Raye Shares Live Orchestral Album “My 21st Century Symphony
GLOBAL SUPERSTAR RAYE PRESENTS
MY 21ST CENTURY SYMPHONY (LIVE AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL)
LIVE ORCHESTRAL ALBUM REIMAGINES SOUTH LONDON NATIVE’S
ACCLAIMED DEBUT ALBUM MY 21ST CENTURY BLUES
WATCH RIVETING LIVE PERFORMANCE OF “OSCAR WINNING TEARS.” HERE
“ESCAPISM.” SINGER CURRENTLY ON HEADLINE TOUR
ACROSS NORTH AMERICA – TICKETS HERE
CREDIT: Luke Dyson
The album was recorded at RAYE’s recent sensational appearance at London’s prestigious Royal Albert Hall on September 26th. The one-off sold out show featured live performances from her universally acclaimed debut album, My 21st Century Blues, including standouts “Oscar Winning Tears.,” “The Thrill Is Gone.,” “Black Mascara.,” new single “Worth It.” and of course the massive sensation “Escapism.” Presenting brand new breathtaking arrangements of all album tracks, RAYE’s triumphant performance earned her rave reviews and featured the majestic live orchestra, The Heritage Orchestra, and the 30-piece youth gospel choir The Flames Collective. Watch the official live music video for “Oscar Winning Tears.” here.
“The most talented artist since Adele and Amy Winehouse” – The Daily Telegraph
“A triumphant pinnacle for one hell of a year” – The Evening Standard
“A resounding victory” – The Financial Times
“A triumphant act of independence and naked ambition” – The Guardian
RAYE has performed My 21st Century Blues as direct support for SZA, Kali Uchis, and Lewis Capaldi’s respective sold out 2023 world tours. The second installment of her headline world tour continues with 45 dates across North America, Europe, the UK, and Australia including upcoming stints in Nashville, Atlanta, St. Louis, Seattle, Vancouver, and more before wrapping in Los Angeles on November 7th. Tickets are currently available via rayeofficial.com.
RAYE is currently vying for No. 1 on this week’s Official UK Singles Chart with her latest global smash “Prada.” A collaboration with Casso and D Block Europe, the viral track is an exhilarating new take on the 2020 single “Ferrari Horses.” She has also recorded the theme song, “Mother Nature,” for BBC’s Planet Earth III with legendary composer Hans Zimmer and chart-topping UK band Bastille – WATCH HERE.
RAYE is riding high from the continued success of her inescapable global hit “Escapism.”, which peaked at No. 1 on the UK Official Singles Chart and has been certified RIAA Platinum in the US and 9 other territories. The track has since accumulated over 1 billion streams worldwide and remains the second biggest selling single of the year in the UK where it’s won “Best Social Trended Song” at The Global Awards, “Best Contemporary Song” at the Ivor Novello Awards, and “Best Independent Track” at the AIM Independent Music Awards. “Escapism.” also earned RAYE her highest-peaking song on the Billboard Hot 100 (No. 22) and topped TikTok’s viral music chart where it boasts 110 million views.
RAYE was recently shot for British Vogue and was named one of the title’s Top 25 Women of the Year in its Vogue 25 list. In the last year, she has also graced the cover of magazines such as GQ, Cosmopolitan, Wonderland, Bricks, Euphoria, Time Out and DIY and been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Billboard, Pitchfork, V Magazine, NPR Music, People, Vulture, and many more. Globally, RAYE’s season of high profile television performances this year include The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Good Morning America, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Later… with Jools Holland, and The Graham Norton Show, in addition to a career-defining appearance on NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series. RAYE also featured in Kim Kardashian’s recent SKIMS Shapewear collection campaign alongside PinkPantheress, Ice Spice, and Nessa Barrett.
2023 has marked RAYE’s most extensive year of touring yet. After wrapping an arena UK tour with Lewis Capaldi and a string of sold out headline shows, RAYE returned to North America as the special guest supporting Kali Uchis and joined SZA on her S.O.S. Tour throughout Europe and the UK. Her extraordinary debut at Glastonbury won new fans across the globe, alongside summer festival performances at Longitude (Dublin, Ireland), Mad Cool (Madrid, Spain), Life Is Beautiful (Las Vegas, Nevada), All Things Go (Columbia, Maryland), and Austin City Limits (Austin, Texas).
Fast cementing a legacy as an artist that can navigate between genres at will – songs that flit between hip-hop, dance, and gospel that still keep their integrity – RAYE continues to own the pop game.
