21 year old Salford born singer Ren Harvieu, whose breathtaking voice has had the critics reaching for the superlatives and whose critically acclaimed debut album “Through The Night” stormed into the UK chart this week at no. 5, releases her new single “Tonight” on July 16th through Kid Gloves/Island Records. Ren has just announced her first major UK tour for October and will also be playing a very special one off acoustic show at the beautiful and ancient St Pancras Old Church in London on Wednesday 30th May – St Pancras Old Church, London (acoustic) – doors: 7:30pm. Fans will get the chance to catch Ren and full band live at Camp Bestival – 29th July, V festival 18/19th August and Bestival – 9th Sept.
Ren Harvieu, just turned twenty one, is self-made, not your typical modern day popstar. She sounds one way and looks and acts completely differently. No Brit School training, no showbiz connections, just a young girl with a truly remarkable voice and a set of songs that will stir your soul and break your heart. Ren sang in the odd local talent show, one called ‘Salford Superstar’ and attended what she calls the Primark version of a performing arts school where she was told she couldn’t sing. Through a chance meeting she recorded a couple of songs which the guy who was to become her manager heard. Immediately realising he had come across a truly unique talent, he helped her record properly and soon after, on the strength of a handful of stunning songs, they had a deal with Island Records.
“Through The Night” was originally set for release in the summer of 2011 when Ren suffered a terrible accident which left her with a broken back and not knowing whether she would ever walk again. Following a harrowing spell in hospital, Ren began to make, what the doctors called, a miraculous recovery. She’d just been to the US for the first time to record a song with rapper Nas, who had heard and instantly fallen in love with Ren’s voice, made her first video and found out that she was to perform on the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury. Things couldn’t have looked any rosier. Then completely randomly, a guy, messing about at a party vaulted over a hedge, hurtled through the air, and landed on Ren’s spine. One of the few bright moments during her 2 month hospital stay came when she received a phone call from one of her childhood heroes, Johnny Marr. He had heard she wasn’t well; he had also heard Through The Night, and had tweeted about this fabulous new singer from his hometown. He wanted to meet her, and make music with her, when she was ready to. Thankfully after two months of operations and intensive rehabilitation, Ren left hospital and is now finally set to let the world hear and see hear sing her wonderful songs. Ren has also recently recorded a cover of the Vashti Bunyan classic “The Train Song” with Karen Elson. The two met via a mutual friend and have just shot a video for the song in Nashville.
