RAYE secures first UK number one single after parting ways with major label Polydor

RAYE has secured her first UK number one single with the 070 Shake-featuring track ‘Escapism.’, which landed on October 12, 2022.

Three months after its release and more than a year since the singer parted ways with Polydor, the track scaled the charts and, on January 6, passed Taylor Swift’s ‘Anti-hero’, landing in the peak position.

RAYE shared a tearful video on social media on Saturday after receiving her Official Charts number one plaque, captioned: “No. 1”.

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“We are Number 1 in the UK,” RAYE told the Official Charts. “It’s the first Number 1 of the year, it’s my first Number 1 in my life. I’m an independent artist, this is sickening!”

In 2021, RAYE publicly criticised the German-British record label Polydor, claiming that the label was withholding the release of her debut album, and by July, she had cut ties with the label to pursue a career as an independent artist.

RAYE spoke out against Polydor on social media in June 2021, claiming that Polydor, who she had been signed to since 2014, had “albums on albums of music sat in folders collecting dust.”

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“I have worked and waited and hustled and given EVERYthing I have and if I am going to suffer I am NOT going to do it in silence anymore,” she said. “I’m done being a polite pop star. I want to make my album now, please that is all I want.”

‘Escapism.’, RAYE’s brand new chart-topping single, marks one of the first releases from her debut album, ‘My 21st Century Blues’, due for release on February 3.

“This is proof [you should] back yourself, no matter what. Thank you, this is mad. These are happy tears,” she told the Official Charts.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter