Croydon’s chart-topping singer Raye has issued a public appeal – after her car was stolen together with notebooks containing precious lyrics for her next album.
Family values: Raye on stage at the Brits, together with her grandmother, Agatha
Earlier this year, Raye – Rachel Keen when she was when a child at Coulsdon Primary and pupil at Woodcote High – scooped a record six Brit Awards, a triumphant vindication of the singer-songwriter’s talents that had been snubbed for years by the big record labels.
Raye has been working on the follow-up to her award-winning debut My 21st Century Blues. But in an Instagram post this week she revealed: “It’s my birthday and my car got stolen with all my song writing books in the boot so no second album any time soon love you bye.”
Raye is probably used to having long waits between writing songs and issuing records. In 2021, five years after she was signed as a teenager, her label, Polydor, was still refusing to release her debut, despite her having featured as a vocalist on top five hits by David Guetta and Jax Jones. She also wrote lyrics for Beyonce and Rihanna.
Raye asked to be freed from her contract. She was allowed to keep the songs she had written, and ultimately found huge success as a solo artist after “Escapism” became a viral hit.
Not-so-happy-birthday: Raye’s public plea earlier this week
Raye partnered up with a a distribution company and turned her career around: “Escapism”, which won song of the year, was No1 in Britain and was her first hit in the United States, while the Brit-winning album My 21st Century Blues reached No2 and was nominated for the Mercury prize.
Along the way, Raye has also picked up a Novello Award, a sign of real acclaim for quality songsmiths, as well as a MOBO and performed at Glastonbury.
The loss of her notebooks, though, could prove a massive disappointment to her millions of fans if Raye is unable to recreate the lost works – or if the car thief fails to return her possessions.
Read more: Rewind: the story behind Croydon’s rich musical heritage
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