RAYE has apologised to fans who bought her new album on vinyl.
The Where is My Husband! singer has opened up abou the “beautiful but agonising” process of completing the final mix of a record and admitted the This Music May Contain Hope LP was pressed before it was finalised, so buyers have received a “first edition” that differs from the digital version of the tracks.
Speaking to Zane Lowe on Apple Music, she said: “My vinyl is a first edition. I really apologise… I’m apologising to anyone who’s purchased an album.
“Because you are getting the album. It’s not a fraudulent album.
“However it is a first edition. I want you to know the digital versions of some of these songs — some are quite different.
“And you just need to embrace that because I tried my best.”
RAYE poured “a lifetime’s worth of work” into the record and pushed herself to the brink in the process after taking full creative control, acting as executive producer and writing every lyric and melody while working with orchestras, big bands and a huge cast of musicians.
She confessed: “It’s taken every blood cell.
“If I wasn’t on a stage, I was pouring into this body of work. I’m honestly exhausted — mentally and physically — but in a good way.
“It’s been a labour of absolute passion and love.”
RAYE also revealed that the album became a quiet act of rebellion after years spent writing to order for other artists.
She said: “There’s a subconscious rebellion in there.
“For so long everything had to be simple, minimal, to brief — this BPM, this length, this vibe. It was a miserable existence for me.”
She added that being told she “didn’t know who she was” only fuelled the fire: “How can I define myself when you keep sending me into rooms with strangers to write top lines in a day?”
The star said she refused to shrink herself to fit the industry’s expectations.
She insisted: “I’m not just one thing.
“I’ve grown up with many cultures — my identity isn’t one thing. So how can you ask me to choose one thing? On this record I embraced maximalism… any genre I wanted to explore, I did.”