He may be a new jack soul boy from London, but 22-year old emerging star Nathan loves being in the New York City groove. “Every place else compared to New York is laid back,” the singer exclaims. “The roads are bigger, the buildings are taller and everything is open late.”

In town to recording tracks for his first American disc—his V2 Records debut Masterpiece was released in England and Japan in 2006, featuring the hit single “Come Into My Room”—the young vocalist is taking a much-needed break from his vocal booth grind.

Chilling in the lounge area of Fight:Klub Studios in midtown, Nathan says, “Back home, me and Estelle were signed to the same label, but they didn’t really know how to market just straight R&B. Although we both left, Estelle personally encouraged me to come to America. ‘They understand what we’re trying to do,’ she explained.”

Having seen Nathan a few months ago, performing his newest songs, the Stargate-produced smooth jam “Superwoman” and the harder-edged “Dirty Sexy Money,” at a recent R&B Live showcase at BB Kings in NYC, which also featured his favorite artist Ryan Leslie—“he’s a genius,” the young Brit enthuses—Nathan stepped on stage like a veteran.

“One of the biggest lessons I learned when I dropped Masterpiece was to keep the performance on point,” says Nathan. “This year I’ve performed at the Essence Festival and I was so excited by the response. I love being in the studio making new songs, but nothing compares to being on that stage.”

Literally born into music, Nathan’s mum Lorna Gee is a reggae singer who toured while pregnant with him. “When I was a kid, I toured with her as well,” Nathan recalls. “I used to sing along with her and reggae was the kind of music that I thought I wanted to do.” A few years back he did delve into dancehall, recording “Blazing,” a combination with Spragga Benz.

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