Yesterday, RAYE took the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury 2023 and delivered an impactful performance that included an important speech about her experiences with her former label.
The singer, who had recently gone independent after a public label dispute last year and had released her debut album ‘My 21st Century Blues’, captivated the crowd with a nine-song set. During her performance, RAYE paused to talk about her problems with her label, saying: “I’ve been a musician since I can remember. When I was eight years old, I had a dream: ‘I want to be a musician, I want to be a singer, I want to be a writer.’ I haven’t had the simplest of journeys, I was signed to a record label for seven years and wasn’t allowed to put an album out.”
RAYE went on to mention the difficulties she faced, saying she “went through creative messes and nasty things behind the scenes, heavy things” and was told she “would never have a fan base big enough for anyone to care about an album.” She then expressed her amazement at the fact that she was “performing my debut album in front of the Pyramid Stage.”
RAYE also took the opportunity to address her own struggles with sexual assault, saying: “I don’t sing this song because it’s fun to sing, because it’s not fun to sing but I sing it’s honest and it makes me feel powerful in a time where I was silent” before belting out her track ‘Ice Cream Man’.
After signing a four-album deal with Polydor in 2014, RAYE was released from her contract three weeks after alleging that the label had prevented her from releasing an album.
RAYE’s setlist included ‘Oscar Winning Tears’, ‘The Thrill Is Gone’, ‘Ice Cream Man’, ‘Mary Jane’, ‘Five Star Hotels’, ‘Worth It’, ‘Black Mascara’, ‘You Don’t Know Me’ and ‘Escapism’.
RAYE’s performance at Glastonbury 2023 was an empowering moment in her musical journey and a testament to her resilience and strength. Those who have experienced sexual assault should seek support from organisations such as Rape Crisis in the UK and RAINN in the US.
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