Jeymes Samuel

Jeymes Samuel (born 27 July 1979), also known by his stage name The Bullitts, is a British singer-songwriter, music producer, and filmmaker. His debut album, They Die By Dawn & Other Short Stories..., was issued in 2013. The Harder They Fall, released in 2021, was his feature film directorial debut, which won him the 2021 BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer.

Samuel initially embarked on a career in filmmaking, having shot his first reels at the age of eight. However, he began making music at the age of 13.

In 2010, Samuel began uploading "FlixTapes" to YouTube under the pseudonym The Bullitts, named in honour of the 1968 film Bullitt; this was a series of videos in which he added new vocals to his favourite movie and television themes. The first episode, titled "Tales of the Unexpected,"  was released on November 14, 2010.

"Close Your Eyes,"  the lead single from his then-upcoming album, premiered in April 2011. The single features narration by American actress Lucy Liu and a verse from American rapper Jay Electronica. Its music video is a re-imagining of the Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel film, Un Chien Andalou. In May 2011, the album's second single, "Landspeeder,"  was released. "Landspeeder" was later included on the original motion picture soundtrack to the British 2011 slasher film Demons Never Die.

He issued "Weirdo" in July 2011, a short piece starring Jesse Williams. In it, two young lovers in paper-bag masks spend a day on the streets of London before robbing a newsagent during a declaration of love. For the song "Run and Hide" by Jay Electronica, he directed a film noir in Paris, based around the actress Elisa Lasowski. Samuel played at The Big Chill music festival on 6 August 2011; he was joined onstage by Liu, Electronica, and English actor Idris Elba.