Ray Curenton
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raycurenton.com
Ray Curenton
@raycurenton.com
910 followers 770 following 1.2K posts
Cultural worker. Nashville songwriter. A little bit folk, a little bit R&B. (music at the link) 🏳️‍🌈 https://raycurenton.com/

Free Bandcamp codes: https://www.getmusic.fm/artists/ray-curenton
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raycurenton.com
Been a while since I’ve seen such an egregious error on the Wikipedia page for a really popular subject. KPop Demon Hunters is the first soundtrack in history to generate four *simultaneous* top 10s on the Billboard Hot 100. Plenty of other soundtracks have had 4+ top 10s, just not in the same week
From KPop Demon Hunters’ Wikipedia article: The film's soundtrack achieved similar success; it became the first film soundtrack on the Billboard Hot 100 to have four of its songs in the top ten, was certified double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in October 2025, and received five Grammy Award nominations. A short film, titled Debut: A KPop Demon Hunters Story, was rated in September by the Motion Picture Association (MPA) while a sequel is planned to be released in 2029. From KPop Demon Hunters’ Wikipedia article: Additionally, the film's soundtrack became the first in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 to feature four of its songs in the top ten, which include "Golden", "Your Idol", "Soda Pop", and "How It's Done.” It is the first film soundtrack since Waiting to Exhale (1995) to feature at least three of its songs in the top 10.
January 12, 2026 at 3:44 AM
raycurenton.com
I think this is 95% accurate tenpages.github.io/us-level/us....
US Level 71 Lived Here (5 pts): MA, NY, OH, TN Stayed Here (4 pts): CA, DC, GA, FL, IL, MD, NC, SC Visited Here (3 pts): CT, KY, NJ, WV Stopped Here (2 pts): IN, PA, VA Passed Here (1 pt): DE Want to be Here (0 pts): I actually forgot to do this category, but I’m open to visiting HI, LA, MO, MN, NV, OR, TX, WA Never Been Here: all the others
January 6, 2026 at 6:24 PM
raycurenton.com
January 4, 2026 at 9:22 PM
raycurenton.com
Gonna call it now. It always feels weird to do these kinds of lists cus I’m going to keep discovering music from this year (and past years) into the future. But these are the 2025 albums and EPs I did catch within the calendar year and enjoyed a great deal.
JoJo - NGL (Jan 24) Luke Sital-Singh - Fool's Spring (Feb 21) Lady Gaga - Mayhem (Mar 7) Lil Nas X - Days Before Dreamboy (Mar 28) Elton John & Brandi Carlile - Who Believes in Angels (Apr 4) Mei Semones - Animaru (May 2) Sabrina Carpenter - Man's Best Friend (Aug 29) Ron Sexsmith - Hangover Terrace (Aug 29) Halle - love?...or something like it (Oct 24) Mavis Staples - Sad and Beautiful World (Nov 7) Mario - Mood Swings (Nov 14)
December 30, 2025 at 9:29 PM
raycurenton.com
As you can see, while Spotify is paying out the least amount per stream, I have made more money from Spotify this year than every other streaming outlet combined.
Streaming Platform Avg Earnings/Stream Streams Total Earnings (USD) Amazon Prime (Streaming) 0.0030 55 $0.16 Apple Music 0.0051 965 $4.90 Deezer 0.0074 13 $0.08 Pandora 0.0032 970 $2.25 Spotify 0.0022 36,827 $101.29 Tidal 0.0091 60 $0.52 YouTube (Ads) 0.0032 176 $0.48 YouTube (Red) 0.0077 45 $0.32 Grand Total 0.0031 39,111 $110.01
December 29, 2025 at 2:47 AM
raycurenton.com
Nashville: we’re bringing back testimony services once a month, starting in January.

