This Music May Contain Hope

Following the release of her debut, My 21st Century Blues, in February 2023, Raye embarked on a two-year promotional cycle, including a world tour. During this period, she released the live albums My 21st Century Symphony (Live at the Royal Albert Hall) (2023), and Live at Montreux Jazz Festival (2024). J Erving, founder and CEO of Human Re Sources, attributed the success of her debut and the anticipation for her second album to this extensive live presence. On her birthday in October 2024, Raye shared to her Instagram that song books containing material for her upcoming second studio album had been stolen along with her car, and that there would be "no second album any time soon". In 2025, Raye began teasing the album on her social media, including a post shared to her Instagram in October 2025, where she mentioned that she was "writing a lot" and that she "cant wait to show [her fans] this new music". During a September 2025 interview with the BBC, Raye explained that she planned to put out an album "in first half of next year", but that she still needed to finish it. In a subsequent interview with Capital UK the following month, she revealed that her stolen car containing the song books had been found, which she was informed of "two to three months ago" by the police, and that the books were untouched. ==Writing and recording==

Development for This Music May Contain Hope began in late 2023. Throughout the recording process, Raye aimed to maintain a central theme of hope, and to create a project that is "not just for [her]" but to encourage other people to "not give up on life". In an Apple Music interview with Zane Lowe, Raye discussed the creation of the songs on the album. She explained that she and Mike Sabath took a trip to Big Bear Lake, California, in early 2025, where the pair came up with the tracks "Where Is My Husband!", "Skin & Bones", "Joy", and "Beware.. the South London Lover Boy". For "Joy", Raye incorporated a vocal loop sampled from a James Brown recording, specifically selecting a section where Brown utters the phrase "Miss Ray, are you somebody?". ==Composition==

Consisting of 17 tracks with a total runtime of 73 minutes, This Music May Contain Hope is structured around four distinct seasons: autumn, winter, spring, and summer, with each side of the vinyl representing the different seasons. The autumn section includes tracks 1–4, the winter section includes tracks 5–8, the spring section includes tracks 9–12, and the summer section includes tracks 13–17. According to Ashanti Meadows from Melodic Magazine, This Music May Contain Hope is intended to "span the complexities of human emotion". Musically, This Music May Contain Hope blends sounds of jazz, orchestral pop, blues, big band, and soul. As noted by Riff Magazine and The Diamondback, Raye also works electropop into the track "Life Boat", blending "distorted vocals" and "spoken interludes". Raye has described the album's sound as a "form of rebellion" from the "former model she existed in for so many years" of everything being "so simple and so minimal". Speaking to Apple Music, she stated the record "embraces maximalism" and that she "expressed and explored any genre [she] wanted to, from big band swing to hip hop ". NME likened This Music May Contain Hope to an "extravagant theatre performance" and highlighted Raye's vocal performance on the album, while Slant Magazine described Raye as refusing "to be pigeonholed into any one genre". Meanwhile, Rolling Stone described the project as being full of "old-school show-tune[s]", with elements of big-band, "retro Sixties" R&B, the "occasional club beat", and endless "glamorously tragic" scenarios. ==Release and promotion==

On 19 September 2025, Raye made the album available for pre-order and gave a 2026 release date. On 22 January 2026, she announced that the album, titled This Music May Contain Hope, would be released on 27 March, through Human Re Sources. In an interview with Elle in January, Raye revealed that the record's intro and first track would be "Girl Under the Gray Cloud" and "I Will Overcome", respectively. The full track list was posted to Raye's Instagram on 11 March. Live performances in Chicago on April 10, 2026 Raye first performed material from This Music May Contain Hope at the Glastonbury Festival in June 2025, including the live debut of "Where Is My Husband!", known at the time as "Where the Hell Is My Husband?". In July, Raye performed new material from the album at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Her performance of "I Know You're Hurting" and "Where Is My Husband!" from the festival were later released on 12-inch vinyl through Raye's official store on 26 December. On 18 September, Raye announced on her social media that the album would be supported by a concert tour, set to begin in January 2026. In October 2025, Raye performed a seven-minute set at the NFL London Games halftime show, where she sang "Where Is My Husband!" as part of her setlist. On 6 December, Raye performed at the Capital Jingle Bell Ball, where she sang songs from This Music May Contain Hope, including "Where Is My Husband!" and "I Know You're Hurting". In January 2026, Raye embarked on her concert tour entitled This Tour May Contain New Music, which is set to conclude in May of the same year. The tour will span 51 shows across Europe and North America. On 28 February, Raye performed "Where Is My Husband!" at the Brit Awards, as well as the live debut of "Nightingale Lane". On 27 March, Raye performed "Where Is My Husband!" at the iHeartRadio Music Awards ceremony. Singles, promotional singles, and videos (pictured) co-produced "Click Clack Symphony" and is credited as a featured artist on the track.|alt=German film composter Hans Zimmer, pictured in 2018. On 19 September 2025, Raye released "Where Is My Husband!" as the lead single from This Music May Contain Hope, alongside its music video directed by The Reids. The song reached number one on the UK singles chart in January 2026, becoming Raye's second number one single in the country. Elsewhere, it reached number 11 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and number six on the Billboard Global 200. The song was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2026 Brit Awards, while the music video won the award for Video of the Year at the MOBO Awards 2026. On 14 November 2025, a remix of "Where Is My Husband!" by French DJ David Guetta and Italian producer Hypaton was released to streaming services. On December 26, Raye released a live version of "I Know You're Hurting" as a B-side to "Where Is My Husband!", both performed at Montreux Jazz Festival, on 12-inch vinyl as the album's first promotional single. The vinyl was made available on Raye's official store, and a video of the live performance of "I Know You're Hurting" from the festival accompanied the release. "I Know You're Hurting" reached number 22 on the UK singles chart. On 27 February, the album's second single "Nightingale Lane" was released. A video of a live performance with the Flames Collective and the London Symphony Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios in London, England accompanied the release. The song was issued on 7-inch vinyl with a B-side featuring the live performance at Abbey Road. "Nightingale Lane" reached number 20 on the UK singles chart. On 20 March, the album's third single, "Click Clack Symphony" featuring German film composer Hans Zimmer, was released alongside a music video directed by Dave Meyers. It reached number 11 on the UK singles chart, and number 68 on the Billboard Global 200. ==Critical reception==

