King Charles

King Charles (born Charles Costa, 22 December 1987) is a singer-songwriter from West London. Charles plays the guitar, piano, and cello. He is also a classically trained singer and performer. He began writing songs when he was 17, and in 2009, he won the International Songwriting Competition by unanimous vote.Charles dropped out of Durham University and returned to London in 2007, where he adopted the pseudonym King Charles, and formed a band, Adventure Playground, which toured with Laura Marling and Noah and the Whale before disbanding in 2008. He has also gone on tour around the UK and The United States alongside Mumford and Sons. In 2009 he became the first ever Brit to win the International Songwriting Competition in Nashville for his song 'Love Lust'. The competition was judged by Tom Waits, Jeff Beck, Loretta Lynn and Jerry Lee Lewis, and following this victory King Charles was signed by Universal Republic/Island.After signing a global contract with Universal Republic through his UK independent label, King Charles recorded his debut album, Loveblood, in Hollywood, CA. It was released on 8 May 2012.