Jimmy Napes

Occupation(s)Years active2012–presentLabelsMethod

James Napier (born 18 September 1984), known professionally as Jimmy Napes, is an English songwriter and record producer. He has won a number of awards, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, 3 Grammy Awards, and 2 Ivor Novello Awards. Napes is best known for his work with Sam Smith ("Stay with Me", "Writing's on the Wall", "Lay Me Down", "Too Good at Goodbyes", "Dancing with a Stranger"), Disclosure ("Latch", "You & Me", "White Noise", "Magnets"), Clean Bandit ("Rather Be")‚ Stormzy ("Crown") and Taylor Swift ("Christmas Tree Farm"). Napes also has songwriting and producer credits with artists including Alicia Keys, Jess Glynne, Khalid, Normani, Kano, Dave, Rita Ora, Ellie Goulding, Mary J. Blige, Madonna, James Bay and more.^[1]

Life

The son of John Napier, a British theatre designer, and Donna King, an American dancer and actress, Napes grew up in England.^[2] From the age of eleven he went to University College School in Hampstead.

In 2010, he worked with Eliza Doolittle on her album of the same name. Since then, he has written for (and co-written with) several other artists, including Disclosure, Sam Smith, Clean Bandit and Mary J. Blige.^[3] In 2015, he earned a Grammy Award for Song of the Year for his work on Smith's "Stay with Me", co-written with Smith and Tourist.^[4] In the same year, Napes also won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song for co-writing Clean Bandit's "Rather Be".

Napes released his debut EP as a singer, The Making of Me, on Method Records in March 2015.^[5] For co-writing "Writing's on the Wall" with Sam Smith, Napes won the Golden Globe Award and the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Napes has a son, born in 2015. Sam Smith is a godparent to Napes' son.^[6]

Discography

Extended plays

• The Making of Me (2015)

