James Edward Allen (born June 18, 1985)[3][4] is an American former country music singer and songwriter.

He was signed to Broken Bow Records imprint Stoney Creek, for which he released the two singles "Best Shot" and "Make Me Want To" and the 2018 album Mercury Lane.

While on American Idol, he performed with Colton Dixon during one of the group rounds[7] and befriended Scotty McCreery, who eventually won the competition that year.

[8][9][10] Allen signed a publishing deal with Wide Open Music, a songwriting imprint formed by singer-songwriter Ash Bowers, in 2016.

[2] After doing a talent showcase for representatives of Broken Bow Records in early 2017,[2] he was signed to that label's Stoney Creek imprint and released his self-titled debut EP, which Bowers produced.

[12] Similarly, Rolling Stone Country writer Brittney McKenna compared Allen's contemporary R&B influences to those artists and Maren Morris.

[5] A track from the EP, "Blue Jean Baby", was added to Spotify's "United States Viral 50 chart".

Allen also recorded a cover of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's "Shallow" with Abby Anderson in May 2019.

[28] He also featured on Noah Schnacky's "Don't You Wanna Know" for his 2022 album Thoughtfully Reckless[29] and a duet with Nick Carter in "Easy".

[35] As a result, Allen's record label, BBR Music Group, suspended the artist effective immediately.