My XXI (Xxi) Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

RAYE has announced a huge London O2 Arena show in celebration of her historic BRIT nominations – find details down below.For one night only, RAYE will perform at the O2 on March 15 to 18,000 concertgoers, where she will be joined by The Heritage Orchestra and the Flames Collective.“I think we’ve completely lost our minds but we are bringing ‘My 21st Century Symphony’ to the O2 Arena,” RAYE shared.She further stated in a press release: “This is my first headline performance at The O2 Arena. We will have 90 guests on stage, including the Heritage Orchestra and Flames Collective, our guests from The Royal Albert Hall, to perform ‘My 21st Century Symphony’.

RAYE, Sampha and Yussef Dayes leading nominees.The nominees were announced today (April 23) in eight categories including the Best Album, Best Contemporary Song and the Rising Star Award with Amazon Music. The awards ceremony with Amazon Music will take place on May 23 at Grosvenor House.Sampha and Yussef Dayes have the most nominations with two each; each artist is contending for a Best Album award for their respective records ‘Lahai‘ and ‘Black Classical Music’.

RAYE appeared on Saturday Night Live last night (April 6), appearing twice across the show to perform a selection of her recent hits.The singer had performed ‘Escapism’ earlier in the night, but later in the show she returned with a jazz orchestra to sing ‘Worth It’ and ‘Let There Be Light’.RAYE has performed with an orchestra on numerous occasions, including at her recent headline ‘My 21st Century Symphony’ show at London’s O2 Arena and a similar performance at the Royal Albert Hall. In a five-star review of the performance, NME wrote: “Throughout, her effortless vocals – reminiscent of Amy Winehouse or nostalgic jazz club singers – fly across the orchestra, melismatic runs soaring through the huge arena and scat singing incorporated.“A triumphant performance from a live sensation, this was a career-defining show for RAYE.”Check out her live renditions of ‘Worth It’ and ‘Let There Be Light’ below:Raye performing a medley of “Worth It.” and a new song on #SNL pic.twitter.com/2cXrndbIYX— RAYE Updates (@RayeUpdate) April 7, 2024Meanwhile, RAYE recently revealed that she co-wrote one of Beyoncé‘s songs on ‘Cowboy Carter’.The six times BRIT Awards winner has previously penned songs for Queen Bey most notably 2019’s ‘Bigger’ along with tracks for Mabel and Charli XCX.Now, she has taken to Instagram to celebrate the release of the new record, which dropped today, and share her “honour” in contributing to the LP.Sharing a clip of herself singing along to the track, which you can listen to below, RAYE wrote: “happy COWBOY CARTER day.

Fans of Jonathan Ross are getting a bumper helping of the presenter this weekend, as he's on ITV with his chat show tonight (Saturday) and is back on tellies tomorrow evening (March 10) as part of the channel's The Oscars coverage. But he's bringing celebs the Mancunian way tonight, so it's not to be missed.

BRIT Awards 2024 achieved the lowest television viewing figures in the show’s history, with an average of 2.5 million.The event was broadcast live on ITV1 and ITVX in the UK, and at its peak was viewed by 3 million viewers, nearly a million fewer than last year. The numbers are taken from the overnight ratings and do not include viewers who will watch the show on catch-up.The 2023 edition saw performances from Harry Styles, Lizzo and Wet Leg, and reached a maximum live audience of 3.9 million and an average of 3.3 million.The annual ceremony took place on Saturday (March 2) at London’s The O2.

Maisie Smith has left fans begging 'please' as she sported a slightly new look as she enjoyed one of the biggest nights in music over the weekend. It wasn't until Sunday night (March 3) that the actress took to social media with a glimpse of her appearance at the BRIT Awards.

RAYE has spoken to NME about her record-breaking number of wins at this year’s BRIT Awards, and what it’s like to receive praise from artists including Kylie Minogue. Watch our video interview with her below.The singer-songwriter went into this year’s ceremony as the artist with the most nominations, with a record-breaking seven. She then went on to win in six categories, including Songwriter Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Best R&B Act and Best New Artist.

