Introducing Rai-Elle

Meet 19-year old Rai-Elle, the prodigious young R&B singer making her way impressively through the pop scene. The South London Songstress has been gracing our ears for years, following her journey from CBBC's Got What It Takes and The X-Factor the passionate singer's only direction from here is up!

After the success of her popular debut titled 'KSB (Always On My Mind)' and multiple other highly admired singles including 'All about U' and latest release 'Mistaken' it is not surprising that this enabled her to grow a stronger and larger fan base with over 33,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and 71,000+ followers on Instagram; the upcoming talent will be one to definitely watch in the coming years.

Growing up on an abundance of timeless R&B music featuring very influential women, the songstress' strong belief in female empowerment is heard seamlessly and eloquently in her expressive songs.

Fortunately, I was able to catch up with now independent Rai-Elle to talk about her career so far and any future plans she has/wants in the works.

Q: At such a young age, it's incredible to see how distinct and prominent your voice is, no one sounds like you and you don't sound like anyone else. Was this something that came naturally to you?

A: Yes, I've never tried to sound like another artist. I'm inspired by many but have always tried to make things my own.

Q: For the people that are hearing your name for the first time, how would you describe your sound?

A: Authentic, soulful and memorable

Q: When you think back to your time on The X factor, do you feel like it helped you to establish yourself as an artist or do you think it was only after you left that you really thought back your identity?

A: It helped with my confidence as an artist because of the positive feedback but I believe that I was quite aware of my identity before the show. It confirmed that being true to myself is most important

Q: Throughout your journey from Got What It Takes all the way up to your latest release 'Mistaken', what would you say the most significant thing you've learned is in terms of the way you now write music?

A: Remain creative and versatile. I've learnt how to connect with my emotions and to understand them in order to express them in a way that I would like people to receive the message

Q: I recently came across you riff challenge on Instagram and it was very impressive. Would you say that you experiment with your voice at all? Whether it's through challenges or just everyday practise?

A: I am always singing and challenging myself to do better. Jazmine Sullivan is a vocal beast who I have always been inspired by so this was a no-brainer to take part in when I saw it on social media

Q: Since you are only 19 and have so many years ahead of you to do so many things are there any goals you have in mind that you are happy to share? e.g. Dream collaborations and milestones

A: I'd like to release an album and nominated for music awards. Dream collabs? I have many as I'm planning and hoping for this to be a long-term experience: Ms Banks, WSTRN, Shaybo, Stormzy, Queen Naija, Teyana Taylor, H.E.R, Lil Durk... The list goes on and I'm sure it will continue to grow

Q: In terms of this year, what's next for Rai-Elle?

A: More music releases, I spent a while feeling a little restricted but now that I have free reign there's nothing stopping me from putting R&B on the map alongside all of the other talented UK artists

It's safe to say Rai-Elle is extremely self-assured which will make a strong and fun addition to the UK music scene. Whilst we wait for her next releases watch her recent single's visuals below