Who is Ren - the Artist Climbing to the Top of UK Charts

Social media platforms such as TikTok and YouTube have largely changed how we discover new artists. A video can go viral overnight and more and more talented young people are finding their audience.

That brings us to Ren - a Welsh musician who has neither a big team promoting his work, nor a label backing him. Yet, he has managed to reach millions of people thanks to the quality of his songwriting and word of mouth.

But to understand Ren and what he is doing, we have to talk a little bit about his backstory which has inspired most of his work. The reason he hasn’t committed to a label is not because he had been rejected. In fact, he himself claims he is simply too “physically and emotionally unwell” to be able to make such a commitment.

One of his most popular songs, “Hi Ren”, features Ren sitting in a wheelchair in a hospital gown, playing his guitar, and telling a story about battles with psychosis and autoimmune disease. Since its release on YouTube roughly a year ago, the video has gained over 25 million views and has been described as a masterpiece by several critics.

So what has happened to Ren to inspire him to create this type of music at such a young age? It all started with misdiagnosed Lyme disease which has caused irreversible damage to his brain and immune system. Because his brain damage was also misdiagnosed, it was treated with antidepressants while constantly getting worse. This eventually drove him into stress-induced psychosis.

However, while Ren’s brain has been a source of stress, depression, and psychosis, it is also absolutely beautiful in its way of creating music. Ren’s lyrics have touched millions of people all around the world and his fans are now there for him to support him through all of his struggles.

While Ren remains humble and thankful, his popularity has been growing with every share of his music videos. In fact, he has beaten the likes of Troye Sivan, Rick Astley, and Drake all the way to the top of UK charts with his album Sick Boy.

Like his first album Freckled Angels, Sick Boy was also released with no label backing. Ren said: “It’s all because of the fans that this has even happened. We’ve done this independently and the main foundation of promotion has been the fans showing up and showing support. What they’ve done in terms of spreading it – the amount that I’ve seen them pushing this record – is incredible. I want to say thank you to them so much.”

If you haven’t had a chance to listen to Ren’s music yet, some of his most popular titles include “Hi Ren”, “Sick Boi”, “Violet’s Tale”, “Money Game”, Chalk Outlines”, and more, and you can find them on Spotify, YouTube, and other online platforms.

As for his health, he is currently stable but has to receive constant treatment for Lyme disease. All we can do is wish him good luck and hope he will continue creating his art to the best of his ability.