Mitch James: Kiwi Musician on his upcoming release being his last, future plans

For eleven years Mitch James has been releasing music and touring the world. 

He’s opened for Callum Scott, supported Ed Sheeran, and toured with Six60, not to mention his own tours. 

James has just released a new single and has a new EP coming out next month, but the release comes with a caveat. 

The Kiwi musician is stepping away from the trade, James telling Heather du Plessis-Allan that the industry has become an environment that was just too difficult to overcome.  

“I’ve got this music coming out now that I believe is my most complete, most mature, advanced work as a songwriter and an artist, and coupled with the fact that this industry had sort of turned against me in a lot of ways, I just thought, you know. I’m sick of this.” 

“I just wanna hang my hat on something that I can look back on in twenty years’ time and go like, this is my finest work, and something that I can be very proud of.” 

It’s a bittersweet feeling, he said. 

For eleven years Mitch James has been releasing music and touring the world.

He’s opened for Callum Scott, supported Ed Sheeran, and toured with Six60, not to mention his own tours.

James has just released a new single and has a new EP coming out next month, but the release comes with a caveat.

The Kiwi musician is stepping away from the trade, James telling Heather du Plessis-Allan that the industry has become an environment that was just too difficult to overcome.

“I’ve got this music coming out now that I believe is my most complete, most mature, advanced work as a songwriter and an artist, and coupled with the fact that this industry had sort of turned against me in a lot o

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
You'll know the name Mitch James. For eleven years, he's
been releasing music. He's been touring the world because of it.
He's open for Callum Scott, supported Ed Sheer and toured
with six sixty as well. Put out a bunch of albums.
He's got a new single out, he's got a new
EP coming out next month, and he is in studio
with us right now.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Mitch, Hello, Hello Heather, thanks for having me, Thank you.

Speaker 3 (00:18):
For coming in. I'm sorry. I apologize you before.

Speaker 4 (00:20):
I'm sorry.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
I'm not your your romance mate.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Yeah, No, old Mikey and me have a great little
bromance going. But this is this is a great second price.

Speaker 3 (00:28):
Yeah, oh, thank you. It's very charming. If you I
saw you out there, you were asking after him, was disappointing.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's not disappointing. I was very well aware ahead of
time that I was with you here. But if Mike,
if you're listening, I miss your brother.

Speaker 3 (00:43):
I just listened to you, go, Hey, what's this about
you giving up music?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
So yeah, I've been obviously, as you alluded to, I've
been in the industry for a long time, and as
you as you are in the industry for so long,
and especially the journey that I've taken. There's just it's
crazy and at times evil industry, and there's a lot
of falls, and you know, I made some gambles in

(01:09):
my career which ended up backfiring sort of behind the scenes,
and yeah, it just became an environment for me that
it was too challenging to try and overcome the ceilings
that have been put in place by people that were
either on my team or formally on my team in
the industry and politics and all of that. And I've

(01:29):
just I've got this music coming out and now that
I believe as my most complete, most mature, advanced work
as a songwriter and an artist, And coupled with the
fact that this industry had sort of, you know, turned
against me in a lot of ways, I just thought,
you know, I'm sick of this and I just want

(01:50):
to hang my hat on something that I can look
back on in twenty years time and go like, this
is my finest work and something that I can be
very proud of. And so it's a bit of sweet feeling,
because you know, in a lot of ways, I did
feel like I had a lot more to give, But
like I said, you know, I was finding myself budding
into a lot of ceilings that have been put in
place that were out of my control, and I just, yeah,

(02:13):
I kind of had enough, I.

Speaker 3 (02:14):
Guess, going out on a high type thing exactly.

Speaker 2 (02:16):
Yeah. And you know, I've been so grateful to the
people who have supported me and you know, given me
such amazing experiences touring the world and you know, listening
to my music, making memories with their friends and all
of this. It's been so special that I just wanted
to end on a somewhat positive note.

