South London-based RAYE today returns with a pulsating and emotional new single ‘Black Mascara‘. LISTEN HERE + WATCH HERE.

Written by RAYE and produced by Punctual (Will Lansley and John Morgan), ‘Black Mascara‘ sees trauma unpacked steadily over a hypnotic dance beat anchored by real pain. RAYE explains, “This song is about another story that has contributed to my ‘blues’. I used the juxtaposition of an upbeat dance track to tell this awful story of being misled by someone I really loved and trusted. While it was a dark low moment, it was also cathartic for me.”

Whilst writing before, RAYE admits to utilising a dance music framework to fit in with what was happening on the radio, and on ‘Black Mascara‘ it’s used as a vehicle to allow the song to even exist. “The lyric ‘once you see my black mascara run from me to my mother’s hands’ is me saying, ‘if only you could actually see the damage that’s been done.’ But I don’t want the story to end there, it’s meant to be empowering, to lend a voice to women like me who may have experienced their own blues in this 21st century. That’s what my album is about really – tackling all of those blues that we experience as a generation. Ironically, this is the only upbeat dance track on the album, but I used my voice this time to tell a raw unfiltered story.” 

The stunning and impassioned video for the track also drops today featuring slick choreography perfectly executed by RAYE.

RAYE recently returned to the music scene with the hard-hitting, critically acclaimed single ‘Hard Out Here‘. Playlisted by BBCRadio1 and 1Xtra, the track was heralded by PAPERMagazine as “outrageous and honest, and incredibly vulnerable.”

RAYE was also recently announced as a new addition to BBC Radio 1’s prestigious Brit List, showing a huge commitment to RAYE from the station. “I am in shock and I am so grateful to have been chosen for Radio 1’s Brit List,” RAYE says. “I know I am not the exciting fresh new artist on the block, I’ve been releasing music since I was 16, I don’t have a million followers or any albums to boast, so to even have been chosen feels kinda like a miracle. Music is my entire heart and body and this opportunity means the world.”

Now with ‘Black Mascara‘ RAYE gives another taste of the album to come. This is RAYE part two. It’s RAYE on her own terms. It’s the RAYE of old, but reloaded. The album features songs made by RAYE, for RAYE, but within that, they’re for everyone who has faced and overcome adversity.  As RAYE says, “My goal is to bring artistic excellence and be as great as I am capable of being. If that catches a wave, then amazing, but I’m not going to let that freak me out or steer my plans or alter my purpose, and that is to put out music I love and believe in.”