Ray Dalton | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Dalton in 2010 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Raymond Adrien Dalton May 10, 1990 |
| Origin | Seattle, Washington |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Website | raydalton |
Raymond Adrien Dalton (born May 10, 1990)[2] is an American singer based in Seattle, Washington. He began his career as a gospel and R&B singer.[3] Dalton gained prominence as the featured artist on Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' 2011 song "Can't Hold Us", which gained popularity between 2012 and 2013, eventually topping the charts in multiple countries including the Billboard Hot 100. The song was certified platinum in the U.S. in April 2013.[4] He has won two MTV Video Music Awards.[5]
Life and career
Dalton's mother is Mexican American and his father is African American.[4] He began singing at the age of 6 on the advice of his music teacher, joining the Seattle Children's Choir. He continued to sing through high school. He has described himself as a fan of Fleetwood Mac.[4] Dalton spent his senior year in high school listening to Missy Elliott, Amy Winehouse, and Kanye West, according to an interview with MTV News.[4]
Aside from music, Dalton is a tennis player who has worked as a tennis instructor.[3] He gave up teaching tennis following the success of "Can't Hold Us" to pursue a full-time career as a musician.[3] Dalton sings in the Total Experience Gospel Choir of Seattle as of 2013.[3]
Dalton's work drew the attention of producer Ryan Lewis, who had heard Dalton's singing on a song for another artist.[3] Lewis reached out to Dalton via Facebook.[3] Dalton soon began collaborating with Lewis and Macklemore in the studio.[3] The first song the trio worked on together was Macklemore and Lewis' 2011 single, "Wings".[3]
In June 2012, Dalton released his first single, "So Emotional",[6] which was mixed by Lewis. He also announced he was working on his "own project" to be called The Dalton Show.[7]
Dalton, Lewis, and Macklemore created the hook for "Can't Hold Us" in one day.[3] Dalton shot his scenes for the single's music video while on tour in New Zealand in March 2013.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Certifications |
|---|---|---|
| Thee Unknown |
|
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUT [9] |
BEL (Fl) [10] |
BEL (Wa) [11] |
CRO Int. Air. [12] |
CZE Air. [13] |
EST Air. [14] |
GER [15] |
POL Air. [16] |
SVK Air. [17] |
SWI [18] | ||||
| "So Emotional" | 2012 | — | — | — | — | — | * | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |
| "If You Fall" | 2017 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Bass Down" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "In My Bones" | 2020 | — | 13 | 44 | 26 | 2 | — | 2 | 2 | — | Thee Unknown | ||
| "Good Times Hard Times" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |||
| "If You're Tired" (with Connor Duermit) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| "Don't Make Me Miss You" | 2021 | — | —[A] | —[B] | — | — | — | 15 | — | — | |||
| "Melody" (with Vinai) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| "Manila" (with Álvaro Soler) |
15 | — | — | — | — | 23 | 37 | 1 | 19 | ||||
| "The Best Is Yet to Come" | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Call It Love"[25] (with Felix Jaehn) |
19 | 22 | — | 12 | 4 | 12 | 18 | 3 | 18 | 17 |
|
Thee Unknown | |
| "Do It Again" | 2023 | — | — | — | 38 | 58 | 9 | — | 2 | 1 | — | ||
| "All We Got" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | 51 | — | 17 | 12 | — |
| |
| "Blood Running" | 2025 | —[C] | — | — | — | 4 | — | —[D] | 23 | 48 | —[E] | TBA | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. "*" denotes the chart did not exist at that time. | |||||||||||||
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [30] |
AUS [31] |
BEL (Fl) [10] |
BEL (Wa) [11] |
DEN [32] |
FRA [33] |
NOR [34] |
NZ [35] |
SWE [36] |
SWI [18] |
UK [37] | ||||
| "Kingdom Come" (Dyno Jamz featuring Ray Dalton) |
2010 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Dyno Jamz | |
| "Can't Hold Us" (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton) |
2011 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3 | The Heist | |
| "Whisper" (Camila Recchio featuring Ray Dalton)[44] |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | ||
| "Need Your Love" (Sol featuring Ray Dalton) |
2012 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Visceral" (John Mark McMillan featuring Ray Dalton) |
2014 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | The Borderland Sessions | |
| "Don't Worry" (Madcon featuring Ray Dalton) |
2015 | — | 82 | 10 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 28 | 14 | 8 | 54 | Non-album singles | |
| "Stronger" (Arty featuring Ray Dalton) |
2016 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Glorious | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