Speaker 3 (02:33):
What do you think backfired for you?

Speaker 2 (02:35):
There was definitely a few things that I look at
behind the scenes where to put it very in a
long story short where I had shot for the stars
and in a lot of ways that passed off a
lot of people who were already on my team, and
then you know, a few things backfired behind the scenes,

(02:57):
and it resulted in a lot of burnt bridges, if
you will, And then you know, I sort of found
myself if it was very challenging to then break through
that ceiling because it's such a network game music and once, yeah,
once that network has sort of been de established in

(03:17):
a few ways that were I became the problematic person
to work with, even though in my eyes a lot
of this was, you know, I just wanted to bring
New Zealand on my back on the world stage. And yeah,
a lot of people back in New Zealand didn't appreciate that.

Speaker 3 (03:33):
What are you going to do? I can't reveal all
yet hither you've already got plans.

Speaker 2 (03:38):
Yeah, I've got plans. I guess what I can say
is that it's something in the media space, in the
sports space that I've been working.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
It's got anything to do with the league slightly.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
Yeah, I mean the giveaway was the fact that you
posted that on Insta that you were going to leave
in the year to one New Zealand Warriors jersey on
and yeah.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yeah, well, I mean, anyone that knows me knows that
I'm probably in the in the top three New Zealand
Warriors fans worldwide, behind behind Peter Yeah. Yeah, yeah, most
of my cost ging he knows, but we Yeah, I'm
probably number three behind Sir Peter Leach and the Mount

(04:18):
Smart Joker as the as the Warriors mascot fans. But yeah,
it's it's something in the sports media space that I've
arguably wanted to be in that space longer than music,
and it's something that no one can take away from me,
if if you know what I mean, kind of like
I felt like what happened in music, and yeah, I
felt like I just had so much more to give

(04:39):
in music, but I was just you know, budding the
ceiling and it was very frustrating, and you know, I
was no longer getting playlisted or I was no longer
you know, getting getting the same love. I mean, New
Zealand radio has been amazing to me, but every other
sort of aspect of that recording industry sort of sort
of turned on me. So I'm looking at this space
and going, this is something that only I can ruin

(05:02):
for myself. So's it's an exciting.

Speaker 4 (05:05):
Time for me.

Speaker 2 (05:06):
And yeah, I guess the Warriors is something part of it,
but it's Yeah, it's a more broad sort of thing
that I'm I'm really excited about and to announce in
due time and hopefully get people excited about.

Speaker 3 (05:18):
I suppose it's not going to be a bad thing
to have a steady income, is it.

Speaker 1 (05:21):
Yeah, Yeah, that's the thing about me, given given how
much you spend on your perfumes.

Speaker 3 (05:25):
I found out, Ah, yes, yes, what are you wearing today?

Speaker 2 (05:29):
I'm ruining Creed a role for Heather and I can
see that that retails at Smith and Coey's for five
hundred and twenty two.

Speaker 4 (05:34):
See.

Speaker 2 (05:35):
Everyone listening might think hearing that that I'm some super
rich musician leaving out on top, but I actually probably
spent four years worth of income on that on that perfew.

Speaker 3 (05:46):
It does smell good.

Speaker 1 (05:47):
This is why we know about it, because you basically
bring the scent in with it's delicious.

Speaker 3 (05:51):
Hey, I was I was telling you earlier. I was
watching the video that you did for your mum.

Speaker 1 (05:55):
Yes, as a mum man, I'll tell you what, Like
I thought, geez, your mom must be proud of you.

Speaker 2 (06:02):
Yeah. Mom doesn't like to use the word proud, she
always says that, but yeah, it was a very special
moment that that and Duneda. They live in central Otago,
and so I got mom to come down to Dunedin
and the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. I hadn't even met any of
them before, and they got given some music and I

(06:23):
showed up about fifteen minutes before mum. We had a
couple runs through and yeah, I wrote the song for
he called Mamma and Me, which is basically an ode
to my mom. We we've had a very interesting journey,
like I'm sure many mothers and sons and daughters out there,
but it basically starts off about you know, when I
was born, and then goes into me being a little

(06:44):
rascal growing up, and then as a man in the
final verse, you know, sort of encompassing that whole journey
and realizing that there's no mother to love like a
mother's love and.

