Where I Started. What Comes Next.

A Current Project

The Archive

Ray Brown, Harold Brown, and Willie Nelson at Farm Aid.

My dad was WAR’s original drummer. Alongside the music, he filmed life around the band throughout the 1970s, preserving moments that went far beyond the stage.

I’m opening that archive and developing a documentary from the material he kept. It brings together the music, the history, and a story I’m connected to personally.

Music, Live and in the Studio

I performed with WAR on keyboards, percussion, and vocals during the 1990s and into the early 2000s. Being on the road and in the studio was a big part of how I learned to listen, collaborate, and make things.

WAR promotional photo, 1994.

Peace Sign

WAR · 1994 · Credited as Rae Valentine

My contributions included programming, drum programming, organ, and background vocals. The work also appears on later WAR collections.

View the Recording Credits ↗

Behind the Camera

Film grew out of the same curiosity that brought me into music. I learned by making things, working with footage, and following ideas into editing and production.

Euroad Clothing Campaigns

Budapest · 2000s · Producer & Editor

With the Euroad campaign team in Budapest, 2000s.

I produced Euroad’s clothing campaigns in Budapest across two seasons, taking them from concept through delivery. I hired the models, stylists, camera crew, and other contributors, organized shoots, handled graphics, selected the printer, and managed production of the company’s first catalogs.

For the commercials, I developed the storylines, worked with a cameraman, and edited the commercials myself. I also handled the graphics for billboard and placard campaigns, including placements on Budapest’s metro lines and trams. Bringing all those pieces together taught me a lot about production and helped me move from music into commercial and broadcast work, before Hottest Mom in America.

Hottest Mom in America

2007 · Documentary Segment Producer · Credited as Ray Valentine

I produced documentary segments for the series, part of my work behind the camera and in television production.

On Screen

I’ve also spent time on the other side of the camera. A few selected acting credits:

An Early Appearance

Me with two other boys in WAR’s “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” music video. A restored still from around 2:50.

Watch My Appearance at 2:50 ↗

Running Mates

1992 · Secret Service · Credited as Ray Valentine

The Family Man

2000 · Mr. Thompson · Credited as Ray Valentine

Sniper 2

2002 · Technician #1 · Credited as Rae Valentine

What I’m Exploring Now

I’m experimenting with generative AI in music and film, alongside the skills I’ve built through live music, studio work, and production. I want to see where those approaches can meet and what I can make with them.

I’ll add projects, experiments, and the tools behind them as this part of the site grows.

Open to the Right Project

Have an idea, a question, or something you’d like to make? I’m based in Budapest and open to projects elsewhere when the fit is right.