Ray Blk on money, dating and the dark side of X Factor

<p>Four years ago, unsigned South London RnB singer Ray Blk won the BBC Sound Of poll and became one of the most hotly tipped rising stars of her generation. But, pressured to make pop music at the expense of her true self and in the throes of an identity crisis caused by the music industry's obsession with labels, her debut album stalled. Finally however, the brilliant album (Access Denied) is just around the corner, with her two freshly dropped singles Dark Skinned and MIA proving it was well worth the wait and beautifully authentic to boot.&nbsp;</p> <p>Ahead of the much anticipated album's release this September, Kathleen and Eleanor chatted to the singer over her favourite drink (dark rum) all about the songs that have soundtracked her incredible journey: from making music with her school friend MNEK to collaborating with Stormzy and paving her own way.</p> <p>She also gets candid about her come-up in this often cruel and exploitative industry, with Ray sharing for the very first time a traumatic X Factor audition that happened when she was 16, and a song from a few years ago that she regrets making today.&nbsp;</p> <p>Ray also shared hilarious anecdotes around first dates and first paycheques, her very first experiences of success and her craziest moments from the last few years (including her funniest drunken night out in Ghana).</p> <p>Follow Ray on Instagram <a href="https://www.instagram.com/rayblk/?hl=en">@rayblk </a>and pre-order Access Denied on iTunes or Amazon Music. Follow Eleanor on Instagram <a href="https://www.instagram.com/elliehalls1/?hl=en">@elliehalls1 </a>and Kathleen <a href=" https://www.instagram.com/kathleen.m.johnston/?hl=en">@kathleen.m.johnston</a></p> <p><em>This episode of Straight Up has two wonderful sponsors. First up </em><em><strong>hometipple</strong></em><em>, the one-stop-shop for creating your own at-home bar all the while giving back to winemakers, brewers and distillers all around the world. Use the discount code straighthome21 to open a PRO account that gets you 10% o