b. London, England. This UK vocalist grew up in a musical environment with his mother and father pursuing part‑time jobs as a singer and a DJ respectively. Escoffery began writing and singing in his early teens and in the late 90s played a small part in the West End musical, Mama, I Want To Sing, which starred Doris Troy and Chaka Khan. His attempts to launch a recording career were going nowhere until, in 2001, a promo of his track «Space Rider» attracted the attention of the independent label Oyster Music. A re‑released «Space Rider» and its follow‑up «Days Like This' enjoyed underground cult success and were promoted by influential UK DJ Trevor Nelson. The following year's self‑titled debut album featured both tracks alongside new material that carried on the singles» successful mixture of soul, jazz, funk and R&B. Earlier in the year Escoffery's name was promoted to a wider audience when, in an unusual move, he was invited by England's heavyweight champion boxer Lennox Lewis to sing the national anthem before his title bout with Mike Tyson in Memphis, Tennessee. Remixed versions of several of the tracks on his debut album were released in 2003 on Soulonica.
DISCOGRAPHY: Shaun Escoffery (Oyster 2002)***, Soulonica (Oyster 2003)***.