Shaun Escoffery is a

British soul British soul, Brit soul, or (in a US context) the British soul invasion, is soul music performed by British artists. Soul has been a major influence on British popular music since the 1960s, and American soul was extremely popular among some yout ...

and R&B singer and actor. His first major release was the single "Space Rider", released by

Oyster Music Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not al ...

in March 2001. It was played regularly by the

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

Trevor Nelson Trevor Ricardo Nelson, MBE (born 7 January 1964) is an English DJ and presenter. Early life Born in the London Borough of Hackney to a family of St Lucian heritage, Nelson attended Central Foundation Boys' Grammar School (now known as Cent ...

and the

Dreem Teem The Dreem Teem are a British DJ, music production and remixing trio consisting of DJ Spoony, Mikee B, and Timmi Magic. They formed in 1996 through pirate radio, and were instrumental in developing the UK garage sound. They presented radio shows ...

. It peaked at No. 52 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and was followed by the UK No. 53 hit "Days Like This" in 2002. After releasing several other singles on the same label, Escoffery became more noticed for his voice - being noticed by

Lennox Lewis Lennox Claudius Lewis (born 2 September 1965) is a former professional boxer and boxing commentator who competed from 1989 to 2003. He is a three-time world heavyweight champion, a two-time lineal champion, and the last heavyweight to hol ...

, who invited him to

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, Tennessee, to sing the national anthem before his boxing match with

Mike Tyson Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is con ...

. In 2007, Escoffery released an album entitled ''Move into Soul'', which included

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...

s of " A Change Is Gonna Come" and "

I Heard It Through the Grapevine "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for Motown Records in 1966. The first recording of the song to be released was produced by Whitfield for Gladys Knight & the Pips and released as ...

". Also that year, he received a

Laurence Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known a ...

nomination for his work in the

stage musical Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of s ...

'', and the following year played

Mufasa This article lists the characters appearing in Disney's ''The Lion King'' franchise. Introduced in ''The Lion King'' (1994) Simba Simba (voiced by Matthew Broderick as adult Simba in the films, Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a cub in ''The Lion Kin ...

in a London production of ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance, ...

''. Escoffery's other West End credits include ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

'', ''Smokey Joe's Café'', ''

Tommy Tommy may refer to: People * Tommy (given name) * Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Tommy'' (1975 fil ...

'' and ''Mama I Want to Sing''. In 2014, Escoffery returned to the recording studio to release a new album, ''In the Red Room'' for Dome Records. The album is co-written and produced by Gil Cang, whose credits include writing "Whatever Happens" for

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

. The first single from the album, "Nature's Call", was released in August 2014 and entered the UK Airplay Top 30. Three further singles, "People", "Nobody Knows" and "Perfect Love Affair", also entered the UK Airplay chart. In September 2015 Escoffery appeared at BBC Radio 2's Live in Hyde Park festival, alongside Rod Stewart and Bryan Adams. His album "Evergreen" – again co-written and produced by Gil Cang – was released in September 2016 on Dome/MVKA. The first two singles "When The Love is Gone" and "Love Shine Down" both entered the UK Airplay chart.

Discography

*''Shaun Escoffery'' (Oyster, 2002) *''Soulonica'' (Oyster, 2003) *''Move into Soul'' (Absolute, 2007)Whatsonstage.com
*''In the Red Room'' (Dome, 2014) *''Evergreen'' (G&S Music Shack/Dome, 2016) *''Strong Enough'' (Decca/Universal, 2020)

Personal life

*Shaun enjoys training Gracie Jiujitsu, a martial art in which he holds the rank of black belt.

References

External links

* Allmusic.com biographybr>Interview @ Whatsonstage.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Escoffery, Shaun Living people English soul singers 21st-century Black British male singers English male stage actors Male actors from London Year of birth missing (living people) English male musical theatre actors English people of Jamaican descent