James Blunt

James Blunt, born James Hillier Blount on 22 February 1974, is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He achieved worldwide fame following the release of his debut studio album, Back to Bedlam, and its prominent singles, "You're Beautiful" and "Goodbye My Lover." Prior to establishing a career in popular music, he served as an officer in the British Army.

Blunt was born at Tidworth Camp military hospital in Hampshire, England, into a family with a long history of military service. Raised primarily in St Mary Bourne, Hampshire, he relocated frequently due to his father's military postings across England, Cyprus, and Germany. He was educated at Elstree School and Harrow School before graduating with a degree in sociology from the University of Bristol in 1996. Having obtained a private pilot licence at age 16, Blunt also took piano and violin lessons as a child before learning the electric guitar at age 14.

To fulfill his university army bursary obligations, Blunt trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Life Guards, eventually reaching the rank of captain. In 1999, he deployed with NATO to Kosovo, where his troop led a peacekeeping force toward Pristina International Airport. During this deployment, he was involved in the British refusal to forcibly engage Russian troops who had taken control of the airport. Blunt also served as part of the Queen's Guard in London, standing guard at the lying in state of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 2002, before leaving the army later that year after six years of service.

Following his military discharge, Blunt adopted his stage name and pursued a full-time music career. In early 2003, musician Linda Perry signed him to her label, Custard Records, after seeing him perform at the South by Southwest festival. Blunt subsequently traveled to Los Angeles to record his debut project, Back to Bedlam, with producer Tom Rothrock while lodging at the home of actress Carrie Fisher.

Released in October 2004, Back to Bedlam became a major commercial success. Its third single, "You're Beautiful," topped charts in thirteen countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States, where Blunt became the first British artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart in nearly a decade. Back to Bedlam became the best-selling album of the 2000s decade in the UK and sold over 12 million copies worldwide by late 2009.

Blunt followed his debut with his second album, All the Lost Souls, in 2007, which reached number one in twelve countries. He subsequently released five further studio albums: Some Kind of Trouble (2010), Moon Landing (2013), The Afterlove (2017), Once Upon a Mind (2019), and Who We Used to Be (2023).

As of 2021, Blunt had sold over 23 million albums worldwide. His career honors include two Brit Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, two Ivor Novello Awards, five Grammy Award nominations, and an Honorary Doctorate of Music awarded by the University of Bristol in 2016.