• Traditional gospel music
• Completely inclusive environment (I wouldn’t have it any other way)
• Open space for catharsis and (hopefully) healing
• Stewarded by an organization doing great work for our community
First Fridays: Testimony Service Starting January 2nd Sangtuary at 7:00 pm Sangtuary 1718 14th Avenue, Nashville
December 23, 2025 at 12:20 AM
raycurenton.com
I have never accepted the “album-equivalent unit” as something with any real meaning and the overweighing of streams in Billboard’s chart formulas has been a travesty for a long time now. Free streams even more so.
"YouTube is by far the worst offender," Azoff stated at a recent industry conference. Breaking things down further, Azoff pointed out that YouTube generated $60 billion in revenue and paid only $8 billion to rights holders - about 13% - while Spotify generated roughly $18 billion in revenue and paid about $12 billion to music rights holders, nearly 67% of its revenue. By any measure, Apple Music, Spotify, and others pay substantially better than Youlube. Yet somehow, YouTube argues it should have equal weight in the charts because of its cultural relevance? But this gets even worse. Because platforms like Spotify and Apple Music gained those music subscribers despite the constant drag of YouTube's free music access. According to industry scuttle-butt, Spotify might even have been willing to seriously limit, or even eliminate, free access if YouTube weren't such a competitive threat to non-paying listeners. The takeaway is clear: YouTube's massive free tier has consistently undermined the entire subscription ecosystem that compensates artists at much higher rates.
December 18, 2025 at 4:14 PM
raycurenton.com
“Ripples of the Past” hits No. 1! Thank you Alt Q! 💙🌊
ALT Q: Alternative Queer Radio Alt Q Top 20 Week of November 17th, 2025 | This Week | Last Week | Artist | Song | |---|---|---|---| | 1 | 2 | RAY CURENTON | RIPPLES OF THE PAST | | 2 | 4 | GLEN MEADMORE | NO MONEY, NO HONEY | | 3 | 3 | HELEN COUNTS | UNRAVEL | | 4 | 5 | SEA BYRNE | WHAT YOU LOST | | 5 | 6 | CALEB NICHOLS | SLATE AGE | | 6 | 8 | AMMONITE | SIDEWINDER | | 7 | 7 | ELLE ARCHER | TIGHTROPE | | 8 | 11 | ELECTRO LAGUBO | HAVE WE ASKED TOO MUCH | | 9 | 10 | LAILAH LANSING | LOVE LOST | | 10 | 13 | BAHA JARVIS | BAHA FASHION | | 11 | 12 | ZOE KONEZ | HUMAN | | 12 | 9 | LOYD | EGO DEATH | | 13 | 20 | SUPERKNOVA | A CIS TEEN PAINTED THIS CHAPEL | | 14 | 15 | DOGVIOLET | NOW | | 15 | 18 | JEFF BLUE LINE - THOMAS YORE | SUNDAY EVENING BLUE (REDUX) | | 16 | 1 | SASHA ALLEN | FIRE IN AMERICA | | 17 | 17 | HD EM-I | CHANGELING | | 18 | NEW | CHRIS GARNEAU | RIOT | | 19 | NEW | ERIC HOLM | I DON’T CARE WHERE YOU’RE FROM | | 20 | 14 | BOI AND THE GHOULS | LITTLE SH*T HEAD | MON/TUES/FRI 4pmPT 7pmET 11pmGMT Alt Q Radio WED/THUR 8amPT 11amET 3pmGMT LIVE 365
December 10, 2025 at 4:22 PM
raycurenton.com
I am so proud of myself. I’ve always wanted to stick to my goal of reading a book a month for a full year and I finally did it!
Challenge Details 2025 Reading Challenge Congrats! You've reached your goal. 13 of 12 books read | 33 days left 108%
November 29, 2025 at 5:22 AM
raycurenton.com
getmusic.fm/r/ray-curent...
Believer, a.k.a. The Last Shall Be the First Ray Curenton (@raycurenton): Books that inspired Believer: Black Against Empire: The History & Politics of the Black Panther Party by Joshua Bloom & Waldo E. Martin, Jr. Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur Just Above My Head by James Baldwin Sister Outsider: Essays & Speeches by Audre Lorde The Color Purple by Alice Walker Ronnie Gilbert: A Radical Life in Song by Ronnie Gilbert The Communist Manifesto by Friedrich Engels & Karl Marx Why Does He Do That? Inside the Minds of Angry & Controlling Men by Lundy Bancroft The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey
November 28, 2025 at 4:25 PM
raycurenton.com
Gotta love that anti-flat butt technology
Another Mott & Bow ad. Close-up of a person wearing fitted green jeans outdoors, with text promoting Mott & Bow's "anti flat-butt technology" and various product benefits: * Women grab temptation * Take all the compliments in the room * Age-appropriate *Boost your confidence
November 3, 2025 at 4:29 PM
raycurenton.com
I still don’t fully know where this lyric came from…or what it fully means. “Shadowed and shone to guide them.” “For one, for all, for life, for long.” More than any other song on the project, this one is a great mystery to me. #acoustic #songwriter #nashvillemusic #ripplesofthepast #folksoul
October 28, 2025 at 4:46 PM
raycurenton.com
It’s these three for me
Folded (Remix) [feat. Brandy] Kehlani, Brandy Folded (Remix) [feat. JoJo] Kehlani, JoJo Folded (Remix) [feat. Mario] Kehlani, Mario
October 28, 2025 at 1:26 AM
raycurenton.com
My second studio album, Backslider, is featured this week on @getmusic.bsky.social

