James Vickery – Hotel Lobby (2025)
Along with his distinctive vocals and confident performance oozing from our speakers, James Vickery has another interesting element to his persona. Entirely deaf in one ear due to a life-threatening cholestestoma diagnosis at age 8, it’s intriguing to hear how a vocal coach helped him overcome challenges and discover his natural singing talent. In his documentary,d Louder, he offers a glimpse into his experiences – then again, I’m mostly here to take a gander at his music. The latest addition to his discography is the single, ‘Hotel Lobby’.
The first release in two years, ‘Hotel Lobby’ is a pivotal point in Vickery’s musical journey as he dips his toe beyond the 90s-inspired RnB tone. Produced and recorded with Malik 95 and Mosaic, the track blurs the realm of soul and RnB, each style catching the other like two bright shimmers of music meeting and falling in love. Rather amusing, I say, considering the track is about a romantic encounter melding two bodies as one. Vickery explains:
“I really wanted to go outside my comfort zone and write over something that I would never normally sing to. Malik 95 and Mosaic cooked up this weird and wonderful guitar loop, and I had this concept for ages about writing about a passionate night with someone that was so emphatic that it could be heard from the lobby downstairs…”
As with the genres, further melding and duality exists in ‘Hotel Lobby’. Taking a vintage RnB sound met by modern-day neo-soul, and a kick of pop bringing a bite to the single. Layering his bold voice across the luxurious rush of synths, guitars, and bold beats, Vickery enhances the vivacity, vibrancy, and palpable sensuality of ‘Hotel Lobby’. Fun and a little cheeky, Vickery winks with an amused smile on his face with this sensational single.
In addition to the single, James Vickery released an official music video for ‘Hotel Lobby’. You can view the video below and/or on his YouTube channel. Please note that this video uses image transition and lighting effects that can trigger seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy. Viewer discretion is advised.
VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED
Find out more about James Vickery on his Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
Listen to more RnB music on The Other Side Reviews RnB playlist:
