James Keogh (better known as Vance Joy) is an Australian singer-songwriter born in Melbourne. Vance Joy has signed with Atlantic Records a five-album deal. He has an arts/law degree from Monash University. He released his debut EP God Loves You When You're Dancing in March 2013. His song "Riptide" was voted number 1 on the 2013 Triple J Hottest 100.
On January 21, 2013 Vance Joy released its debut single "From Afar". On March 22, 2013 he released his debut EP God Loves You When You're Dancing. The single "Riptide" became a success on Australian commercial radio, peaking at number 7 on the ARIA Singles Chart and being certified triple platinum by the Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA). The music video was directed by Dimitri Basil. The song also features in a GoPro TV advertising campaign in the US. Speaking in an interview with Soundcheck in January 2014, James talked about how he thinks the album will sound, saying “I think there’s always a bit of variety with my songwriting, so probably the EP is a good reflection of what the rest of the album will be like. It’s all different songs, I guess, but all tied together in a way.