getmusic.fm
The album cover for Backslider (2014), featuring me, with a short fro and gold eye makeup, looking directly at the camera and resting my hand under my chin, against a dark background.
October 27, 2025 at 1:55 PM
raycurenton.com
I am so unable kehlani.lnk.to/FoldedHomage...
GET READY FOR THE Homage Pack Includes REMIXES OF THE HIT SONG FOLDED KEHLANI Featuring: + TONI BRAXTON + BRANDY + JOJO + MARIO + NE-YO + TANK Get the loyalty card!
October 22, 2025 at 5:26 PM
raycurenton.com
Original written as a prayer for a family member, I’ve found this piece to have more and more resonance for myself. The harmony layers on the album recording were a joy to record—a very spiritual experience. 💙 #singersongwriter #acoustic #strippeddown #folksoul
October 13, 2025 at 3:02 PM
raycurenton.com
Spent time with some of these new songs the other day. This is one of my favorite melodies on the whole project 💙 #singersongwriter #acoustic #strippeddown #folksoul
October 1, 2025 at 2:29 PM
raycurenton.com
quote this with your reaction to gettin left behind during the rapture
September 24, 2025 at 2:43 PM
raycurenton.com
“It’s a project that not only showcases Curenton’s evolution as an artist but also opens a window into the quiet, complicated echoes of memory that ripple through adulthood.” apricot-magazine.com/review/ray-c...
Apricot Magazine: Ray Curenton Finds Healing and Clarity in ‘Ripples of the Past’
September 23, 2025 at 2:00 PM
raycurenton.com
My fourth studio album, Ripples of the Past, is now available! My first full-length acoustic LP and my most intimate, personal album to date. Available digitally and on a limited-edition CD.

www.submithub.com/link/ray-cur...

Thank you for taking this journey with me. 🌊💙
Album cover for Ripples of the Past by Ray Curenton. Abstract blue and white symmetrical pattern resembling an inkblot, with textured and marbled background details. CD of Ripples of the Past. A 4-panel CD wallet with crescent pocket cut plus 12-page booklet insert including full song lyrics. Act 1: Age of Minority Of Framingham Ground Zero NFC Act 2: Age of Maturity Is That Alright? Once Familiar Friend Happiness Unreliable Narrator Act 3: Age of Majority Sandpaper The Year That Changed Everything Ripples of the Past For One, For All
September 22, 2025 at 2:09 PM
raycurenton.com
the wifi…
September 21, 2025 at 5:23 AM
raycurenton.com
Ripples of the Past out in 2 days!

“Of Framingham” available when you pre-order/pre-add the album now. www.submithub.com/link/ray-cur...
September 10, 2025 at 1:22 PM
raycurenton.com
Ripples of the Past out in 3 days!

“The Year That Changed Everything” available now when you pre-order/pre-add the album now. www.submithub.com/link/ray-cur...
September 9, 2025 at 3:05 PM
raycurenton.com
Ripples of the Past out in 5 days!

“Ground Zero” available now when you pre-order/pre-add the album now. www.submithub.com/link/ray-cur...
September 7, 2025 at 4:32 PM
raycurenton.com
IG ads practically screaming “I know what you are 👀” and you know what, they’re right. I won’t pretend.
Screenshot of an Instagram ad with a man with a very prominent butt wearing tan pants and a striped shirt standing with his back to the camera, highlighting the fit and design of the pants. Text reads, "Plus, the butt-lifting design?. Screenshot of an Instagram ad with a close-up of a man wearing black jeans with white text overlay that reads, “The Only Jeans That Flatter Your Legs, Butt And Budget.”.
September 6, 2025 at 2:30 PM