Raelle

Meet Southeast London Raelle, who took solace in making music with her family. At home, she was surrounded by Motown classics, played the piano, and trained as a classical singer. Hearing Amy Winehouse’s album ‘Frank’ as an adolescent sparked a creative awakening, and she became captivated with jazz and soul’s freedom of expression and emotiveness. We caught up with Raelle to find out what life outside music is like for her and if she could collaborate with three artists in the UK who would they be

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NEO:How would you describe your music journey?

RAELLE:It is like a never ending story, When I released my first single I really thought I knew what I was doing, I look back now and I realise how little I actually knew. On top of that creating and being a creative has really pushed my boundaries both musically and how I now view myself in this industry. I feel like my musical style is still evolving and I have started making more music that I like that I want to hear for me, rather than trying to please someone else, it has brought me a lot of peace. I feel like I have learnt so much about myself through this short period of time.

NEO:What’s life like for you outside of music?

RAELLE:Crazy, I never know what's coming around the corner, I think I am quite impulsive so when it comes to my life I will do what feels good in the moment, it's also how I come up with a lot of my songs, a lot of my music is made in one almost frantic writing session where I feel like I can't get the feelings and words out of me fast enough, but managing myself as a brand, holding down a job and being creative, is not easy but it is the most fulfilling thing I have done. I am tired like all the time, but when my projects are released it feels almost euphoric, and even better when people message me about how my music has made them feel, makes it all worthwhile for me.

NEO:Who is your biggest inspiration?

RAELLE:I have a few, they are all women, being new to this industry I have already felt the pull and the drawbacks being a woman has, people really try to put you in a box with music, but this is part of the reason I started doing music as it was a freeing experience for me, as a person I don’t think I can be put in a box, I love women who have grinded and I love women who have been raw with their emotions, in the past a big fan of coco chanel, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Arethra Franklin, all of the soul goddesses of the 70s,more recently I really like alt- soul artists such as Lianne la havas, Raveena and Hope Tala, my older sister is also a singer in Germany, called Lary, so seeing her grind has being super inspirational to me.

NEO: Should we be expecting new music anytime soon?

RAELLE:10000% end of next Jan I have a new single coming out, this one is slightly different, but it would be my most honest song to date

NEO:If you could pick any three artists to collaborate with in the UK who would it be?

RAELLE:Nao, Lianne la havas, Tom misch ​

NEO:What three words would your friends use to describe you?

RAELLE: A, bit, chaotic

NEO:Do you have any special talents aside from singing?

RAELLE: I love to bake, if it wasn’t singing, you would see me on bake off, but wouldn’t exactly call it a talent haha

NEO:What is your favorite album of all time, no skips?

RAELLE:Snoh Aalegra- Ugh those feels again, will listen to it forever

NEO:If you could make a difference in the world, what would you be known for?

RAELLE:Showing my flaws, weaknesses and fears and hoping other people find strength and healing in them

NEO:For your listeners and followers who are looking for some advice about life, what key advice would you give them?

RAELLE:Keep going, it's not going to be an easy journey every day, but every lesson is a blessing it teaches you more about yourself, make sure you are living for yourself and your own happiness over everything !