Meet RAIGN (Rachel Rabin) | Artist / Songwriter / Producer / Composer and Founder of Millionaire London Records

As a youth, I always struggled with the Question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I was very academic at school but also creative and it never dawned on me to do a creative job, so I went to university to study civil engineering.

It was horrible. I have never felt so out of place in my life and even though I aced all my exams in the first year, I felt like a failure just because I didn’t want to be there. Something was wrong, and it took another eight years to figure out what it was.

Years later, at a local karaoke night in London, I got asked to audition to sing in a party band and I got the job. When I walked on stage in front of thousands of people at a music festival for the first time, I felt like I had found my true self, and I felt the magic that live music can give people. At that moment, I dedicated myself to making music and singing for a living.

Already 25 years old at the time, I decided to revisit my childhood studies of music theory at Trinity Guildhall School of Music in London and get qualified professionally in vocal performance. As I got more confident, my skills as a songwriter also developed. My first poem was published in a local newspaper when I was nine and had been writing lyrics and stories in a notebook since I could hold a pen. I started to take leaps of faith and submit my songs to industry professionals in London and Los Angeles, which led to signing my first publishing deal with EMI Music in 2011.

The short answer is I didn’t really decide to pursue an artistic career; rather, the opportunities called to me very strongly and I just couldn’t ignore them.

I am a British artist and songwriter based in Los Angeles. I write and perform alt-pop and alt-rock music with a dark/epic/cinematic theme, but I also write urban, indie-rock, and electronic dance music. My songs have been used in incredible TV shows and movies, including The Vampire Diaries, The 100, Pretty little liars, and Grey’s Anatomy, and I have been lucky enough to write and release songs with many major label artists, including Rita Ora, Ty Dolla $ign and Jesse McCartney as well as amazing DJs like Swanky Tunes and Fred Falke. I am humbled to say that I have gained an epic, loyal fanbase along the way, supporters who empower and inspire me to keep making music.

I am also the founder and CEO of the LA-based indie record label and production company Millionaire London Records, which I founded in 2014 as a way to release my own music, but over the years, it has evolved and is now home for some other incredible songs. Managing an indie label has allowed me to utilize the business management skills I learned as a young adult, but has also enabled me to control all my master recordings and work closely with digital streaming platforms to find my fans and supporters organically. Millionaire London Records has also become home to “I Am The Label;” a mentoring hub for indie artists, and “She Records,” a support fund for female artists and producers.

During the pandemic, I also launched an eCommerce store to house my official artist merch and then founded the eco-friendly, cosmic-themed fashion line “RAIGN & Orion,” as well as a local mom-and-pop custom swag brand called “Custom Venice Mom,” which makes custom swag for local schools and families.

Working full-time as a songwriter, artist, or creative entrepreneur is a super tough career choice. You have to take chances continually, work on spec, and keep taking leaps of faith even when you become successful. This process doesn’t ever stop; even years into your career, you will still hear a No more often than a Yes.

The fuel that keeps me going when times are hard is the incredible comments that I get on youtube from listeners around the world, telling me that my song or voice has changed their life, healed them, made them laugh or cry, or even saved them sometimes. These messages keep me pushing forward, climbing up and making more music. This career choice isn’t about me, it is about what I can give to those who want to listen. Giving up is not an option, no matter how many times I fall.

There was a quote I once read that resonated with me, and I remember it often. It went something like this: “If you think carrying on is hard, try giving up, it is even harder.”

So many wonderful people have guided me along the way; Firstly, I have to shout out my amazing mum, who asked me to sing last minute at a local youth talent show years ago and has encouraged me to follow my dreams every step of the way. Then of course, I am eternally grateful to my fans and supporters, who have literally streamed and downloaded my music into reality and been the driving force behind my entire career as an artist.

I owe an incredible amount to my publishers at Sony Music, who listened to my songwriting demos very early on and offered me a life-changing publishing deal and have done so many great things for my catalog ever since. And the music supervisors who have changed my life incomparably by using my songs in their incredible TV shows and movies.

And last but not least, I owe so much to the incredibly talented songwriters and producers who have composed songs with me. Music is a collaborative career path. Many of us can write a whole song alone, but what would be the fun of doing that every day? My collaborators make me a better writer; we all make each other better. The reason there is such good music in the world is that total strangers go into a soundproof room together, bare their vulnerable souls, and then work really hard to finish their songs with no promise of them ever being heard by a single person. It is a crazy career.