Jamie Cullum was born at Romford Hospital in Essex and was raised in Hullavington, Wiltshire. Cullum attended the private school, Grittleton House School, followed by sixth form at Sheldon School. Cullum then studied English Literature with a minor in Film Studies, at Reading University. He graduated with first class honours.
Jamie Cullum's mother is Anglo-Burmese. Her family settled in Wales after Burma was declared independent.
As a teenager, Jamie Cullum played drums in a hip-hop group and also played guitar in bands named Raw Sausage and The Mystery Machine. He has said that Miles Davis and Tom Waits are amongst his biggest influences.
Jamie Cullum: Music Career
Jamie Cullum's first album was released in 1999. The album was entitled Jamie Cullum Trio - Heard It All Before. Only 500 copies were pressed and now reach up to around £600 on eBay. Geoff Gascoigne heard the album and invited Cullum to guest on his album Songs of the Summer.
Jamie Cullum's next album was released after he graduated from university. Entitled Pointless Nostalgic, the album attracted interest from Michael Parkinson and Melvyn Bragg. As a result, Cullum's debut TV appearance was on Michael Parkinson's BBC chat show. He was also the last musician to perform on Parkinson's 'Final Conversation' show in 2007. Pointless Nostalgic included new arrangements of classic tracks such as Thelonius Monk's 'Well You Needn't' and 'It Ain't Necessarily So' by George Gershwin.
Following Jamie Cullum's first performance on Parkinson's show, he signed a three album contract with Universal for around £1 million. His next album, Twentysomething, released in 2003, was awarded platinum status and became the number one album by a jazz artist in the UK. By the end of that year, he had become the best-selling jazz artist of all time. Twentysomething included a cover of 'Lover, You Should Have Come Over' by Jeff Buckley and 'I Get A Kick Out of You' by Cole Porter
Jamie Cullum's cover versions have become hugely popular. When he plays live, he has been known to cover artists as diverse as Kanye West ('Gold Digger'), White Stripes ('Seven Nation Army') and Massive Attack ('Teardrop'). He has also performed tracks by Rihanna, Radiohead, Gnarls Barkley and Justin Timberlake.
Catching Tales was Cullum's third studio album and was released in 2005. The lead single, 'Get Your Way' was a collaboration with’ Dan the Automator’ (a member of Handsome Boy Modelling School and Gorillaz). The album was supposed to feature the track 'Wifey', which was a collaboration with Pharrell Williams, but the inclusion of the track was barred by legal problems.
In 2006, Jamie Cullum released a live album entitled Live at Ronnie Scott's.
June 2009 saw the release of Jamie Cullum's fourth album, The Pursuit. The lead single from the album was 'I'm All Over It', which received extensive mainstream radio airplay.
Jamie Cullum's mother is Anglo-Burmese. Her family settled in Wales after Burma was declared independent.
As a teenager, Jamie Cullum played drums in a hip-hop group and also played guitar in bands named Raw Sausage and The Mystery Machine. He has said that Miles Davis and Tom Waits are amongst his biggest influences.
Jamie Cullum: Music Career
Jamie Cullum's first album was released in 1999. The album was entitled Jamie Cullum Trio - Heard It All Before. Only 500 copies were pressed and now reach up to around £600 on eBay. Geoff Gascoigne heard the album and invited Cullum to guest on his album Songs of the Summer.
Jamie Cullum's next album was released after he graduated from university. Entitled Pointless Nostalgic, the album attracted interest from Michael Parkinson and Melvyn Bragg. As a result, Cullum's debut TV appearance was on Michael Parkinson's BBC chat show. He was also the last musician to perform on Parkinson's 'Final Conversation' show in 2007. Pointless Nostalgic included new arrangements of classic tracks such as Thelonius Monk's 'Well You Needn't' and 'It Ain't Necessarily So' by George Gershwin.