The review aggregator Any Decent Music gave the album a weighted average score of 8.4 out of 10 from sixteen critic scores. Critics praised the ambition and scale on This Music May Contain Hope. Andy Hill of Clash described Raye's ambition as "staggering" and noted her "fourth-wall-breaking familiarity", while referring to "Click Clack Symphony" as a "Beyoncé-level anthem". Ben Tipple of DIY similarly dubbed the album a "stunning showcase of her ever-growing confidence", observing that Raye traverses themes of "love, heartbreak, life, and death ". Helen Brown of The Independent likened the album to an "epic Technicolor movie", highlighting Raye's "matey warmth" and calling the work a "pure audio spectacle". Puah Ziwei of NME agreed that while the album is "a lot to take in", its "unrestrained, all-in approach" makes the journey worthwhile, calling it an "extravagant theatre performance" grounded in relatable experiences. Reviewers also praised the production, stylistic elements and vocals. Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone dubbed the album a "lavish 73-minute narrative", and John Murphy of MusicOMH noted its "rare scale and energy", saying it feels designed to be revisited "time and time again". James Hall of The Daily Telegraph observed a wide range of influences and commended Raye's "extraordinary voice and quick-fire delivery", though he did note the project "occasionally slips into self indulgence". Steve Erickson of Slant Magazine wrote that the album "reaffirms Raye's refusal to be pigeonholed into any one genre", adding that even when lyrics verge on cliché, Raye is "refreshingly unconcerned with sounding corny". Boutayna Chokrane of Pitchfork emphasised the meticulous arrangements, "immaculate production value", and praised Raye's choice to be "inconvenient" in a "TikTok-driven" industry, highlighting anthemic moments like the brassy "Where Is My Husband!" and the six-minute centerpiece "I Know You're Hurting". Alexis Petridis of The Guardian found the album to be "a lot" - overstuffed with ideas - and said it "wobbles unsteadily along the line that separates unbridled self-expression from self-indulgence". He criticised lengthy spoken-word interludes and dialogues on tracks like "Life Boat", but conceded that the album "pays off more often than it fails". Petridis concluded that in a risk-averse era, Raye's boldness stands out, stating "the climate of the 21st century has led artists to be risk-averse", but that's "not a label you could pin on Raye". ==Commercial performance==

In the United Kingdom, This Music May Contain Hope debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Raye's first album to do so. It opened with 46,976 album-equivalent units, consisting of 28,701 pure album sales, 2,723 downloads, and 15,552 sales-equivalent streams. Additionally, it debuted at number one on six other charts in the country; the Independent Albums Chart, the Album Downloads Chart, and was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for total sales of over 60,000 copies. In Germany, the album debuted at number three on the Offizielle Top 100 chart. while also debuting in the top ten of four other Billboard album charts, including at number three on the Independent Albums chart. ==Track listing==

Notes • All tracks are stylised with a full stop at the end except "Where Is My Husband!", which is also stylised in all caps. • Indicates a co-producer. • Indicates an additional producer. ==Personnel==

