Phoenix James: The soulful beautiful vibes are alive in the Without U music video
I love to turn the energy level up but something about crooner Phoenix James and her steamy ‘Without U’ anthem is setting more than just tones. The song goes hard but I am fully embracing the music video, too.
Pure slow and steady vibes making this a summertime event? You bet.
Phoenix James — one of NYC’s most captivating new artists to emerge this year – has officially released her debut EP Teeth today via +1 Records. Co-produced alongside her frequent collaborator Abner Dennis, Teeth is as much a story about intimacy as it is an embering introduction for the artist-producer born in Birmingham, AL, raised in Miami, and now based in Brooklyn. With a journey so distinct, it’s only natural that Phoenix’s sound would match.
“Teeth” is about the kind of love that leaves a mark. It’s not clean or easy. It’s love that pulls at your insides, keeps you up at night, makes you beg, makes you burn,” says Phoenix about the project. “This project lives in the tension between holding on and letting go, between being seen and being left unseen, between craving closeness and fearing what it might reveal. The title Teeth came from that idea: how intimacy can be both a bite and a balm. It’s the ache of wanting to be chosen, the heat of desire, the silence that follows a goodbye, the little violences we carry in our mouths when we try to say what we mean. Every track is a different shape of that feeling. This isn’t about perfect love. It’s about real love. Love with blood in its mouth.”
LISTEN TO THE NEW SINGLE “WITHOUT U” HERE
Teeth is led by Phoenix’s new single “Without U” – a feathery-textured song about finding your footing and individuality in the aftermath of a world-consuming version of love. As the EP closer, “Without U” joins six other songs on Teeth that together create a dreamlike collage of alternative R&B and avant-pop, each chronicling a different stage of emotional unraveling and the craving for closeness so desperate that it cuts. Intimate, wounded, sensual, real; it’s the bite marks left behind after someone gets too close.
Over the past several months, Teeth has been teased by way of Phoenix’s singles “Nothing Matters,” “Company,” and “Hold On”. Collectively, the tracks have landed Phoenix on the cover of Spotify’s flagship playlist Fresh Finds, and caught the attention of Pigeons & Planes, The Line of Best Fit, The FADER, Rolling Stone, Clash Magazine, Notion, KEXP, Colors, Ones To Watch, Indiehourzz, Saving Connie and more.
The project follows the mellowed-out house track “Issy,” James’ recent collaboration with Zack Villere – the DIY-pop artist who recently performed on SNL with Dijon. Phoenix is destined to be among the most keenly watched newcomers this year, with more new music and shows brewing in the coming months. In tandem with the release of Teeth, Phoenix will perform EP release shows in New York City this Friday followed by Los Angeles next month.
PHOENIX JAMES 2026 TOUR DATES
May 29, 2026 - New York City, NY - [untitled]
June 18, 2026 - Los Angeles, CA - The Airliner