Following Jamie Cullum's first performance on Parkinson's show, he signed a three album contract with Universal for around £1 million. His next album, Twentysomething, released in 2003, was awarded platinum status and became the number one album by a jazz artist in the UK. By the end of that year, he had become the best-selling jazz artist of all time. Twentysomething included a cover of 'Lover, You Should Have Come Over' by Jeff Buckley and 'I Get A Kick Out of You' by Cole Porter
Jamie Cullum's cover versions have become hugely popular. When he plays live, he has been known to cover artists as diverse as Kanye West ('Gold Digger'), White Stripes ('Seven Nation Army') and Massive Attack ('Teardrop'). He has also performed tracks by Rihanna, Radiohead, Gnarls Barkley and Justin Timberlake.
Catching Tales was Cullum's third studio album and was released in 2005. The lead single, 'Get Your Way' was a collaboration with’ Dan the Automator’ (a member of Handsome Boy Modelling School and Gorillaz). The album was supposed to feature the track 'Wifey', which was a collaboration with Pharrell Williams, but the inclusion of the track was barred by legal problems.
In 2006, Jamie Cullum released a live album entitled Live at Ronnie Scott's.
June 2009 saw the release of Jamie Cullum's fourth album, The Pursuit. The lead single from the album was 'I'm All Over It', which received extensive mainstream radio airplay.
Reflection – As we can see from Cullum’s biography his upbringing is what you would expect of the image he presents to his audience and the type of audience he aims at would approve of the upbringing he has received. The genre of Jazz has certain glamour to it, a dignified and civilised respect surrounds the genre, so it would make sense that a middle/upper class boy educated in a private school. Cullum even released an album called ‘live at Ronnie Scott’s’ referring to the infamous jazz bar in central London.
Jake Carter will be a familiar face to all die-hard D&B fans, even though his new Sub Zero moniker may not be yet. Having toured the world, DJing everywhere, from Brazil to Russia, and produced some of the best jump up going as part of the widely acclaimed G Dub production unit, Jake is now embarking on an exciting new phase in his career – a solo project and a culmination of his musical achievements so far: Sub Zero.
Geordie born-and–bred, Jake, has been living in Leicester for the last six years, after re-locating from his native Newcastle home in 2003. He started out, like many D&B DJs, in his bedroom. Infected by jungle/D&B by his friends mix CDs and fuelled by the sounds of Goldie and LTJ Bukem, Jake became enthralled with the idea of being a DJ after watching an ‘Equinox’ documentary on rave culture at the tender age of 15.
Jake decided to take the next steps and managed to pick up a pair of old decks and slowly began to master the art of mixing. After hard graft, dedication, and numerous vinyl purchases later, he started getting bookings in and around Newcastle; DJ-ing at parties and flexing his skills on the decks in the clubs and the next logical stage for the ambitious 18-year old Sub Zero was to start making music himself.And so he decided to travel down the rocky road of music production. He lasted six months at college, studying ‘Music Technology’ alongside fellow G Dub partner, Adam Tindall, before he lost inspiration in the course and decided to take the tools of the trade into his bedroom studio and work from there. Together, with his trusty computer and sampler and the basics of music production emblazoned into his brain, Jake started making tunes obsessively and prolifically for the next few years.
Away from the constraints of institutionalized education, Jake flourished into an accomplished producer, favouring an energetic, jump up style of D&B that helped get early releases on DJ SS’ Formation Records, and paved the way to an exclusive deal with Hype and Pascal’s Real Playaz music empire.
The rest, as they say, is history. With an impressive back catalogue of work with G Dub, the support of the scene’s main players, and a wealth of experience – both as a DJ and producer – it is only right that Sub Zero is ready to take the next step in his already illustrious career. As part of the infamous Ganja crew, Sub Zero has the credibility and connections that most DJs can only dream of. Jake has worked hard to come as far as has, and is proud of his achievements.
