What do you get when you combine great looks, brilliant lyrics, and a gifted voice? You get singer, song-writer, Brendan James.

Brendan’s second CD, the self-entitled, Brendan James, was released today and it has already climbed to #4 on the iTunes Pop Charts and #25 overall. And it is fast climbing. Seriously, I cannot stop listening to his first single, the gut-wrenching The Fall. You can read the story behind that song in my interview with Brendan below.

Want to see and hear Brendan in action? Watch him in the video below for The Fall, directed by my good friend, Justin Baldoni, and starring another good friend, Melissa Ordway (The Last Song, 17 Again, Melrose Place) and Amber Stevens (Greek), not to mention Justin Baldoni (Heroes, Everwood) himself. You can see some behind the scenes pictures and videos of the making of The Fall at the end of this post.

CelebMagnet: How did you first get into the music business?
Brendan James: After not doing much in college but performing and writing music, I decided to move to New York City and give it a real shot. Open mic after open mic landed me live shows, which indirectly found me a manager, who, after 3 years of hustle helped me find the right producer, with whom I made a 4 song demo, which, miraculously got me signed to Capitol Records 2 months later. I guess that’s how it all started.

CelebMagnet: What type of music would you classify yours as?
Brendan James: Hard to classify your own sound, especially when you feel it constantly changing under your feet. But I try to write full structured songs that make people feel. They’re usually based around my piano or keyboard playing, and production could be reminiscent of anything from an old paul simon track to a new mgmt track. That’s where the fun comes in I guess. People have said –which musicians LOVE hearingJ –“Oh, you sound like David Gray, James Talyor, or Zero7 !” I take them all as compliments, and keep doing my thing.

CelebMagnet:  To whom do people compare your style to?
Brendan James: Ironically enough, I compare my style to a lot of the musicians who people tell me I could compare myself to. David Gray, James Taylor, The Fray, Elton John. I find it hard to be objective about my own sound. I guess if I didn’t have outside opinions, I’d probly just say I sound like me.

CelebMagnet: What have been your proudest moments as a musician so far?
Brendan James: I guess it’s felt pretty good signing my record deals, or singing a duet with Carly Simon, or playing on the Mayercraft last year.  But the truth is, my biggest accomplishment so far has been keeping a balance between my personal life and my professional life. A goal of mine since day one, it’s the way I want to enjoy this one life.