Years as the Voice Behind Other People's Hits
Rachel Keen, performing as RAYE, spent years signed to a major label writing and providing uncredited hook vocals for other artists' hits while her own full-length debut kept getting delayed — a common, rarely publicized frustration for songwriters kept in a support role.
In 2021, she went public about the situation and was released from her contract soon after, finally free to release music entirely on her own terms as an independent artist.
Escapism, and a Record-Setting Night
Her independently released single "Escapism" became a massive UK No. 1 in 2023, and her debut album "My 21st Century Blues" followed as a critical and commercial vindication of everything she'd been asking for.
At the 2024 Brit Awards, RAYE won six awards in a single night — the most any artist has ever won at the ceremony — turning years of being overlooked into the loudest possible answer.