Born in Ipswich, United Kingdom, Barns spent most of his childhood living in Seattle before returning to his native UK aged 15. This change of scenery comes across as clearly in his eclectic mix of US blues-rock, hip-hop and grunge with British indie melodic sensibilities, as it does in his hybrid US-British twang.

Playing in various projects and bands growing up whilst developing his sound, Barns incarnation as a solo artist has been an unexpectedly fast paced one. At the end of 2015, his first track ‘Glitter & Gold’, with its rocking gospel-blues and Barns’ honey & sand delivery, soared to #1 on the UK Spotify Viral Chart, #2 on the iTunes Alternative Chart, was added to the BBC Introducing Playlist, clocked hundred of thousands of plays on YouTube, and was featured on the ITV Winter 2015 drama reel, all in the span of two months.

‘Goodbye John Smith’, a poignant piano ballad that channels ageless song-and-voice men such as Johnny Cash and Tom Waits, hit the radars of tastemakers online and further spread the word about Barns, earning him a spot as one of Channel 4’s Future Sounds artists at the end of the year.

Barns Courtney is to release his debut EP, ‘Hands’, a four-track collection that will be released May 27, 2016 on Virgin EMI.