James Bay reveled in every moment alongside the crowd at his first sold-out Wembley show, allowing reverberations of true connection to be felt between artist and audience, and fostering an electricity that won’t be forgotten anytime soon.
photography by Jake Haseldine
“Sunshine in the Room” – James Bay ft. Jon Batiste
James Bay has always been an artist who seamlessly crafted timeless sentimentalities.
With disarming vocals that you’d recognise anywhere, and the classic instrumentals that shine in collaborative synchronicity, Bay found his signature sound very early on in his career. His sold out show at OVO Wembley Arena, London was just that.
Bringing back the everlasting equation of the man, his guitar and the band – the show was a culmination of a seasoned musician who knows his sound intimately, stretching and expressing it easily to command an audience with ease.
Bay’s breakout album Chaos and the Calm, which released in 2015, solidified him as a global artist, the industry’s one to watch, and an undeniably skilled musician.
I don’t think I realised how that record placed in the trajectory of my memory and journey in music until I saw him live this past week.
It’s now been 10 years, Bay has put out four stellar studio records, and his latest was just a grounding reminder of that. Changes All The Time, a strong record filled with iconic collaborations from the likes of The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, dropped back in October 2024 – and this tour presented a roundup of his very best so far.
His sold out OVO Wembley Arena show was a testament to this; the English-born singer/songwriter electrified audiences. Bay’s raw, husky vocals, paired with roaring guitar solos made for a golden combination of everything that makes live music fun and just good.
As the lights dimmed, the twelve thousand some crowd rumbled with excitement, as Bay’s distinctive vocals pierced the buzzing anticipation. Arriving on stage with his signature leather jacket and hat, the rumblings in the arena’s standing room were an energy surge emanating through the room. Bay warmed the crowd with an explosive, full band rendition of “Up All Night.” His performance filled the arena with power, anticipation and release. Certainly the most fitting set opener, he thunders forth with the track’s hook, “Let’s talk about dreams.” Both emotionally and energetically, it was an apt setup for the rest of the show.
I often forget how powerful an arena show can be; they allow its audience to bask in the music in real time, an act of connection that is transcendent, glittering and powerful. There was truly something special about the connection that was felt in the room, where, quite literally, those from all walks of life could come together for this shared experience of artist and music. The true rockstar energy that Bay brought to the big stage carried forth as he gave us a mix of old and new, getting the audience up on their feet and singing along.
He propelled authoritatively into “Give Me the Reason” and “If You Ever Want to Be in Love.” The latter is my personal favourite, and evidently it was everyone else’s too. Showcasing some from the new record, “Hope” came next, with “Sunshine in The Room” straight after, his latest track (and recent Atwood Editor’s Pick) featuring the one and only Jon Batiste.
Bay and his band kept us in check as they glided seamlessly between Bay’s musical eras from throughout the past decade.
When the set rolled round to modern classic “Let It Go,” a single disco ball descended to the center of the stage, piercing the room with reflecting and cascading light.
Without too much of a warning, Bay surprised us with Myles Smith, and the chemistry of their vocals together sparked a magic that brought everyone into a trance, and gave me goosebumps all over.
A mashup of “Peer Pressure,” “Craving,” and “Pink Lemonade” got the crowd up on their feet and on high energy. As Bay took to an instrumental break that allowed each member of his band to shine. “Best Fake Smile” brought an explosive end to the set, leading to a brief stage exit before he returned for the encore.
“Dogfight” was transcendent, allowing ripples of Bay’s vocals to resonate with the crowd, slowly and in its own time. He rounded up the set with “Hold Back the River,” reminding us poignantly of the definitive moment in time in which we all stood, as we simultaneously remembered how he began.
Being a cultural and historical hub of the music scene, London shows are always emotional for the artists that play here.
I’m incredibly lucky that I get to experience this vicariously through the artists during their shows, but sometimes I forget to really revel in this. James Bay’s debut OVO Arena Wembley show really reminded me of this tonight; and his emotional set to the London crowd presented something much more special. As he struck his guitar over and over, he reveled in every moment just as we were.
The true connection between artist and audience here felt truly electric, and I won’t be forgetting that feeling anytime soon.
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:: stream/purchase Changes All the Time here ::
:: stream/purchase Sunshine in the Room here ::
:: connect with James Bay here ::
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Stream: “Let It Go” – James Bay
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© Jake Haseldine
© Jake Haseldine:: Stream James Bay ::
