Arin Ray on Losing 'X Factor,' Dealing with Tragedy, and Writing Hit Songs
There are plenty of artists who’ve fallen through the cracks of reality TV competition history, never to be seen or heard of again after going through the public wringer of judgment and rejection. Arin Ray was determined not to be counted among the fallen. When he was just 15, the R&B artist appeared on The X-Factor for two subsequent seasons — he was “mentored” by Britney Spears the second time around — but was eventually eliminated. He learned some hard lessons from the experience.
“If you ain't got it, it's a cold world out here,” Arin tells Teen Vogue. “People aren't here to babysit or hold your hand along the way. [This is] a grown person's game and you gotta be able to play it.”
After graduating high school, moving to Los Angeles, and earning credits on a string of hits for artists like Nicki Minaj, John Legend, Young Thug, and Jeremih — he released Platinum Fire, a 14-track album that includes features from Ty Dolla $ign, DRAM, and YG.
He wrote one of the songs, notably, while mourning his cousin, Laron Lovett, who was shot in his hometown of Bond Hill; grief peeks through the cracks of certain tracks in the album like “We Ain’t Homies.” It’s the kind of debut that balances fresh stardom and navigating the vapidness of Hollywood with the growth of a young musician who was almost lost to the annals of music history.
“I'm becoming a man out here,” he says, about living in Los Angeles. “I've become a father. I’ve learned a lot of things with business, and with a label, having managers that don't work. I've learned a lot about the business. I learned a lot about myself, personally.“
Arin's goals are bold — a number one album, a number one single, and a Grammy. And yes, he has loftier aspirations.
“First you gotta be able to do something for yourself, then you gotta be able to do it for other people,” he says. “Right now, I'm trying to change my life but I'm trying to change other peoples' lives as well.”
Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