Credits were adapted from Tidal. Musicians • Rachel Keen – lead vocals • Chris Hill – arrangement (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 11, 17), bass guitar (2, 3, 9, 11, 13), double bass (4), synthesiser (7) • Tom Richards – arrangement (1, 2, 4, 5, 11, 17), piano (2), background vocals (3, 9, 15), saxophone (3, 16), programming (4), glockenspiel (9), tenor saxophone (10), piano (11) • The London Symphony Orchestra – instrumentation (1, 2, 5, 7, 11) • James Maddren – drums (2, 11) • Katy Hill – soprano (2) • Trevor Mires – brass (3), trombone (4, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16) • Paul Murray – electric guitar (3, 7, 10, 11, 14, 16), background vocals (3, 9) • Matt Brooks – drums (3, 7, 10, 14, 16), background vocals (3, 9, 15) • Graeme Blevins – saxophone (3, 9, 13, 15, 16), alto saxophone (10) • Danielle Bernard – organ (3, 9, 16), background vocals (3, 14, 15), piano (7) • Pete Clements – background vocals (3, 9, 15), bass guitar (7), synthesiser (10), arrangement (16) • Dan Ellis – percussion (3, 9, 13), saxophone (16) • Mike Sabath – background vocals (3, 9, 15), bass guitar (13) • Liv Thompson – background vocals (3, 15), bass guitar (10, 14, 16) • Aaron Emanuel – background vocals (3, 15) • Jesse McGinty – trombone (3), arrangement (16) • Ryan Quigley – trumpet (3) • Dan Oates – violin (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Kirsty Mangan – violin (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Matthew Ward – violin (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Paloma Deike – violin (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Sam Kennedy – violin (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Emma Owens – viola (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Rachael Lander – cello (4, 8–10, 15, 16) • Joe Webb – piano (4, 9, 12, 16), synthesiser (10) • Callum Au – trombone (4, 9, 12, 15), instrumentation (7, 16) • Tom Walsh – trumpet (4, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16) • Andy Wood – trombone (4, 9, 12, 15) • George Hogg – trumpet (4, 9, 12, 15) • Mike Davis – trumpet (4, 9, 12, 15) • Tom Dennis – trumpet (4, 9, 12, 15) • Nichol Thomson – trombone (4, 9, 15) • Ed Richardson – drums (4, 9) • Hendric Buenck – arrangement (6) • Russell Emanuel – arrangement (6) • Charlie Paxson – cello (6) • Roman Soto – percussion (6) • Nashville Music Scoring Orchestra – instrumentation (6) • Flames Collective – choir vocals (7, 11) • Layla Ley – background vocals (7, 14) • Patrice Copeland – background vocals (7, 14) • Matthias Simmons – synthesiser (7) • Kofi-William Osafo – spoken word (8) • Howard McGill – saxophone (9, 12, 15) • Jon Shenoy – saxophone (9, 12, 15) • Mike Liserge – saxophone (9, 12, 15) • Paul Booth – saxophone (9, 12, 15) • Augie Haas – trumpet (9) • Reverend Charles Hodges – organ (10) • Tom Cawley – piano (11) • Skin – saxophone (12) • Distant Cowboy – cello (13) • Grandma – spoken word (1, 13) • Ivan Malespin – trombone (13) • Aaron Janik – trumpet (13) • Mike Cordone – trumpet (13) • Yasmeen Al-Mazeedi – violin (13) • Rita Andrade – violin (13) • Abby-Lynn Keen – lead vocals (15) • Lauren Keen – lead vocals (15) • Richard Phillips – cello (16) Technical • Alex Robinson – engineering • Andrew Dudman – engineering (1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 17), mixing (1, 17) • Chris Parker – engineering (1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 17) • Mat Bartram – engineering (4, 9) • Nick Spezia – engineering (6) • Clay Jones – engineering (10) • Liam Nolan – vocal engineering (15) • Noah Urrea – vocal engineering (15) • Joe Brice – additional engineering (4, 9, 10, 16), second engineering (3, 4, 9, 10), engineering assistance (11, 12, 15, 16) • Paul Norris – additional engineering (4, 9, 15) • Harpaal Sanghera – additional engineering (12), second engineering (3, 12, 14) • Neil Dawes – second engineering (1, 2, 11, 17) • Charlie Howe – engineering assistance (1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 17) • Jules Bonnet – engineering assistance (2, 5, 6) • Mollie Crammond – engineering assistance (2–4, 6, 7, 9–16) • Sanjana Walia – engineering assistance (3, 4, 8–12, 14–16) • Cecilia Griffin – engineering assistance (4, 7, 9–11, 13) • Matis Herbouze – engineering assistance (5, 6) • Paulin Guiraudon – engineering assistance (5, 6) • Soledad Poussielgues Melia – engineering assistance (5) • Scott McEwen – engineering assistance (10) • Alex Pyle – engineering assistance (13) • Isaac Allan – engineering assistance (13) • Jon Castelli – mixing (2, 4–8) • Tony Maserati – mixing (3, 10–16) • Alan Meyerson – mixing (6) • Chris Hill – mixing (9) • Tom Richards – mixing (9) • Mike Hillier – mastering (1–12, 14–17) • Dale Becker – mastering (13) • Raimund Bretterbauer - engineering ==Charts==