Speaker 3 (06:55):
Oh, you're going to make me cry.

Speaker 4 (06:57):
Yeah, it is a crowd.

Speaker 3 (07:00):
That we put into you guys, match is about the
gate and.

Speaker 2 (07:04):
You don't absolutely so grateful. I think you don't really
realize how how special that connection is until you know,
you get some perspective on your own life and it's yeah,
I was I was a little rascal, and so you know,
to come come full circle as a man and realize that,

(07:24):
you know, my mom's been on her own journey and
she's been sick and and and she's an incredible woman
for anyone who knows her, and so yeah, to come
full circle with that journey, I felt like it was
my duty as a son to write a song about her.
As a as an artist, and yeah, to get the
to surprise her with the symphony orchestra was it was

(07:45):
something I'll remember forever. And that was actually the second
take because I started crying during the first time.

Speaker 3 (07:50):
The softies. Okay, this is your new single. What's it called?

Speaker 2 (07:53):
A song's called Beautiful Stranger? And yeah, like we were
saying before, it's my last last single at least for now.
So yeah, it's I'm very excited to see how people
enjoy it.

Speaker 3 (08:03):
Okay, take it away?

Speaker 2 (08:09):
How do we find ourselves here?

Speaker 4 (08:14):
Talking for hours?

Speaker 5 (08:16):
Bud?

Speaker 4 (08:16):
It felt like it is like someone answered my prayers.
I've known you for heaven, my dear last in our
mounting the walls and strong mold. Can we stay in
this moment?

Speaker 2 (08:36):
Kiz?

Speaker 4 (08:36):
I don't know you put all.

Speaker 6 (08:39):
On too share my secrets, open up to you, take
the pieces of my heart.

Speaker 4 (08:48):
Here in the dark.

Speaker 5 (08:51):
I've always known you, beautiful Stranger.

Speaker 4 (09:00):
I've always known you.

Speaker 5 (09:05):
Beautif for stranger fell like come not too elveing, scared
that to death, But I'm not a monkey.

Speaker 4 (09:19):
It's like your eyes already know my name.

Speaker 2 (09:24):
I don't think i'd I'll.

Speaker 4 (09:25):
Let it be the same. It feels like we're flowing
and a mondy.

Speaker 3 (09:31):
You're spelling me and.

Speaker 4 (09:32):
Know can we stay in this moment because I don't
know you but don't.

Speaker 6 (09:40):
Want to share my secrets, open out to you take
the pieces of.

Speaker 4 (09:48):
My heart in the dark.

Speaker 5 (09:52):
I've always known you, beautif for stranger, I've always mine you,
utith for stranger.

Speaker 4 (10:09):
Love alas.

Speaker 6 (10:29):
I don't know you, but on so shall I seek.

Speaker 4 (10:35):
I'll been not to take the pieces.

Speaker 5 (10:40):
Of my heart here in the dark, ive always not you.

Speaker 3 (10:48):
Oh how good was that?

Speaker 2 (10:49):
That is?

Speaker 4 (10:50):
Going out on a high?

Speaker 3 (10:51):
Isn't it?

Speaker 1 (10:51):
That is?

Speaker 2 (10:52):
That is thank you for having me here that I appreciate.

Speaker 3 (10:54):
It, Mitch. Thank you for coming in. The Next time
you can come in and talk rugby league with Michael.

Speaker 4 (10:59):
I cannot wait again.

Speaker 2 (11:00):
Always thanks for having me.

Speaker 1 (11:02):
Best of like the single and the album coming out
and that's Mitch James.

Speaker 3 (11:05):
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