Raye stormed the Brit Awards on Saturday night (March 2), taking home a record-breaking six awards, including Artist of the Year and Album of the Year. She had already made history by being nominated in seven categories.

Raye, a London-born music sensation, made history at the Brit Awards by scooping up six awards - the most any artist has won in a single year. Her record "My 21st Century Blues" clinched album of the year.

Raye has enjoyed early success at the Brits by storming the competition with four awards so far. On Saturday night (March 2) at the O2 Arena, the British singer-songwriter won the R&B, best new artist and song of the year prizes.

BRIT Awards, with one of the victims saying from the O2 stage that the government “is not paying the postmasters”.Jo Hamilton, one of the sub-postmasters at the heart of the Horizon Post Office scandal, and Monica Dolan, who portrayed her in the ITV drama Mr. Bates vs. The Post Office, were presenting the award for Song Of The Year.Hamilton thanked the public for their support since the scandal rose to prominence earlier in the year and said that “despite what the government are saying, they are not paying the postmasters”.Raye won the award for her song ‘Escapism’, which features 070 Shake.

BRIT Awards 2024 has announced Raye as the winner of the Songwriter Of The Year prize.The singer is nominated for a record-breaking seven awards at Saturday night’s ceremony (March 2), including Artist Of The Year, Mastercard Album Of The Year (‘My 21st Century Blues’) and Best New Artist.Raye will also perform live at the BRITs 2024, appearing on the line-up alongside Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue (this year’s BRITs Global Icon), Tate McRae, Jungle and Rema. There’ll be collaborative performances from Becky Hill and Chase & Status, and Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding too.Today (February 28), it’s been confirmed that Raye is the recipient of this year’s Songwriter Of The Year award.Introduced in 2022, the prestigious prize celebrates exceptional songwriting talent and was decided upon by a select panel of expert judges.

RAYE has responded to breaking a new BRIT Awards record in 2024, saying it is beyond her “wildest dreams”.The singer is nominated for seven awards at this year’s ceremony, the most by a single artist in the show’s history.The previous record – six nominations – was jointly held by Robbie Williams, Gorillaz and Craig David.Speaking to BBC News about the honour, RAYE said: “I’m a BRIT kid, innit? I went to the BRIT School and it was the goal, the ultimate goal, to find my way somehow to the BRIT Awards.”She added: “As far as the industry was concerned, I was down and out. Never in my wildest dreams would I think trying again would mean seven BRIT nominations.

The 2024 BRITs nominees have been revealed!

Little Simz and Stormzy leading the way.Both acts are up for four awards each with the former up for Best Female Act (in association with Shea Moisture), Album of The Year, Video of The Year and Best Hip Hop Act while the latter has been nominated for Best Male Act, Album of The Year, Song of The Year, Video of The Year.The annual celebration of Black music and culture, which is now on its 26th edition, will return on on February 7 at the Utilita Arena in Sheffield.Central Cee, PinkPantheress, J Hus and Raye have also received three nominations each.Raye and PinkPantheress will go up against Little Simz for Best Female, and they are also in the running for Song Of The Year with ‘Escapism’ and ‘Boy’s A Liar Pt 2’.‘Sprinter’ by Central Cee and ‘Who Told You’ by ‘J Hus’ are the final Song Of The year contenders, and the rappers are also up for Best Male Act.J Hus’ ‘Beautiful And Brutal Yard’ and Raye’s ‘My 21st Century Blues’ are also nominated for Album Of The Year.MOBO Founder Kanya King CBE said: “We are proud to champion this year’s incredible lineup of nominees for the 26th MOBO Awards, who have all brought stellar music and content to our attention through their remarkable work in music, film, TV, online and more.“This year’s nominees not only represent the best of their genre and artform and an incredible year of music, but also continue our dedication to sustaining an inclusive ecosystem where diverse talent is both recognised and empowered to thrive.”Little Simz, Knucks, Central Cee, PinkPantheress and the late Jamal Edwards were among the winners at last year’s event which was staged at London’s OVO Arena Wembley.The full list of hosts and performers will be announced in the coming weeks.

