James Marais

James has been an entertainer since 1992. He has a powerful voice, as well as a magnetic and energetic stage presence.  He pays painstaking attention to detail with respect to his vocals, dance moves and costumes.

James is an accomplished dancer, and in his Elvis Presley show, he is able to accurately capture the magical moves that Elvis performed at his peak.

His beautiful costumes do the King justice, representing Elvis during all three decades of his career, spanning the ‘50s through to the ‘70s.  In addition, his amazing vocals are a great tribute to Elvis, as he is able to adapt his voice to the many different genres of music the great man covered throughout his career.

He is known for his audience interaction, and people respond very well.

James made waves as Elvis in Mike McCullagh’s 2006 production, “Nashville Nights”, and then went on to successfully take his own Elvis productions to the Roxy Revue Bar at GrandWest Casino in 2008 (“The Ultimate Tribute To The King”), 2010 (“From Memphis To Las Vegas”) and 2012 (“Elvis”), to full-houses every night.

James triumphed once again in the runaway success production, “Heartbreak Hotel”, a variety show paying tribute to all the legends of the golden era of music, which he presented at the Roxy Revue Bar at GrandWest Casino from 16 April to 6 June 2014.

A particular highlight in his career thus far is his appearance on the popular television show “Noot Vir Noot”, which was first broadcast on 9 March 2012, and rebroadcast twice thereafter.  The third screening was on “Noot Vir Noot Potpourri”, where James was also the presenter of the show and was interviewed at his home.  The response was overwhelming.  He also performed alongside the cream of South African Afrikaans entertainers at the Innibos Festival on 30 June 2012.  On 23 December 2016, James’ debut appearance on SABC 2’s “Musiek Roulette” was broadcast, once again to an extremely positive response.  Another highlight was James’ appearance on “Jou Show”, Kyknet’s Afrikaans variety show hosted by Emo Adams, in 2011.

He was named South Africa’s no. 1 Elvis Tribute Artist at the Elvis Festival Africa 2010, and travelled to Wales to represent SA in the Elvis World Cup, finishing fourth out of 12 competitors from around the globe.  He has performed at many different venues and for many different functions, including private birthday parties, weddings and corporate functions, and has always been enthusiastically received.

James has also had continued success with his show, “Oldies But Goldies”, in which he performs with Monique Cassells.  James and Monique have taken this show around the country, and they dazzle audiences with their sensational tributes to the great stars of yesteryear, from the ‘50s to the early ‘90s.

He is a consummate professional, while also being very warm and personable.  He is a pleasure to work with, and will help make any musical occasion a most enjoyable one.

James is working on his debut album of self-composed music, and is currently enjoying radio airplay with his song, “Closure”.  He is also grabbing the attention of the Afrikaans music market, with his song, “Ek Is Jammer My Skat”, for which he has released a music video.