RAYE @ The O2, London
After seeing her headline at the All Points East festival last year, I could hardly contain my excitement for a whole 2-hour set at the O2 Arena in London. She had her sisters open for her set, and even join her on a couple songs towards the end - the singer gene runs very strong in their family, thats’s for sure.
Even though I was sure that I had heard most (if not all) of her set during the festival, I was waiting with a bated breath for the promised unreleased songs in her This Tour May Contain New Music. Quite unsurprisingly, she had made the absolute most of her budget in the O2, with intricate staging, an entire band AND philharmonic orchestra, along with her back-up singers, various outfit changes, and all the works. I was stunned to say the very least.
Where is my Husband? was one of the opening tracks to the evening, sounding even better live than it did on the already-perfect record. With more music featured in her new album being teased or released during the concert, I remained stunned at the creative instrumentation, complex harmonies, and clever lyrics.
Keeping an audience of nearly 20,000 people rapt in attention is hardly a small feat, but she manages to do so effortlessly through her charm, musicality, humour, and storytelling. Her setlist was also perfectly paced, starting with some popular tunes interjected with newer music, before moving onto her ‘Jazz Club’ bit. Along with some standards, she debuts singles from her album in that similar style, backed up by a jazz band and her talented back-up singers. Bringing us through the emotional wringer from upbeat Raye classics to emotional ballads such as Ice Cream Man, she’s definitely the reason I’ve shed the most tears at a concert. She then lifts everyone back up into high spirits with her ‘RAYE’ to ‘RAVE’ switch-up to close off the show with her more techno numbers.
Of her upcoming music I am particularly looking forward to Click Clack Symphony. She’s managed to bring alive a very interesting instrumentation on stage involving (gasp) Raye, who famously always performs barefoot, in high-heels. With her proficient lyricism complemented by her musicality, I know that song is about to become a favourite of mine. Another earworm from her upcoming album is her newly released single, Nightingale Lane, which has a sultry 6/8 drumming and a highly contagious ballad melody. Best believe it’s been on repeat for the last 2 weeks.
I can’t wait for her to get more involved with the likes of international big leagues in similar genres to herself. The next time I’ll be seeing her is as an opener for Bruno Mars (almost feels like I’m going up a food chain!), and I am just absolutely itching to see her perform some snazzy jazzy songs with him.