RAYE has opened up about her experience of abuse of power in the music industry, calling the effects “crippling”.In a snippet of an upcoming interview with Louis Theroux, the singer delved into what it has taken to release her debut album, ‘My 21st Century Blues‘. The interview will be released on November 28.“When you’re up and coming, when you have a dream and you cross paths with powerful people – some people abuse their power and the effects of that can be crippling,” she said.As RAYE initially entered her music career, she said she was “so young and so hungry to make my dreams a reality.”But in 2021, RAYE publically expressed her frustrations at her then-label, Polydor.

RAYE has responded to being snubbed in the 2024 Grammy nominations that were announced last week.The London singer-songwriter failed to receive any nominations for her acclaimed 2023 album ‘My 21st Century Blues‘ – her long-awaited debut after leaving her label following a high profile dispute.The eight nominees (instead of the usual 10) for Album Of The Year include boygenius, SZA, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Miley Cyrus, Jon Batiste, Lana Del Rey and Janelle Monae.RAYE has since responded on X/Twitter, insisting that she is “not upset at all” about not receiving any nods.“Just a message to say thank you for all the lovely messages but just to let you know I am not upset at all, I am hungry and grateful,” she shared on Saturday (November 11).“The Grammys are awarded for the best music has to offer andI have barely scratched the surface of what I know musically I can give.”just a message to say thank you for all the lovely messages but just to let you know I am not upset at all, I am hungry and grateful the Grammys are awarded for the best music has to offer and I have barely scratched the surface of what I know musically I can give

RAYE has officially kicked off the North American fall leg of her 2023 My 21st Century Blues World Tour and we have the full set list available!

Mercury Prize ahead of this week’s ceremony have been released, with Loyle Carner, Young Fathers and Jockstrap among the favourites.The 12 albums that have been shortlisted for the Album Of The Year award were announced earlier this summer.Loyle Carner’s album ‘Hugo’ is currently favourite to clinch the prize on aggregate bookies website Oddschecker, with odds of 4-1.He is followed by Young Fathers’ ‘Heavy Heavy’ on 5-1, Jockstrap’s debut LP ‘I Love You Jennifer B’ on 6-1 and Fred Again.. for ‘Actual Life 3 (January 1 – September 9 2022)’, who has odds of 8-1.Irish folk band Lankum‘s fourth LP ‘False Lankum’ has odds of 10-1 while RAYE‘s ‘My 21st Century Blues’ comes in at 12-1.

RAYE has spoken to NME about her music industry battle to be shortlisted for the Mercury 2023, as well as her recent collab with Stormzy and hopes for longevity. Watch our interview above.The London singer-songwriter was speaking at the launch of the Mercury Prize 2023, where her 2023 debut ‘My 21st Century Blues‘ was shortlisted alongside albums by the likes of Arctic Monkeys, J Hus, Jessie Ware, Olivia Dean, Fred Again.., Young Fathers and Shygirl.“To be recognised for a body of work is something that I’ve really wanted for a really long time,” she told NME.

Thania Garcia Arctic Monkeys, Fred Again, Raye and numerous other British and Irish acts are behind some of the top albums shortlisted for the U.K.’s esteemed Mercury Prize. The annual ceremony is set to take place on Sept. 7 at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith, London and will feature live performances from many of the highlighted artists.

This year’s Mercury Prize shortlist has been announced, with artists including Arctic Monkeys, Jessie Ware and Raye vying for the £25,000 prize for the best British and Irish album of the last year.As ever, twelve albums make up the shortlist, with one overall winner set to be announced during a ceremony at the Hammersmith Apollo in London on 7 Sep.The 2023 judging panel was revealed yesterday.