In 2009, Sub Zero launched his solo career with the release of his debut single – ‘Spin Doc’ on Ganja Records. Already reaching Number One in the D&B Arena Download Charts, receiving large amounts of radio play, as well as play outs from the likes of Andy C, Hype and Grooverider, the success of this single speaks for itself, and bodes extremely well for Sub Zero’s future success.
As much inspired by the sounds of old school jungle and LTJ Bukem, as he is Vangelis’ film scores, Sub Zero is famous for his signature dance floor smashing style, making music predominantly to be played in clubs. Despite this, experimenting with sound, pushing the boundaries and doing something a bit different has, and always will, be very important to Jake. And, as he climbs higher and higher into the upper echelons of D&B production, we can only expect more great things to come from Sub Zero.
Geordie born-and–bred, Jake, has been living in Leicester for the last six years, after re-locating from his native Newcastle home in 2003. He started out, like many D&B DJs, in his bedroom. Infected by jungle/D&B by his friends mix CDs and fuelled by the sounds of Goldie and LTJ Bukem, Jake became enthralled with the idea of being a DJ after watching an ‘Equinox’ documentary on rave culture at the tender age of 15.
Jake decided to take the next steps and managed to pick up a pair of old decks and slowly began to master the art of mixing. After hard graft, dedication, and numerous vinyl purchases later, he started getting bookings in and around Newcastle; DJ-ing at parties and flexing his skills on the decks in the clubs and the next logical stage for the ambitious 18-year old Sub Zero was to start making music himself.And so he decided to travel down the rocky road of music production. He lasted six months at college, studying ‘Music Technology’ alongside fellow G Dub partner, Adam Tindall, before he lost inspiration in the course and decided to take the tools of the trade into his bedroom studio and work from there. Together, with his trusty computer and sampler and the basics of music production emblazoned into his brain, Jake started making tunes obsessively and prolifically for the next few years.
Away from the constraints of institutionalized education, Jake flourished into an accomplished producer, favouring an energetic, jump up style of D&B that helped get early releases on DJ SS’ Formation Records, and paved the way to an exclusive deal with Hype and Pascal’s Real Playaz music empire.
The rest, as they say, is history. With an impressive back catalogue of work with G Dub, the support of the scene’s main players, and a wealth of experience – both as a DJ and producer – it is only right that Sub Zero is ready to take the next step in his already illustrious career. As part of the infamous Ganja crew, Sub Zero has the credibility and connections that most DJs can only dream of. Jake has worked hard to come as far as has, and is proud of his achievements.
In 2009, Sub Zero launched his solo career with the release of his debut single – ‘Spin Doc’ on Ganja Records. Already reaching Number One in the D&B Arena Download Charts, receiving large amounts of radio play, as well as play outs from the likes of Andy C, Hype and Grooverider, the success of this single speaks for itself, and bodes extremely well for Sub Zero’s future success.
As much inspired by the sounds of old school jungle and LTJ Bukem, as he is Vangelis’ film scores, Sub Zero is famous for his signature dance floor smashing style, making music predominantly to be played in clubs. Despite this, experimenting with sound, pushing the boundaries and doing something a bit different has, and always will, be very important to Jake. And, as he climbs higher and higher into the upper echelons of D&B production, we can only expect more great things to come from Sub Zero.
Reflection:
Comparing this biography to Jamie Cullum’s we can see the difference in how they appeal to their targeted audience. For example notice how this biography doesn’t mention anything about family life or education. It also mentions him getting a pair of ‘old’ decks, a comment that doesn’t exactly paint a picture of a wealthy, well-off upbringing. Comparing the pictures we can even indicate from the gritty filter and pose of sub-zero that he leads a different life to the clean-cut, glossy presentation of Jamie Cullum. Instead the bio focuses on his determination to change his lifestyle and make it big in the ‘Rave’ scene, something that his audience of young, working/to middle class fans can relate to and be inspired by.
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