We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Damien Raye Alexander. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Damien below.
Hi Damien, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
By far the most meaningful project I have worked on is my Debut EP “Beauty in The Dark” coming August 26th. I decided to take all of my experiences I have been through for better or worse over this 10 year journey, and share my story with the world! All my life and career I have set out to help others, and really just be a light for the people. Nothing warms my heart like seeing thousands of messages of the people that tell you how much your music impacts them, I literally have saved lives through what I love, like what?! I knew all my life I wanted to be an artist, a star. Life just kept giving me signs and very deliberately placing people that helped me realize this is my destiny, it’s so crazy in the most fascinating way! I started this whole music journey in 2011, I was a timid and insecure kid known as Young-D-Man.
I just had a dream and a pen, a desire to be great and intention to help. Let’s just say I wasn’t fully ready at this time, so I became a target of bullying, it affected me more than people actually realized. So I “gave up” for like a year, tired of all the hate. Then eventually I rebranded myself as D-Raye. I started putting videos out on facebook and it all just kinda went crazy shortly after I started. I had grown in all aspects, and success started hitting when I was like 16 years old. By the time all of this had come I was playing shows everywhere in New England, working with local record labels, going on big talent shows, being recognized in public, I even was recognized by some of my idols! Really everything a kid would dream of.
From around 2016 to 2020 ironically I had been at the pinnacle of my career, yet my personal life really went under. This is when mental health issues really started to hit me, and I totally lost myself. After being in the spotlight then out of it this made me feel like people were laughing at me all over again.. I knew where I could be in life and where I belong in the music industry, but health had become such a huge issue. I couldn’t keep up anymore with the fans and everything like I had really wanted to, so I had an extreme period of being alone, feeling worthless/like I messed up my own dream.. That part really hurt the most. I wanted people to understand that nothing ever changed it wasn’t personal at all life just happened! I was bullying myself after becoming insecure from some of the things I have been through. I truly became my very own worst enemy.. I had to realize that in order to be a light for the world and live my dream fully, I had to go through this, to become who I was always meant to be. This became the birth of Damien Raye. D-Raye always DID mean Damien Raye, but in the sense of an artist name when you say the full name, it’s a totally different person/artist.
To me, wisdom is priceless and I believe you’re only given the battles you can handle. Everything happens for a reason as cliche as it may sound.. I have had so many blessings as well as setbacks. I did get a taste of the life I had always dreamed of, but the pressures of being a public figure interestingly enough brought out some trauma I hadn’t dealt with yet either.. So it was this paradox like here I am living the dream already, but I was feeling unworthy and almost undermining my achievements, as trauma has a way of doing this to you.. There literally is beauty in the dark. I believe there is a yin yang principle to everything in this universe. So to fully appreciate everything that I have, I had to kind of have it taken away in a sense. This universe really does work in very mysterious ways. Life is so beautiful and I believe in all its ups and downs, it was intended for us to live in abundance. That includes relationships, finances, opportunities, love, ideas, everything!!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
At the core of who I am and my brand, is that I am a very deep person and I always keep it real. Damien Raye is a light for the world, it’s literally in my name Raye as in rays of the sun, just with an e at the end. I tell stories in my music and I have a spiritual flavor on everything I do. All that darkness I talked about that I went through well I lived to tell the tale and share what I learned from it all. Being spiritually awakened is not all fun and games BUT I wouldn’t change it for anything. There’s extremely deep messages on the truth of life itself if you really listen to what I’m trying to say… It’s not just music or good sounds, it’s even more than that. I genuinely love the world and impacting humanity, my success isn’t ever just about me it is about what is possible for anyone and what life is all about!!! It’s about what can I do for you to make you feel inspired and have you living your best life? Damien Raye is a hip hop artist using lyrics about mental health, spirituality, and positive living to make an impact on the world. Sunrayes are a family, this fanbase is all about community and spreading that love and light. I love seeing people rock orange and yellow at my shows as it highlights the vibrance of this movement!
I am most proud of the fact that I am known as an inspiration, no one can ever tell me what to do or who to be. I am a free spirit, unafraid to take risk and encourage us as a collective to be better and live it up! On top of this people literally started calling me the comeback kid! No matter what has happened, they see I ALWAYS rose above and became stronger than ever. I am proud to be an example that even with all odds against me, we continuously make this dream a reality. I always think about others in what I do, speaking of which I can’t wait to buy my mom a house one day!!
I have been interested in music all my life, and literally told my parents when I was 2 years old that I want to be a singer. I just always knew!! I started writing raps when I was 8 years old, eventually when I got to middle school that’s when it became official. Damien Raye itself isn’t a character or anything made up, it’s ME. Vulnerabilities and all, everything you see is what you get. I am a normal human being that people tend to look at as an unstoppable superhero, I want to make it known that I am human just like you. You too can live your dream, you can spread light and become stronger than you ever imagined, it’s all on us we are divine creators or our reality!!
