Today we’d like to introduce you to James Diamond.
So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Ever since I was a young, I knew that I wanted to be a performer. I would run around my house singing and dancing so much that my mom thought it would be good to enroll me into something to channel that energy. At eight years old, she enrolled me into ballet. A few years later, I became a part of Authoring Action. A2 is an organization that provides tools to youth for their personal success through creative writing, speech, film and design. Authoring Action is where I started writing music and using my voice.
I went on to study classical ballet at The University of The North Carolina School of the Arts for ten years while participating in Authoring Action after school. During the last two years of high school, I wrote and recorded my first few songs. I knew that music was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Nothing else in my life was as fulfilling, as emotional, or as personal.
Towards the end of senior year, I had to decide whether I wanted to audition for ballet companies, go to traditional college, or dive deeper into my music and writing. I took a gap year after school to really sit with myself. This was the best decision I could have done. I wrote over 100 songs, recorded about 30, and made the decision to go move to LA to study music. I have now been in Los Angeles for about two years. I just finished up my associate’s degree in vocal performance at The Los Angeles College of Music and I am currently working on my debut EP.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Growing up, money was a huge struggle. I wanted to be involved in as much as possible, but that was not always realistic. I am the youngest of seven, so my mom had a lot of people to take care of. No matter what though, she made sure we had everything we needed. My mom is my backbone. Another thing that I constantly deal with is validation. I feel like I am constantly having to prove myself because a lot of people don’t believe that you can have a sustainable career in the arts. I just want people to take my work seriously. My music isn’t just a hobby.
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
My music is a little bit of Pop, R&B, Indie, and electronic music all mixed together. I am so intrigued by weird and unconventional sounds, but the overall tone of my music is still definitely pop. I use my femininity and masculinity to create this androgynous sound that represents exactly who I am. I don’t think there is anyone mainstream right now that brings what I do. I pull a lot of my inspiration from Prince, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, Amos Lee, and Mariah Carey.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 336-422-4300
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/jjamesdiamondd?igshid=1p0izzcnq4y2x
- Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/jjamesdiamondd
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