There’s no arguing that Vance Joy was one of the fastest rising talents of 2013.
In the span of 12 months, the Melbourne singer-songwriter went from releasing his debut EP, to securing a breakout international label deal, before claiming a number of industry trophies, and rounding out the year with the accolade of having the best selling Australian single in the country.
‘Riptide’ was ranked by ARIA at #12 on a list of the Top 100 selling singles of 2013 – the highest selling by an Australian artist – and is the chief catalyst for Vance Joy’s long list of achievements in his short career.
But while Australian audiences will be familiar with the acoustic-led hit (named by Tone Deaf readers as the best Aussie song of 2013), which is also a strong contender for the upper echelons of Triple J’s Hottest 100, international audiences are now beginning to fall in love with ‘Riptide’.
This week Vance Joy cracked the Top 40 charts in the UK with the uke tune (released via Infectious Music) currently sitting at #35, as Billboard reports. This week Vance Joy cracked the Top 40 charts in the UK… currently sitting at #35.
The chart ascent of ‘Riptide’ was no doubt helped by the track being A-listed by BBC Radio One after it was named ‘Song of the Day’ by the influential station in mid-December (“bloody legends!” remarked Joy on his Facebook page). ‘Riptide’ has also been gifted high rotation by popular BBC host Fearne Cotton, who ensured the iconic UK broadcaster gave attention to ‘Riptide’, her ‘Song of the Year’.
“It’s awesome to have your song getting around the world,” 25-year-old James Keogh, the man behind Vance Joy, tells Billboard. “Songs can feel like gifts sometimes because they kind of come about without you knowing exactly how it happened – so I am grateful for the doors this one has opened for me.”
‘Riptide’ is lifted from Vance Joy’s sole release, the five-track God Loves You When You Are Dancing EP; “a gorgeous, stripped back collection of organic life experiences,” – as our Tone Deaf reviewer labelled it.
Issued in March via Mushroom Group label Liberation, just two months later, the strength of God Loves You When You Are Dancing was enough to secure Vance Joy a five-album US label deal with Atlantic Records.
The first record in that lucrative label is nearing completion, with Keogh revealing that he’s “writing all the time” and currently squirrelled away in the studio to put the finishing touches on his debut album.
“I’m looking forward to sharing it with everyone soon and heading back out on the road,” he says.
While he enjoyed a successful single tour last August, Vance Joy has been rather unlucky with the Aussie music festival circuit. The singer-songwriter missed out on performing at Homebake, owing to the event’s cancellation, and he missed out on a key spot on the Meredith Music Festival lineup last December, pulling out owing to doctor’s orders.
Making up for missed opportunities, Vance Joy will be touring Australia in February as part of the Laneway Festival 2014 lineup (and later this month for Laneway’s Auckland and Singapore editions), before striking out internationally.
Vance Joy is headed for a tour of Europe and the UK through February, including a sold show in London and the Manchester date upgrading venues after a sell out, hopefully giving ‘Riptide’s position on the Top 40 a boost in the process.
The Aussie troubadour will then embark on his third visit to the United States this March and April, booked for an appearance as one of 40+ Aussie at SXSW 2014 as well as touring with US indie rockers Young The Giant.
This morning also saw Vance Joy announcing a high-profile booking at the US Firefly Festival, “stoked for the band and I to be part of [it],” he says of the four-day Delaware event – held this June – with a lineup headlined by Foo Fighters, Jack Johnson, and the reformed (and possibly Australia-bound) hip hop duo, Outkast.
