Rayne is a dark pop singer and songwriter. Her lyrics are cleverly written and often veer into the malaise, discussing the darker, sadder aspects of relationships. Her songs are about heartbreak, jealousy, and miscommunication wrapped together with catchy, heavy hitting choruses and soaring vocals on a rhythmically driven track. Music you can sing and dance along to while out with your friends, and then cry to in the cab home.
With over 1 million career streams to date, Rayne recently released her new single ‘Envious’ which was quickly added to KiSS’ radio stations in Toronto, Ottawa and Kingston. ‘’Envious’’ is a dance pop track about a woman who sees her ex with someone new and is now reminiscing about the past. The listener will hear the depth of Rayne’s musical style as well as her strength as a pop performer. It was written by Rayne, Tavish Crowe (Carly Rae Jepsen) and Ryan Stewart (Carly Rae Jepsen, Jocelyn Alice) and produced by Nicholas Henriques (Loud Luxury, Icona Pop, Tiësto) and Ryan Stewart
Q: Hi Rayne, thank you so much for doing this interview with us. Can you start by telling the readers a little bit about yourself?
A: Hi readers! My name is Rayne! I’m an eighteen-year-old dark-pop singer and songwriter from Vancouver BC. I just released my fourth single ‘Envious’. You should definitely check it out! (But maybe finish the article first).
Q: When did you first discover your passion for music?
A: I’ve loved music for as long as I can remember! Even back in kindergarten, I would sing opera in class (much to the annoyance of my classmates). I’d also write awful, ten-minute-long songs about something I saw on TV or read in a book. As you can probably imagine, I wasn’t the quietest kid. But it was when I was nine, singing ‘Rolling in The Deep’ during karaoke night on a cruise ship, that I realized music was something I wanted to do forever. Shortly after that, my parents signed me up for voice lessons, and the rest is history!
Q: Have you always known that a music career was something that you wanted to pursue?
A: Absolutely. I became obsessed with Hannah Montana when I was young and decided that I was going to be a “pop star just like her!”. I put a lot of effort into my vocal lessons and performances and would get so offended when random people didn’t take me seriously at that age. I assumed that since I took my goals seriously, and so did my family, that other people would understand how hard I was working. The way I see my current and future musical career is very different from how I did when I was young. But I still like to think I’m making the younger version of myself proud as I reach new milestones in my life as a musician.
Q: How would you describe your musical style to somebody unfamiliar with your music?
A: I like to tell people that it’s music you can dance to while out with your friends, and then cry to in the cab home. It’s dark-pop music, so not super bubbly, but something people can move to, and find emotionally relatable. I tend to write about the sadder, darker aspects of relationships, and am inspired by a lot of the world around me. I really love music that has strong rhythm, so there’s a lot of that in what I write. No piano ballads from me yet!
Q: How did the idea to create Envious come together?
A: ’Envious’ was originally titled ‘Jealous’. It was an incomplete song I’d written about my friend who had recently broken up with her ex. I took in the incomplete song and played it for Tavish Crowe and Ryan Stewart, my co-writers. Tavish’s first idea was to change all the instances of “jealous” to “envious”. I thought that change was super cool, and from there we re-worked the song to be what it is now!
Q: What would you consider to be the main influence behind the creation of the song?
A: The main lyrical influence for this song was a phone call with my friend. She had broken up with her ex a bit before and then when she was out that day, she ran into him with his new girlfriend. She called me after and told me how jealous she felt, and how awful she felt for even feeling jealous since she was the one to break up with him. Once our call ended, I thought to myself “I bet this is something a lot of people can relate to!” and started writing the song from there.
Q: What does the song personally mean to you?
A: It reminds me of my friend every time I hear it. While we did change some elements of the story, it’s very much about her. Whenever I perform it, I try my best to channel her emotions from our call that day, I let myself be the vessel for how she felt.
Q: If listeners could take one message away from this song, what would you like it to be?
A: Jealousy happens to everyone at some point or another, just don’t let it rule your life! It’s okay to be envious of your ex’s new significant other, or the fact that they moved on, just try not to let it control you.
Q: What are some of the things you enjoy doing in your spare time?
A: I always tell people that outside of my music, I’m really a rather boring person. A lot of my hobbies are quite linked with my career, so I spend a lot of time in a kind of work/leisure limbo of editing photos and video. I also read a lot, listen to podcasts, and try and watch shows on Netflix to inspire me and keep my brain moving. Before Covid, I did Krav Maga as a fun way to stay fit and learn to defend myself, but unfortunately that’s not a very socially distant activity, so classes have been cancelled. I miss it a lot!
Q: What are some of the artists you listen to for inspiration?
A: I try and keep some variety in what I listen to. I’m constantly getting inspired in new ways. Recently, I’ve been listening to a lot of PVRIS, Mother Mother, Rina Sawayama, King Princess, BENEE, Dua Lipa, Tyler The Creator, Matt Maeson, and Doja Cat. It’s a looonnngggg list right now! Oftentimes, I’ll obsessively listen to one song or album on repeat for a week, and it gets really hard to write anything that doesn’t sound close to the music I’m binging.
Q: We’d like to thank Rayne for taking the time to answer our questions.
Rayne Social Media
Website: https://raynemusicofficial.com
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