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Raye grew emotional as he told his huge crowd at Reading Festival on Saturday that he once played to just “two people” at a festival and “always prayed” that people would one day “care” about his music.
The six-time Brit Award winner, 26, stunned at the festival in a chocolate brown sequin dress.
Her dress was sleeveless and featured elegant sheer panels on the sides that made Raye’s waist appear even smaller.
Raye, who took the stage barefoot, was accompanied by her backing singers, all dressed in white.
While on stage, Raye addressed the crowd and said, ‘It’s always been a dream of mine to play this festival.
An emotional Raye tells her huge Reading Festival audience that she once played to just “two people” at a festival and that she “always prayed” that one day people would “care”.
The six-time Brit Award-winning singer stunned at the festival in a chocolate brown sequin dress.
Her dress was sleeveless and featured elegant sheer panels on the sides that made Raye’s waist appear even smaller.
“I didn’t think I’d be starting out here, on the main stage, with all these people. This is crazy. I did it, guys!”
‘I came to Reading when I was 16 and had just finished my GCSEs, I was deep in the dance tent living my life.
‘When I came to this festival at 16 I thought: ‘One day I’m going to play here and I can’t believe we’re here.’
‘I’ve played so many shitty festivals… When I say ‘shitty’, I don’t mean that kind of festival. I mean I’ve been ready to play and there were two people in the audience and I always prayed that one day someone would give up and now I’m here playing in Reading.
“Anything is possible: I was here when I was 16 with a dream and look at me now.”
Six of the songs in Raye’s set were upbeat and positive, but one focused on sexual assault.
Ahead of the song, Raye said, ‘I made a promise to myself when I became an independent artist that I would make honest music about the things I’ve been through, which is medicine and music can make you heal and feel better, listened to and heard.
“I’m a crybaby and this is a sad song, but I’m gonna sing it. I pray you don’t relate to it, but if you do, I hope it feels like a hug. It’s called Ice Cream Man.”
Unfortunately there was a medical issue in the audience during Raye’s set and she made sure to take a break until it was resolved.
Raye, who took the stage barefoot, was accompanied by her backing singers, all dressed in white.
While on stage, Raye addressed the audience and said, “I’ve always dreamed of playing this festival. I didn’t think I’d start here, on the main stage.”
“I’ve played so many shitty festivals… when I say ‘shitty’, I don’t mean that kind of festival. I mean I was ready to play and there were two people in the audience.
“I always prayed that one day someone would give up and now I’m here playing for Reading. Anything is possible – I was here at 16 with a dream and look at me now.”
Six of the songs in Raye’s set were upbeat and positive, but one focused on sexual assault.
Ray was One of five artists chosen to open Taylor Swift’s The Eras tourwhen the 34-year-old megastar returned to Wembley Stadium for a further five sold-out nights from August 15-20.
Following her big performance, Raye took to Instagram to share a carousel of images from this month, including several of her incredible onstage performances and one of her hugging Taylor.
Among the snaps, Raye shared a glimpse of Taylor’s handwritten note in which she says she’s a “huge fan” of the Escapism singer before thanking her for agreeing to open her show.
The message read: “Raye, I am a huge fan of yours and have been for years. I can’t believe how lucky I was, that you said ‘yes’ and joined us on such an important night of The Eras Tour, our last night at Wembley! Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”