Other charted songs
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| CZE Air. [13] | |||
| "Thee Unknown" | 2024 | 15 | Thee Unknown |
Guest appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Believe" | 2018 | Alex Aldea, Camila Recchio | The First Mrs. Claus |
Notes
- ^ "Don't Make Me Miss You" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but was registered on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[10]
- ^ "Don't Make Me Miss You" did not reach the region's Ultratop 50 chart, but charted at number 28 on the Ultratip Bubbling Under ranking.[11]
- ^ "Blood Running" did not reach the Ö3 Austria Top 40, but peaked at number 20 at the Austrian airplay chart.[27]
- ^ "Blood Running" did not reach the Top 100 Single-Charts, but peaked at number five at the German airplay chart.[28]
- ^ "Blood Running" did not reach the Singles Top 100, but peaked at number 18 at the Swiss airplay chart.[29]
References
- ^ Uitti, Jacob (2021-01-29). "Ray Dalton Carves His Own Path with "In My Bones"". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
- ^ "Raymond Adrien Dalton, Born 05/10/1990 in California | CaliforniaBirthIndex.org". www.californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Unterberger, Andrew (2013-03-22). "Talking Tennis, Rachael Ray and "Can't Hold Us" with Macklemore Hook Man Ray Dalton". Popdust. Archived from the original on 2013-03-24. Retrieved 2013-05-04.
- ^ a b c d Thomas, Rebecca (April 30, 2013). "Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' 'Can't Hold Us': Decoding The Hook! Ray Dalton, the 22-year-old crooner behind the catchy chorus, talks to MTV News about the Seattle duo, that epic video and a few baffling lyrics". MTV News. Archived from the original on May 3, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- ^ Willis, Kim (2013-08-26). "MTV VMAs: The winners and nominees". USATODAY. Retrieved 2013-12-06.
- ^ "So Emotional, by Ray Dalton". Ray Dalton.
- ^ "RayDalton.com - Biography". Archived from the original on May 31, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "OLiS - oficjalna lista wyróżnień" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 23, 2024. Click "WYKONAWCA" and enter Ray Dalton in the search box.
- ^ "Discographie Ray Dalton" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
- ^ a b c Hung, Steffen. "Discografie Ray Dalton". Belgium (Flanders) Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ a b c Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Ray Dalton". Belgium (Wallonia) Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Peak chart positions for singles in Croatia:
- "In My Bones": "ARC 100 - datum: 29. lipnja 2020". radio.hrt.hr (in Croatian). 2020-06-09. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
- "Call It Love": "HRT Airplay Radio Chart No. 1061 - Issue Date: January 9th 2023" (PDF). Hrvatska Radiotelevizija. 10 January 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- "Do It Again": "Airplay Radio Chart Top40 - 24. tjedan (12.06.2023.) | Top Lista". Hrvatska Diskografska Udruga. 10 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
- ^ a b "Ray Dalton | CZ – Rádio – Top 100 Chart History" (in Czech). ČNS IFPI. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
- ^ Peak chart positions for singles in Estonian Airplay:
- "Call It Love": "Top Radio Hits Estonia Weekly Chart: May 25, 2023". TopHit. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- "Do It Again": "Top Radio Hits Estonia Weekly Chart: Jul 27, 2024". TopHit. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- "All We Got": "Top Radio Hits Estonia Weekly Chart: May 23, 2024". TopHit. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- ^ "Discographie Ray Dalton" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
- ^ Peak chart positions for singles in Poland:
- "In My Bones": "AirPlay Top: 16.05. – 22.05.2020" (in Polish). ZPAV. Archived from the original on April 14, 2023. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
- "Don't Make Me Miss You": "AirPlay Top: 13.03. – 19.03.2021" (in Polish). ZPAV. Archived from the original on August 17, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
- "Manila": "AirPlay Top: 01.01. – 07.01.2022" (in Polish). ZPAV. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
- "Call It Love": "OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 07.01.2023–13.01.2023.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
- "Do It Again": "OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 03.06.2023–09.06.2023.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- "All We Got": "OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 23.03.2024–29.03.2024.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
- "Blood Running": "OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 22.11.2025–28.11.2025.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved December 1, 2025.
