Biography
RAYE (born Rachel Agatha Keen, October 24, 1997, in Tooting, South London) grew up in a deeply musical household — her English father served as church musical director and taught her piano, while her Ghanaian-Swiss mother sang in the choir. She wrote her first song in Year 6 and performed it at Southwark Cathedral. At 14 she was accepted to the BRIT School but left after two years, instead spending her teenage years writing professionally in studios. In 2014, at 17, she self-released the seven-track EP Welcome to the Winter on SoundCloud, writing and co-producing every track herself. Olly Alexander of Years & Years discovered it and connected her to Polydor Records, where she signed and quickly built a career as a featured artist and hitmaker — scoring UK top-three hits with Jax Jones' "You Don't Know Me," DJ Regard's "Secrets," and Joel Corry and David Guetta's "Bed," while co-writing for Beyoncé ("Bigger" on The Lion King: The Gift), Charli XCX, Little Mix, and Ellie Goulding.
Behind the scenes, Polydor repeatedly blocked RAYE from releasing her debut solo album, pressuring her toward commercial dance singles rather than the personal, genre-spanning work she wanted to make. In June 2021, she made a public statement exposing the situation, prompting an industry-wide wave of support. After negotiating her departure, she signed with distribution company Human Re Sources in 2022 — securing ownership of her master recordings — and released My 21st Century Blues on February 3, 2023. The album debuted at UK #2 and drew widespread critical acclaim (Metacritic 82) for its unflinching confrontation of body dysmorphia, sexual abuse, addiction, and industry exploitation across genres spanning house, blues, R&B, dancehall, and jazz. Its lead single "Escapism" (featuring 070 Shake) became her first UK #1, charting top 10 in over 20 countries and going viral on TikTok. A live album recorded at the Royal Albert Hall followed in October 2023.
At the 2024 BRIT Awards, RAYE made history: nominated seven times — more than any artist in a single year — she won six, also a record for most wins in one night. Wins included British Album of the Year, Song of the Year, British Artist of the Year, Best New Artist, Best R&B Act, and Songwriter of the Year — the last becoming the first time a woman had won the category. Her second studio album, This Music May Contain Hope (2026), debuted at UK #1 — her first chart-topper at that level — with lead single "Where Is My Husband!" (2025) also reaching UK #1. Her career total includes 2 Ivor Novello Awards, 3 Grammy nominations, a Mercury Prize shortlist, and recognition in BBC 100 Women 2024 and Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe.
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Fun Facts
- Her first song, written in Year 6 (around age 10–11), was performed at Southwark Cathedral — a remarkable venue for anyone's debut performance.
- In October 2024, her car was stolen with finished lyrics for her second album inside it — she had to reconstruct the material from memory and scratch recordings.
- The track 'Ice Cream Man' on My 21st Century Blues details repeated sexual assaults by a record producer beginning when she was seven years old — one of the most harrowing personal disclosures in recent mainstream pop.
- At the 2024 BRIT Awards, she became the first woman ever to win the Songwriter of the Year category and set an all-time record of six wins in a single ceremony, surpassing records previously held by Blur, Adele, and Harry Styles.
- She habitually performs on stage barefoot — it has become a recognizable signature across her live shows and festival appearances.
Associated Acts
- Artists for Grenfell
Musical Connections
Mentors/Influences
- Olly Alexander - Discovered RAYE's self-released 2014 SoundCloud EP and connected her to Polydor Records, acting as her earliest industry champion and de facto career catalyst
Key Collaborators
- Jax Jones - Featured collaboration 'You Don't Know Me' (2017) reached UK top 3 and went platinum; also collaborated on 'Tequila' (You Don't Know Me, Tequila)
- DJ Regard - Featured on 'Secrets' (2019), which reached UK top 6 and went platinum (Secrets)
- Joel Corry - Featured on 'Bed' with David Guetta, reaching UK #3 (Bed)
- David Guetta - Featured on 'Bed' with Joel Corry, reaching UK #3 (Bed)
- 070 Shake - Featured on 'Escapism,' RAYE's first UK #1 single, which charted top 10 in 20+ countries and went viral (Escapism) [2022-2023]
- Beyoncé - RAYE co-wrote 'Bigger' for Beyoncé's The Lion King: The Gift soundtrack album (Bigger (The Lion King: The Gift))
- Charli XCX - RAYE co-wrote 'I, U, Us' and 'After the Afterparty' for Charli XCX (After the Afterparty, I U Us) [2016-2017]
- Mahalia - Featured on 'Five Star Hotels' from My 21st Century Blues (Five Star Hotels)
- Cassö and D-Block Europe - Featured on 'Prada,' which reached UK #2 and spent 31 weeks on the chart (Prada)
- Hans Zimmer - Collaborated on 'Click Clack Symphony' for RAYE's second album This Music May Contain Hope (Click Clack Symphony)
Artists Influenced
- Halle Bailey - RAYE co-wrote four tracks on Halle Bailey's album Love?... or Something Like It (2025) (Love?... or Something Like It (4 tracks))
- Jade Thirlwall - RAYE co-wrote and co-produced tracks on Jade Thirlwall's solo debut That's Showbiz Baby (2025) (That's Showbiz Baby (multiple tracks))
Connection Network
External Links
Tags: #2020s, #alternative-r&b, #contemporary-r&b
References
Heard on WWOZ
RAYE has been played 6 times on WWOZ 90.7 FM, New Orleans' jazz and heritage station.