Fayetteville, AR – Shawn James’s song “Through the Valley” has been pushed to the top of the Spotify “Most Viral” Chart this week by the debut of the Sony PlaySation trailer for the video game The Last of Us Part II. “I think Naughty Dog chose this song perfectly for their storyline and the intensity of the TLOU series,” Shawn James explains. “I’m absolutely honored to have “Through the Valley” used by a team that goes so deep with their art and storytelling. When I initially saw the trailer, the emotional performance of Ellie coupled with the visually intense scenes, I got goosebumps.”
GameRevolution.com picked up the story noting “While the trailer for The Last of Us Part II didn’t necessarily break the internet, it certainly put it on notice. Trailer analyses, fan theories; the whole nine yards of coverage was lobbed at the feet of Naughty Dog for finally announcing what will only become the most anticipated game of whatever year it releases.
It’s also done wonders for [the song] “Through the Valley,” by Shawn James [which] has topped Spotify’s Global Viral 50 Chart, which tracks the highest-trending songs each week.
Even before this news, Shawn James posted a touching note of gratitude (on his Facebook page on December 10) toward Naughty Dog and the millions of listeners.
“In just one week,” James wrote. “one of my favorite songs I’ve written that was released over four years ago has been heard by millions of people around the world. The amount of love and support received has been beautifully overwhelming. I can’t thank the crew at Naughty Dog, LLC & The Last of Us 2 enough for the push and all of you out there for seeking out the music on your own and exploring our library of songs. I hope to meet you all out on the road next year.”
Naughty Dog Tweeted out a congratulations to James in the wake of his song’s topping the Spotify chart. Everything The Last of Us touches will assuredly turn to gold.”
Shawn James recorded the song “Trough the Valley” in 2011 and released it on the album titled, Shadows, a year later. “I wrote the song about a character I created who was severely misunderstood by the world,” James says.” The character is a loner and gets judged by others because of experiences they’ve had and things they’ve had to do in the past that weren’t necessarily good or evil but most see them as wrong.”
Shawn James has been on the road promoting his release titled, On The Shoulders of Giants. It was recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis. Elmore Magazine opined “The intensity for which James has become known is in full force in the song, which, though simple in its lyrics, carries a searing heat at its core.” James is endorsed by Republic Guitars and frequently performs live as a one-man band playing kick drum and tambourine. On his records he sometimes plays piano, trumpet, and musical saw.
Shawn James will be touring in Europe at the start of the new year and has just been added to the Wacken Winter Festival in Germany.
Related: THE LAST OF US: Part II Reveal
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