My 21st Century Symphony (Live at the Royal Albert Hall) Tracklist
“Overture.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Oscar Winning Tears.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Hard Out Here.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“The Thrill Is Gone Requiem.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“The Thrill is Gone.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Five Star Hotels.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Mary Jane vs Graeme Blevins.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Mary Jane.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Body Dysmorphia.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Environmental Anxiety.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Ice Cream Man.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Dani’s Interlude” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Flip A Switch.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Black Mascara.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Worth It Prelude.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Worth It.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Buss It Down.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
“Escapism.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
My 21st Century Blues World Tour 2023/24 Tour Dates
October 17 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl++
October 18 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse++
October 19 – Raleigh, NC – The Ritz++
October 21 – St. Louis, MO – The Hawthorn++
October 22 – Columbus, OH – KEMBA! Live++
October 24 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave++
October 25 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue++
October 27 – Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre++
October 28 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex++
October 30 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox++
October 31 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom++
November 1 – Portland, OR – McMenamins Crystal Ballroom++
November 3 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater++
November 6 – Pomona, CA – The Glass House++
November 7 – Los Angeles, CA – The Novo++
November 18 – Paris, France – La Cigale SOLD OUT ++
November 19 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Melkweg SOLD OUT ++
November 20 – Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg – Rockhal++
November 21 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso SOLD OUT ++
November 23 – Berlin, Germany – Huxleys SOLD OUT ++
November 24 – Warsaw, Poland – Progresja++
November 26 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega SOLD OUT ++
November 29 – Bridlington, UK – Bridlington Spa++
November 30 – Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy SOLD OUT ++
December 1 – Newcastle, UK – NX SOLD OUT ++
December 2 – Manchester, UK – O2 Apollo SOLD OUT ++
December 5 – Birmingham, UK – O2 Academy SOLD OUT ++
December 7 – Bristol, UK – O2 Academy SOLD OUT ++
January 31, 2024 – Sydney, AUS – Enmore Theatre SOLD OUT
February 1, 2024 – Melbourne, AUS – Forum Theatre SOLD OUT
February 3, 2024 – Brisbane, AUS – Laneway Festival
February 4, 2024 – Sydney, AUS – Laneway Festival
February 6, 2024 – Auckland, NZ – Laneway Festival
February 9, 2024 – Adelaide, AUS – Laneway Festival
February 10, 2024 – Melbourne, AUS – Laneway Festival
February 11, 2024 – Perth, AUS – Laneway Festival
++ = Support by Absolutely (US/EU/UK)
Listen to My 21st Century Symphony (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
Watch “Oscar Winning Tears.” (Live at the Royal Albert Hall)
Listen to My 21st Century Blues
Follow RAYE
Press on RAYE’s Debut Album My 21st Century Blues
“RAYE navigated and overcame the obstacles to make a breathtaking, expansive and genre-busting album that will likely hold on through to year to be one of the best of 2023” – NPR Music
“RAYE’s My 21st Century Blues is a kaleidoscopic vision of pop music’s potential in 2023.” – Billboard
“Transforming her pain into power is a recurring theme on RAYE’s debut album… making music out of hard truths has become as central to her mission as speaking them” – The New York Times
“These songs have a seductive, sinister energy, and show how strong a lyricist Keen [RAYE] is when she zeroes in on scene-setting and storytelling… this feels like a real reclamation” – Pitchfork
“RAYE rejoices in artistic freedom as a standalone independent artist” – Variety
“Her stellar LP features some of RAYE’s most personal songwriting, and she laces her storytelling with sounds from doo-wop to hip-hop to rap to pop” – Rolling Stone
“captivatingly soul-baring debut album” – People Magazine
“You end the record with the faith that RAYE is about to have everything she’s ever deserved” – Vulture
“And while the new work explores themes darker than anything we’ve ever heard from her, it’s not a dreary sob story, but rather a tale of resilience” – V Magazine
“the arrival of a burning new star… ‘My 21st Century Blues’ is awash in decadent instrumentation and theatrical inclusions that feel as if the listener is putting a stethoscope to her heart” – NYLON
“RAYE turns a traumatic experience into a bold statement of self-empowerment and self-worth on “Ice Cream Man,” celebrating the strength of womanhood with flair and verve” – PAPER
“RAYE rewrites her story with ‘My 21st Century Blues’… after nearly a decade in the industry mix, the pop-turned-R&B starlet carves her own path forward on her long-awaited debut album” – MTV News
“”My 21st Century Blues is a true wealth of riches from start to finish…it signals an artist who has been working at their craft and has fully arrived.” – Consequence