RAY

What do you do when a rap recorded in your college dorm goes viral on campus, becoming a local anthem and almost getting you suspended in your freshman year? If you’re Chicago hip-hop artist ray, you press pause on your rising music success and shift your focus to radical political initiatives, business ventures and philosophical exploration. With a matured perspective and sharpened sound, the Kansas City native returns to the Chicago rap scene nearly six years after his buzzworthy release of “LUC Trap.” Ryan Adam Sorrell, known by his stage name ray, is an African-American rapper, singer, songwriter, writer, entrepreneur, techno-political philosopher, social advocate, digital analyst, and self-proclaimed Polymath. Formerly signed to Kansas City-based underground label Ambient Ambitions, Sorrell is currently independent and has founded his own cultural production enterprise, BlackRainbow. Ryan Adam Sorrell was born in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and grew up in Lee's Summit, Missouri, a predominantly white suburb in the Kansas City metropolitan area. He participated in debate and varsity basketball while attending Lee's Summit North High School. Ray attributes his malleable sound to the fact he "spent as much time with his nerd friends as he did with his friends who sold drugs and frequented jail." He has admitted to once being addicted to World of Warcraft - or more embarrassingly, nearly being suspended from Loyola University of Chicago for stealing books from the library that were already free. While he made an early foray into music by learning the viola and ultimately making his school’s award-winning symphonic orchestra, ray’s entrepreneurial spirit took hold before his hip-hop ambitions. In middle school, he was suspended for establishing a “fight club” in the school bathroom, requiring people to pay for admission. In high school, he was again suspended multiple times for various petty infringements. Soon after, he planted the seeds of his rap career. With Camp of the Saints, ray evolves yet again. His new sound fuses qualities of early-modern hip hop innovators like Drake, Kanye and the subtle politics embedded in even Kendrick’s most club-focused verses - over modern production styles the likes of Playboi Carti, Lil Yachty, and Trippie Redd. He’s equally likely to reference his drug-dealing past as he is the pitfalls of capitalism, all filtered through the undeniable bounce of radio-ready rap. From the brag-filled flex of “Better” to the inspirational, “rise-and-grind” message in “King,” the songs of Saints are united in their thematic and sonic variety. Recorded while still working a corporate day job, the project’s tracks touch on subjects that connect with his young progressive audience.