Songwriting and production credits

Year	Artist	Song	Album
2010	Eliza	"So High"	Eliza Doolittle
2012	Disclosure	"Latch" feat. Sam Smith	Settle
2013	Disclosure	"Voices" feat. Sasha Keable
		"White Noise" feat. AlunaGeorge
		"You & Me" feat. Eliza Doolittle
		"Together" with Sam Smith and Nile Rodgers
	Sam Smith	"Nirvana"	Nirvana EP
		"Lay Me Down"
	Jessie Ware	"Imagine It Was Us"	Devotion
	Naughty Boy	"La La La" feat. Sam Smith	Hotel Cabana
	Clean Bandit	"Dust Clears" feat. Noonie Bao	New Eyes
2014	Clean Bandit	"Rather Be" feat. Jess Glynne
		"Extraordinary" feat. Sharna Bass
	Tourist	"I Can't Keep Up" feat. Will Heard	Patterns EP
	Sam Smith	"Stay with Me"	In the Lonely Hour
		"Leave Your Lover"
		"I'm Not the Only One"
		"I've Told You Now"
		"Like I Can"
		"Lay Me Down" (re-release)
		"Restart"
		"Latch"
		"Make It to Me"
	Gorgon City	"Unmissable" feat. Zak Abel	Sirens
	Ella Henderson	"Billie Holliday"	Chapter One
	Jessie Ware	"Pieces"	Tough Love
		"The Way We Are"
	Mary J. Blige	"Therapy"	The London Sessions
		"Right Now"
		"Not Loving You"
		"When You're Gone"
		"Nobody But You"
		"Worth My Time"
	Mary J. Blige & Disclosure	"Follow"
	Madeon	"You're On" feat. Kyan	Adventure
2015	Chasing Grace	"Lost Time"	Nowhere Near Old Enough
	Madonna	"Best Night"	Rebel Heart
	Disclosure	"Holding On" feat. Gregory Porter	Caracal
		"Omen" feat. Sam Smith
		"Jaded"
		"Willing and Able" feat. Kwabs
		"Hourglass" feat. Lion Babe
		"Magnets" feat. Lorde
		"Nocturnal" feat. The Weeknd
		"Good Intentions" feat. Miguel
		"Superego" feat. Nao
		"Echoes"
		"Masterpiece" feat. Jordan Rakei
		"Molecules"
		"Moving Mountains" feat. Brendan Reilly
		"Afterthought"
	Låpsley	"Hurt Me"	Long Way Home
	Kwabs	"Cheating on Me"	Love + War
	Ellie Goulding	"Heal"	Delirium
	Sam Smith	"Writing's on the Wall"	Spectre OST
		"Drowning Shadows"	In the Lonely Hour: Drowning Shadows Edition
		"Love Is a Losing Game"
		"How Will I Know"
		"Omen"
		"Stay with Me" (Darkchild Remix) feat. Mary J. Blige
		"I'm Not the Only One" feat. ASAP Rocky
		"Lay Me Down" feat. John Legend
2016	Alicia Keys	"Hallelujah"	Here
	Dillon Francis	"Anywhere" feat. Will Heard	Non-album single
	Liv Dawson	"Reflection"	Open Your Eyes EP
2017	Liv Dawson	"Searching"	Non-album single
	Isaac Gracie	"Reverie"	Isaac Gracie
	Frances	"Cloud 9"	Things I've Never Said
		"It Isn't Like You"
	Ardyn	"Together"	Bloom EP
		"Throwing Stones"
	Ray BLK	"Doing Me"	Non-album single
	Tourist	"We Stayed Up All Night" feat. Ardyn	Wash EP
	Sam Smith	"Too Good at Goodbyes"	The Thrill of It All
		"Pray" solo / feat. Logic
		"Burning"
		"Say It First"
		"One Last Song"
		"Midnight Train"
		"Baby, You Make Me Crazy"
		"No Peace" feat. Yebba
		"Nothing Left for You"
		"The Thrill of It All"
		"One Day at a Time"
	Liv Dawson	"Hush"	Non-album single
		"Last Time"
2018	Albin Lee Meldau	"Before & After"	About You
	Isaac Gracie	"Telescope"	Isaac Gracie
	James Bay	"I Found You"	Electric Light
	Paul the PSM	"Lord Give Me Strength"	Secret Life of a Bad Man EP
	Lily Moore	"I Know I Wanna Be with You"	I Will Never Be EP
	Rita Ora	"Velvet Rope"	Phoenix
2019	Sam Smith & Normani	"Dancing with a Stranger"	Love Goes
	Mae Muller	"Anticlimax"	Non-album single
	Avicii	"Freak"	TIM
	Stormzy	"Crown"	Heavy Is the Head
	Icona Pop	"Next Mistake"	Non-album single
	Mabel	"I Belong to Me"	High Expectations
	Tori Kelly	"Change Your Mind"	Inspired by True Events
		"Sorry Would Go a Long Way"
		"Language"
		"Coffee"
		"8/28/1997"
		"Kid I Used to Know"
		"Pretty Fades"
		"3/2/1991"
		"Actress"
		"Until I Think of You"
		"3/26/1994"
		"Your Words"
		"Before the Dawn"
		"Until Forever"
		"Minute to Myself"
	Kano	"Got My Brandy, Got My Beats" feat. Lil Silva	Hoodies All Summer
		"SYM"
	Mae Muller	"Dick"	Non-album single
	Celine Dion	"For the Lover That I Lost"	Courage
	Taylor Swift	"Christmas Tree Farm"	Non-album single
2020	Khalid & Disclosure	"Know Your Worth"	Energy
	Sam Smith	"To Die For"	Love Goes
	Mae Muller	"I Don't Want Your Money"	Non-album single
	Sam Smith	"My Oasis" feat. Burna Boy	Love Goes
	Alicia Keys	"3 Hour Drive" feat. Sampha	Alicia
		"Gramercy Park"
	Sam Smith	"For the Lover That I Lost"	Love Goes
		"Breaking Hearts"
		"Forgive Myself"

References