bay: Imposter Syndrome, Trauma & Controlling The Voice In Your Head

The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

FlightStory

Business, Education, Society & Culture

4.517.8K Ratings

🗓️ 4 August 2022

⏱️ 103 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

James Bay is a BRIT-award winning musician who’s sold over 5 million records, and one of the most personal and authentic artists working in the field today. Never afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve in his work, his artistry has helped millions of people articulate feelings in their own heart of love, regret, and friendships made and ended. He’s definitely come a long way from the small town where he grew up, which he escaped through grasping every opportunity that came his way. There’s perhaps no industry tougher to succeed in than music, and this fear that there’s only a few that make it has haunted him at every step. So settle down and let James walk you through every step of what the creative process looks like at the elite level - where inside him it comes from, what inspires it, and how he delivers his music. James’ new album ‘Leap’ is out now. Follow James: Twitter - https://twitter.com/JamesBayMusic  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jamesbaymusic/ James’ new album: https://www.jamesbay.com Follow me: https://beacons.ai/diaryofaceo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

I remember writing Hold Back the River and everybody at the label jumping for joy and thinking that they had a hit on their hands.

0:05.4

James Bear!

0:06.4

I dreamt about being on those days. I dreamt about being on those stages in front of all the people that my heroes were in front of.

0:17.0

I remember this burning desire. I was dead certain I wanted it more than everyone. Chaos

0:24.8

on the come comes out. Devues are number one. That's crazy. And the winner is

0:28.6

Jay Spre! Thank you so much. This is insane. Nobody could have made us understand it was going to be traumatic.

0:35.4

Who I was on the Chaos and the Calm campaign,

0:38.4

I needed to stop all of that for my soul and my mental health.

0:42.4

Yeah, it's pretty fucking intense.

0:43.7

Ed Sheerin has invited me to open for him in football stadiums around Europe.

0:47.7

And the bit I hate to admit and I'm anxious to confess confess is it.

0:54.4

Life can take a toll on people.

0:56.5

To be male and talk about your feelings,

1:00.3

it was more about, can you suck it up though it's all like an act would you do it all again

1:10.8

I'm really concerned about what happens next.

1:14.0

So without further ado, I'm Stephen Bartlett and this is the diary of a CEO.

1:19.0

I hope nobody's listening, but if you are, then please keep this to yourself.

1:23.2

James, so you're a 90s baby.

1:30.6

Yeah, 1990. Same as me, 1992. Okay. What about those early years

1:40.3

defined you and the person you would go on to be when you look back at the dots and say well that that and that is the reason I am who I am what are those first dots?

1:49.0

I grew up in a in a kind of commuter belt town called Hitchin in Hertfordshire which is about an hour

1:54.7

outside of the centre of London. I hate it going into London. It's horrible, busy, noisy,

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from FlightStory, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of FlightStory and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.