- ^ "Ray Dalton | SK – Rádio – Top 100 Chart History" (in Czech). ČNS IFPI. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
- ^ a b Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Ray Dalton". Swiss Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ "Du hast nach In My Bones gesucht - IFPI Austria". www.ifpi.at. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
- ^ a b "Austrian certifications – Ray Dalton" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- ^ "French single certifications – Ray Dalton – In My Bones" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
- ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Ray Dalton)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
- ^ "Du hast nach Manila gesucht - IFPI Austria". www.ifpi.at. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
- ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community". www.swisscharts.com. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
- ^ "Call It Love – Single by Ray Dalton". Apple Music. September 16, 2022. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
- ^ "Adatbázis – Arany- és platinalemezek – 2024" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
- ^ "Radio-Charts Österreich – Chartwoche 50/2025" [Radio Charts Austria – Chart Week 50/2025] (in German). IFPI Schweiz. Archived from the original on December 22, 2025. Retrieved February 15, 2026.
- ^ "Radio-Charts Deutschland – Chartwoche 1/2026" [Radio Charts Germany – Chart Week 1/2026] (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Archived from the original on January 15, 2026. Retrieved February 15, 2026.
- ^ "Radio-Charts Schweiz – Chartwoche 7/2026" [Radio Charts Switzerland – Chart Week 7/2026] (in German). IFPI Schweiz. Archived from the original on February 22, 2026. Retrieved February 23, 2026.
- ^ Peak positions for singles in the US:
- For "Can't Hold Us": "Macklemore – Chart History: The Hot 100". Billboard.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Ray Dalton". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- "Don't Worry": Ryan, Gavin (August 15, 2015). "ARIA Singles: Delta Goodrem 'Wings' Tops Australian Chart". Noise11. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Ray Dalton". Danish Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Ray Dalton". French Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Ray Dalton". Norwegian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Ray Dalton". New Zealand Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Ray Dalton". Swedish Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
- ^ Peak positions in the United Kingdom:
- For "Can't Hold Us": "Chart Archive > 4th May 2013". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
- ^ "Les Certifications: Macklemore" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
- ^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart – 22 April 2013". Recorded Music NZ. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2013.
- ^ "British certifications – Can't Hold Us". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 15, 2025. Type Can't Hold Us in the "Search:" field.
- ^ "Camila Recchio - Whisper (feat. Ray Dalton) Official Music Video". YouTube. 2011-12-28. Retrieved 2015-08-29.
- ^ "ultratop.be - ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS". www.ultratop.be.
- ^ "British certifications – Madcon Ft Ray Dalton – Don't Worry". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 15, 2024. Type Don't Worry Madcon Ft Ray Dalton in the "Search:" field.
- ^ "Madcon Feat. Ray Dalton "Don't Worry" | IFPI". ifpi.dk. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
- ^ "Trofeoversikt". IFPI (in Norwegian Bokmål). 17 April 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
- ^ "The Official New Zealand Music Chart". THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
- ^ "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 33, 2015". Sverigetopplistan (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-07-28.
- ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community". www.swisscharts.com. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| Artists | |
Categories:
- 1990 births
- Living people
- African-American Christians
- American gospel singers
- African-American male singer-songwriters
- American male singer-songwriters
- 21st-century African-American male singers
- 21st-century American male singers
- American contemporary R&B singers
- MTV Video Music Award winners
- Singers from Seattle
- American musicians of Mexican descent
- Alternative hip-hop musicians
- Singer-songwriters from Washington (state)
- Hispanic and Latino American musicians