This all started for me literally when I was a little kid.. Most people in life have to go through so much and really FIND their dream, mine was just imprinted in my soul DNA it feels like I always knew what I am here to do. It’s such a blessing! I was head banging to heavy metal music when I was a baby, I always asked my grandma if she would clap and say yay for me cause I loved the crowds and attention, I could go on and on. Life is incredibly magical when you listen to your heart, not what other people tell you to do.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
By far the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the freedom of it and the impact it causes on the world. When you listen to our art you are diving into our vulnerabilities, our story, our success/failures, everything!! The way I see music especially is that it’s a universal language!! How beautiful is it that people that don’t even speak English can sing back what I’m saying?! Music is vibration and frequency, it makes us feel so good because it awakens something deep in our souls. I love to be unapologetically myself, with no filter whatsoever. Music gives me chills and so do crowd screams.. Being able to get in front of an audience doing what I love the most and feel so at home with is the biggest blessing in the world!! I can go on honestly forever about this subject. If you even think about what creativity and ideas are it’s all of the one universal mind, which we all have access to when we tap into it! Creativity is taking nothing and turning it into something and I think there’s nothing more beautiful than that. The essence of life itself is love, and so when we create with love we are being our god selves in human form.
I believe it is important to be yourself always as everyone else is already taken. I was always the kid that sat alone at lunch, people didn’t really like me for what seemed like no reason. I learned that some things about me and the love I carry, in an interesting way it triggers other people!!! I used to take it all personally but please remember, when people “hate” you or your art or anything at all, it says more about them than it does you. Someone like me that is making a dream reality and helping other people, doesn’t even have the thought of hate ever cross my mind. It’s a waste of time, we’re meant to shine in this life, everyone has unique characteristics and talents. No one can do what you do exactly how you do it!!! These are all things I love about being a creative. It allows you to be the real you, and shine your uniqueness and vulnerabilities and ideas that can change the world.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
I am a very avid reader/listener, there’s so many things it’s honestly hard to even keep track of them all at once! I am always seeking for knowledge no matter what medium it comes from. Some authors & teachers I recommend checking out if you really want to learn about the energy and reality of what human beings are.. Check out Abraham Hicks, Louise Hay, Joe Dispenza, Eckhart Tolle, Wayne Dyer, Jay Shetty, Bob Proctor there’s literally so many!!! One book that really impacted me a lot is “Ask And It Is Given” by Abraham Hicks. That was a book I had read many times in my life, and specifically on my 22nd birthday I had my spiritual awakening while I was reading it. I will never forget that.
Books carry energy and high intention with them, reading/listening to someone else’s knowledge over a lifetime can be learned in one sitting, it’s such a blessing to have!! Also one of my favorite video series I constantly come back to is from one my one of my favorite artists Big Sean! Watch his vlogs on YouTube about manifestation! Gonna give a big shoutout to my team regarding resources, thank you to my mentors/collaborators from The Nest Recording Studio DJ Matt Perry & Lucas Roy for being some of the best friends I have ever had and putting together an incredible first EP. Shoutout to another producer helping me get back in the game, Alex Solis out in L.A, can’t wait till I come out there and we work in person!
The biggest teacher of all for me has been life itself. I have had SO many magical experiences and also dark moments that you wouldn’t believe actually happened. In general, this life is more than it seems on the surface. What we have been told and this structure of society what life is supposed to be is all twisted. From all these things I always listen to my heart and intuition! I have noticed from everyone that I look up to I have always seen aspects of them, that I too have. This world is a mirror, what we feel about ourselves internally, is mirrored by the way people treat us/what happens in general it truly is wild!! I’d also recommend checking out Andrea Schulman on YouTube to learn how everything works in an energy perspective. There’s so many people out here nowadays if you want to learn something, just put in the time and search for it!! You will get what you seek. My team/friends have all been very instrumental in helping me become better and more entrepreneurial as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/damienraye/beauty-in-the-dark-ep
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/imdamienraye
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/imdamienraye
- Twitter: https://instagram.com/imdamienraye
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DamienRaye
- Other: Nothing Ever Changed Official Music Video from Beauty In The Dark EP: https://youtu.be/oGtJ0o0eUSI Pre Save Debut EP Beauty In the Dark coming out August 26th!!! https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/damienraye/beauty-in-the-dark-ep Add my personal facebook if you want to enter my world more! https://www.facebook.com/damien.raye.alexander TikTok: https://tiktok.com/imdamienraye
Image Credits
Alex Dumas (feature photo) Hero The Emcee (stage photos) Lucas Roy (studio photos)