Emerging singer Rayana Jay is setting some guidelines on how to love her with her new EP titled Love Me Like, which is out today via EMPIRE.
“I have this overwhelming sense of excitement,” Jay shares over the phone with Rated R&B. “I feel a little anxious but it’s a good anxiety. I’m excited because it’s a project that I worked so hard on for so long.”
Love Me Like is Jay’s third EP, following 2017’s Morning After and 2016’s Sorry About Last Night. She tells Rated R&B she took a different approach this time when it came down to recording Love Me Like.
“One of the biggest differences between Sorry About Last Night and Morning After and Love Me Like was location,” she says. “I recorded my first two EPs at home. For Love Me Like, I was in New York last summer when I recorded that. I think the discomfort in being a new place helped shape the project. I always write love songs, so I think writing from a place that was new to me kind of made them hit a little different.”
Love Me Like consists of seven tracks and includes features from Duckwrth, G-Eazy and Beni Moun. Read what Jay had to say about each song below.
“If You Won’t”
The inspiration behind a lot of the songs on Love Me Like was to be a personal handbook that tells the listeners how I want and deserve to be loved. I just thought it made sense for the first song in my handbook to be “If You Won’t.” It basically says what you won’t do, there are a thousand people who will do it. And I have no problem leaving you to find what I need.
“Love Me Like” featuring Duckwrth
“Love Me Like is a long-distance love story. I wanted to write a song about knowing you only have a few moments with your lover; capturing the possibilities, the fun, and ultimately, the heartbreak you feel when it’s time to go.” Working with Duckwrth was amazing! This is the first song that I’ve done that has a feature on it where I actually got to work with the featured artist in the studio. Just to feel his energy and watch his creative process take place was just hella tight.
“Know Names”
That song is about love at first sight. I tell people if you don’t believe in that, hopefully by the end of the song you will. I worked on that song in LA with a producer name Mars Today. He just played the beat for me and it’s the type of emotional guitar sound he was using that kind of made that song come out. I didn’t really have to work on it that long. The words kind of just fell out as soon as I heard the music.
“That’s Alright”
“That’s Alright” is the answer to “Know Names.” At the end of “Know Names,” I say “Do you believe in love at first sight? / We can be in love by tonight / Baby if that’s alright with you.” And then boom, we go into “That’s Alright,” which pretty much says, “Hey whatever you want to do, it’s alright. We can do this. We can do that. It’s all good to me.”
“Do Betta”
I feel like a lot of people settle in relationships. I feel like we have standards and we have expectations, but when we get in a relationship we much rather hold onto the relationship than hold onto our standards. “Do Betta” is a call to action. If you want to keep me, you have to do better.
“Breakfast in Bed”
It’s a little cute, nasty song. It’s about staying in bed for that thang [laughs]. It’s a cute way to say some not so cute things.
“Hangover” featuring G-Eazy and Beni Moun
That’s one of my favorite songs on there. It’s about the aftermath of a breakup. It’s about your lover being a type of drug and when that’s all over, you don’t really have anything but a hangover. You don’t have any mental clarity. You are a mess. You’re hurt. You’re sick. So, it’s a breakup anthem.
Stream Rayana Jay’s Love Me Like EP below.
