James followed in the footsteps of his mother, a headteacher and artist. Although he earned an MA in Fine Art, he chose music as his medium, and opted for popular education in social movements, over formal teaching.

For the past 20 years he has been a producer, songwriter, and guitarist recording with soul and R&B acts like Equals and GRAMN. And a trainer, facilitator, strategist and activist in the climate justice, global justice, democratic renewal, palestine solidarity and student movements. More recently, James has returned to visual art through ceramic sculpture, making hand-built work that explores class, precarity, collapse and rebuilding.

James draws a thread through these practices with the belief that politics is downstream from culture, so the cultural change that music can drive, opens up space for new possibilities in politics.