RAYE

Surely, RAYE, the famous singer, can brag something straightforwardly. No, we don’t mean the long list of her awards, although she is the record-setter in this area. We mean her big multi-racial friendly family. RAYE’s fans remember that sweet moment at the BRIT Awards ceremony when she asked her grandmother Agatha Dawson to join her on the stage and share her glory moment. RAYE, who won six BRIT awards at a time, confessed that her musical talent was shaped and refined by her grandmother and other members of her family. Let’s look a little closer at all of them.

Who are RAYE parents?

Paul Keen (father)

Date of birth: March 31

RAYE’s most devoted fans know, that her real name is Rachel Keen. She is the daughter of a white-skinned father, a real English gentleman, and a Ghanaian mother, whose cultural heritage Raye values so much.

Her father’s name is Paul Keen. He grew up in a musical surrounding and was the musical director of a church choir. There he met the woman, who gave birth to our today’s protagonist RAYE.

Paul was brought up in Heckmondwike, a small but picturesque town in West Yorkshire County, England. He attended the prestigious Heckmondwike Grammar School there, where he studied business analysis.

RAYE’s father has made a wonderful career as a business analyst. He worked in such super reputable companies as “Allianz Insurance” and “Willis Towers Watson”, and gained the reputation of a very competent business analyst. But music has always been his great hobby.

His daughter Rachel (RAYE) was just 10 years old when she discovered that music was her calling. And Paul put lots of effort into supporting his daughter in her dream to become a professional musician. Paul created for Rachel the space in their house, where she could work on her music skills. He covered the door with the duvet to create better acoustics in the room and encouraged Rachel to record the covers and her songs, using a microphone he had bought for her.

Paul had an extensive collection of CDs, and he introduced little Rachel to the greatest singers of all time, like Alicia Keys and Billie Holiday. That left a deep imprint on Rachel’s inner world and helped her form her unique music style.

Nowadays, he reps RAYE as a singer. Paul also manages the music careers of his younger daughters Abby and Lauren.

Sarah Keen (mother)

RAYE’s mother is of Ghanaian origin. It was her mother Agatha, whom RAYE invited to the stage during the BRIT awards ceremony to get her richly deserved six honors. By the way, she took Rachel’s second name – Agatha – from her maternal grandmother.

Sarah used to sing in a church choir, where she met Paul Keen. They tied the knot on April 8, 1995, and have remained strong since then.

Although music has always been an important part of Sarah’s life, she was not involved in it professionally. Instead, she dedicated her life to NHS Trust.

Sarah is a doting modern mother, who helps her four daughters find their bliss.

RAYE siblings

Lauren Keen (younger sister)

Date of birth: November 5, 2001

Rachel was the first in her breed to climb the success ladder. But obviously, she is not the only one. Two other sisters, Lauren and Abby, are making careers as singers/songwriters, too. The three girls reside in the big house in London, where they are often visited by Paul and Sarah.

Lauren Keen and RAYE share a close bond. The award-winning singer supports her younger sister and often compliments Lauren’s beautiful looks on Instagram.

Lauren likes experimenting with her hairstyles – you can see her on Instagram photos wearing straight and curly hair, dying it light brown or pink. But that’s not the only thing RAYE’s sister likes doing. Her other passion is music, and she follows her dreams. In March 2022 she was signed by Warner Chappell Music UK, which manages the careers of young songwriters.

Hopefully, Lauren will make a lot of fuss as a singer and songwriter soon.

Abby Keen (younger sister)

RAYE’s other younger sister Abby is following in her footsteps, too. The girl is building her career as a singer and songwriter.

Her full name is Abby Lynn Keen. She started performing at the tender age of 16. At first, Abby released songs under the stage name “aB Keen”. Later, she chose another stage moniker – ABSOLUTELY.

Abby grew up in Tooting, London. She started her music career in 2019. Her father Paul serves as a music manager for her. She released a string of EPs, named after the autumn months – “September”, “October”, and “November”. Later she added “December” to her sets of songs.

As a young singer, she contributed her vocals to the songs of more mature artists. Thus, she was a back vocalist for RAYE’s song “Love Me Again”. She also opened shows for Miraa May in London.

One of her greatest achievements as of now is the EP “First Place”, which made a great resonance in the music industry.

Abby is touring with her sister RAYE a lot.

Katelyn Keen (younger sister)

Katelyn is the youngest girl in the Keen family. She is the only one, who is not going to devote her life to music. The girl still resides with her parents in London. She is a very religious kid and thinks about God a lot.

Bio

Raye has become a sensation and entered music history in January 2024. At that time she got seven nominations (and won six of them) within one evening. Her awards include prestigious categories, like the Album of the Year and the Artist of the Year, etc. RAYE’s road to success was rocky and long.

She was born in Tooting and raised in Croydon, a vivid town in South London. She was a tomboy in her teens and could escape her parents’ home at 3 a.m. to smoke a cigarette with her friends.

But music has always been an inseparable part of her life. She was just 17 when Polydor Records signed her. That was great luck for a teen girl, which ended with a scandal. She left Polydor as she felt so outnumbered there. “I was asked to find my inner white singer”, she said in her interview, complaining that her unique music style was not in demand.

Raye’s first independent album “My 21st Century Blues”, released in 2023, got universal appeal and catapulted the singer to stardom. In 2024, she cemented her initial success with six gongs at the BRIT Awards.