Introducing London’s Phenom HEY, BABY With Their Latest Offering ‘THEATRE!’

London’s phenomenon, Hey, Baby, today drops their debut single, ‘Theatre!’. As a contestant on Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, Baby gained a dedicated fanbase, including the support of their idol FKA Twigs, and they recently featured in the music videos for Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ current number 1 single, ‘Unholy’, and Charli XCX’s ‘Hot In It’.

“I make music as a way or immortalising the queer, black experience.” The 26 year old non-binary artist, known affectionately as Baby, has burst onto the scene with their first offering ‘Theatre!’. A fierce declaration of what’s to come and “an ode to queer rage”, ‘Theatre!’ is about “giving yourself permission not to be okay” through mental health struggles. Produced by LXDEE, the new track commands the listener’s attention from the off, kicking down the door of genre restrictions, oozing punk anarchy and hyperpop sensibilities with tenacity and raucous abandonment.

In Baby’s own words, “I feel that there is a lot of pressure to push through your pain in order to be “successful” in a capitalistic society and this track is about being human and giving into “drama” as a form of self-preservation. This song was born in the first studio session I had after returning from filming Drag Race. I’d been thinking about how I want to introduce myself as an artist to a new audience and I knew it had to have a lot of personality and wanted something where I could be sassy, queer and honest. The producers, LXDEE, asked me what I’d been listening to on the way and it was a bootleg Kreayshawn remix stacked with breakbeat samples that captured the energy I wanted to move forward with.”

One of the year’s most exciting new artists, Baby embodies a hugely underrepresented subsection of society; a black, queer, non-binary artist, with a huge voice and a wealth of talent. Born and raised in North London, Baby spent the majority of their childhood surrounded by their very large Jamaican family. Baby’s dad was a reggae/soul DJ so the sounds of dancehall, disco and 90s r&b were a prominent part of their everyday life from an early age. Baby soon fell in love with r&b, UK garage and dance pop, rinsing the sounds of TLC, Craig David and Kylie Minogue. Starting to train in performing arts from the age of 10, Baby went on to study musical theatre in London in their teen years and then a songwriting degree in Brighton, where they first started performing in drag, discovering an undeniable gift for the craft, catching people’s attention instantly.

Baby’s influences traverse the distinctive sonic palette of SOPHIE, the in-your-face energy of The Prodigy and the queer-influenced, hip-hop genius of Tyler, The Creator, but Baby sites the vastness of FKA Twigs’ influence as having a particularly moving impact on them. When FKA Twigs watched Baby rap and perform on Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, she said “I thought you were incredible tonight, such a natural performer, completely magnetic”. To Baby, FKA Twigs represents the beauty and bravery behind being the “altsy black girl”. Late nights at queer clubs, taking voicenotes of euphoric moments, the textures, sweet sweat and drum patterns, paired with an exploration of where Black and alternative cultures meet, are prominent in Baby’s sonics.  ‘Theatre!’ is Baby claiming their space, ready for everything to come and standing tall. The powerful artwork for ‘Theatre!’ presents Baby smiling through the pain of mental health struggles in a bold and theatrical statement of defiance. Hey, Baby is an artist of deep substance, a clear and important voice forging their own path, and this is only the beginning.

Listen to the new single HERE