Shaun Escoffery

Shaun Escoffery

Shaun Escoffery is a vocalist from London, United Kingdom, working across soul, jazz, funk, R&B, hip hop, R&B, dancehall and related club-oriented styles. He grows up in a musical family, with a mother who sings and a father who DJs, and he starts writing and singing in his early teens. After being asked to provide backing vocals for his aunt, also a singer, he becomes more serious about performing and begins recording while at college.

Early stage work and first recordings

In the late 1990s, Escoffery appears in the West End musical Mama, I Want To Sing, which stars Doris Troy and Chaka Khan. His recording career gains momentum in 2001 when a promo of “Space Rider” draws the attention of the independent label Oyster Music. The label reissues the track, and its follow-up “Days Like This” gains underground support, with promotion from UK DJ Trevor Nelson and the Dreem Team.

Debut album and collaborations

His self-titled debut album follows in 2002 and includes both singles alongside new material. The album continues the mix of soul, jazz, funk and R&B that defines his early work and also features collaborations with 4hero, MJ Cole and Ed Case. The album later appears again in remix form as Soulonica, released on Oyster in 2003.

Wider recognition and theatre work

Escoffery’s profile increases further when Lennox Lewis invites him to sing the national anthem before Lewis’s title bout with Mike Tyson in Memphis, Tennessee. In the same period, his music attracts attention from artists including Erykah Badu and Angie Stone. In 2007, he works with longtime writing partner Geoffrey Williams on Move into Soul, a set of classic soul covers that includes “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “A Change Is Gonna Come”.

Later stage roles

Also in 2007, Escoffery performs at the Donmar Warehouse Theatre and receives a Laurence Olivier nomination for playing several roles in Parade. In 2008, he is cast as Mufasa in the West End production of The Lion King.