Samuel James is a musician, journalist and storyteller. As a storyteller, James has been featured on This American Life and The Moth Radio Hour.

As a musician, James has been touring internationally for more than fifteen years, performing in the Black American Folk Tradition. He has released seven albums, scored film soundtracks and museum exhibits. James' award-winning songwriting has been compared to Leonard Cohen's and his guitar virtuosity to that of Jimi Hendrix.