Mercury Prize have been revealed, with Arctic Monkeys, J Hus and RAYE among the list.The winner of the prize will be announced at a live ceremony at London’s Eventim Apollo on September 7, and were judged by a panel including Anna Calvi, Jamie Cullum, Mistajam and more.Others on the list of nominees include Loyle Carner (for his ‘Hugo’ album), Jockstrap (for debut LP ‘I Love You Jennifer B’), Young Fathers (‘Heavy Heavy’), Fred again.. (‘Actual Life 3 (January 1 – September 9 2022’) and Jessie Ware (‘That! Feels Good!’).The list is completed by Olivia Dean‘s debut album ‘Messy’, Shygirl‘s ‘Nymph’, Ezra Collective‘s ‘Where I’m Meant To Be’ and Irish folk band Lankum’s fourth LP ‘False Lankum’.See the full list of nominees below.Arctic Monkeys – ‘The Car’Ezra Collective – ‘Where I’m Meant to Be’Fred again.. – ‘Actual Life 3 (January 1 – September 9 2022)’J Hus – ‘Beautiful And Brutal Yard’Jessie Ware – ‘That! Feels Good!’Jockstrap – ‘I Love You Jennifer B’Lankum – ‘False Lankum’Loyle Carner – ‘hugo’ Olivia Dean – ‘Messy’RAYE – ‘My 21st Century Blues’Shygirl – ‘Nymph’Young Fathers – ‘Heavy Heavy’In 2022, Little Simz won the Mercury Prize for her album ‘Sometimes I Might Be Introvert’.

RAYE gave a powerful speech on sexual assault and her label troubles during her Pyramid Stage set at Glastonbury 2023 yesterday (June 24).The singer, who went independent after a high-profile label dispute last year and recently released debut album ‘My 21st Century Blues’, hit the festival’s main stage on Saturday afternoon.During the nine-song set, she took time to address her public issues around her former label, saying: “I can’t quite express how much it’s taken me to get to this moment right now. I’ve been a musician since I can remember.

Thania Garcia These days, Raye is spending time in hotel rooms, tour busses and on stages more than anywhere else. “Nothing makes sense until I’m on the stage,” the British Ghanaian singer-songwriter tells Variety. “I really feel at home up there, I’m just very grateful for every little moment.” Today, Raye announces the addition of North American dates and Australian dates to her headlining “My 21st Century Blues World Tour,” which also spans stops in Europe and the UK in support of her recent album, “My 21st Century Blues.” Released in February, the LP marked Raye’s long-awaited and hard-earned debut after years of co-writing hits for various stars including Beyoncé, Ellie Goulding, Charli XCX, John Legend and Rita Ora. In her own album, Raye rejoices in artistic freedom as a standalone, independent artist — having left the confines of her former label and signed a new deal with the Orchard’s Human Re Sources.

RAYE has said she would love to form a rock supergroup with Charli XCX, Rina Sawayama and Ivorian Doll.The artist was speaking to POPSUGAR when she was asked who would be in her dream band. “Rina Sawayama, Charli XCX, and Ivorian Doll.

Raye has released the video for her song ‘Ice Cream Man’. Taken from her album ‘My 21st Century Blues’, the song and video reflect on the singer’s own experience of sexual assault.The self-directed video closes with a message from Raye, reading: “When I experienced sexual assault and rape, I didn’t tell anyone.

Shania Twain’s latest album, Queen of Me, has debuted a No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, earning Twain her seventh top-five entry across four decades in music.

Let’s go, girls! Shania Twain is Waking Up Dreaming today, as she secures her third Official Number 1 album with Queen of Me. 

My 21st Century Blues (★★★★☆).Her first full-length album is an impressive debut that not only shows off the strengths we already knew she possessed, but shows what she’s capable of when she has free rein.The first indication that Raye was really onto something came with “Escapism,” Raye’s first single to chart internationally. The song’s trip-hoppy beat clips along at a brisk, tense pace, underscoring the feeling of running away toward better things.The rest of the album is just as meticulously crafted and has a sense of timelessness about it, helped along by the way she bookends the album with a cabaret-like intro and outro.Raye’s songwriting is as edgy and fresh as any R&B-inflected pop, but its instrumentation and production is deeply indebted to the best of British jazz and soul.