As The Royalty were heading out on their tour last week I spoke to lead singer Nicole who was at a rest stop in Texas headed for the first tour date in Kansas City.
MCB: Your tour begins tomorrow are you excited?
the Royalty: We’re looking forward to the shows. We’ve never
played Detroit before and I have been wanting to get out of town and see some
new places.
MCB: What can you tell us about the tour?
the Royalty: We have been doing little figure eight tours around
the US, so we’re doing the Northeast area. As I said, I’ve never been to
Michigan, so this is like the coolest job to see places I might not have ever
seen. We’re playing songs from our old record and new record.
MCB: How long has the Royalty been playing together?
the Royalty: We’ve been together six years but it wasn’t until
last November that we signed with Victory Records and they have helped with
tour support. Before this year we’d only tour once or twice a year and it was
all self-financed, so it was harder to sustain. Now with Victory we get to
travel a lot more.
MCB: Did you have an idea of what you wanted your sound to
be like from the beginning or did it morph into what it is?
the Royalty: It has kind of evolved together depending on what
we were listening to at the time. You can hear our influences expand since the
time we started. It’s never strayed completely. It’s not like we were a
metal band when we started, we had more like an indie pop sound. I could hear six years ago maybe some Arcade Fire and Rilo Kiley
influences. Then we went through this 60’s phase where we listened to nothing
but 60’s music and took a real liking to it. So that music has started to
incorporate itself into our sound, not intentionally, but whatever you’re
immersing yourself in is going to reflect in you music.
MCB: I really like “Lovers” and it’s been getting
comparisons to UK artists like Adele and Amy Winehouse…
the Royalty: I’m always blown away by that comparison, because
those singers are amazing. People kind of hone in on the 60’s vibe I think
because some of the lyrics, we do that heartbreak thing. We listen to such a
wide variety of things it all works its way into our tapestry.
MCB: Victory use to be one of those labels that the bands on
it had a signature sound but your band really breaks the Victory mold – what’s
it like being on the Victory roster?
the Royalty: It’s a little unique for us and we get that
reaction a lot. We don’t fit the typical profile of other Victory bands, but
throughout the years they have tried to pick up music they like and they liked
us even though we aren’t what they are used to. They’ve been supportive so it’s
cool.
MCB: You have done a few videos do you like making videos?
the Royalty: I’m starting to like doing videos more. They are a
little embarrassing to get in front of a camera. But they’re fun. We are
actually discussing what we want to do for next video that we’re hoping to shoot
next month. We’re going to do something a little more artistic. We wanted to do
a couple performance videos just to get them out there so people could see them
online. But we’ve got some in the works so you have to wait and see.
MCB: When did you first start singing?
the Royalty: My family’s very musical, and I was a very shy kid,
but my earliest memories were when my family would throw me up in front of family
reunions and make me get over my stage fright.
MCB: What was the first CD you bought or would admit to
owning?
the Royalty: This is a little strange. My family is a little bit
religious. My Dad’s actually a preacher, so I didn’t get my hands on any secular
music until I could buy it myself. Believe it or not, I had heard of the Beatles
and I knew there were a very influential band but I couldn’t tell you a song by
them. So when I was 16 I went and bought the Beatles One CD with all the
singles. I had heard all those songs but never made the association. That was
one of the most important CDs I ever bought.
MCB: So it wasn’t until you were 16 before you thought about
singing in a rock band?
the Royalty: I was a very late bloomer! At 16, I kissed a boy
for the first time and I started to rebel a little bit. I started to notice the
boys I liked were these punk rock boys so I started going to local shows. And I
thought hey, I could do that. It all started at 16.
MCB: Are you already planning material for your next record?
the Royalty: We are already writing a lot. Luckily, and this is
going to sound weird, but I went through a breakup at the beginning of summer
and it spawned a lot of creativity in me. It’s not that typical oh I’m so sad
you left me, it more like coming into my own because I felt empowered by it.
Musically I’m not sure where it’s headed, but we’re growing and there this new
sense of dedication to what we’re doing. There’s a great chemistry with the
band right now so I am really looking forward to it.
This Post by Mikel O.D. of
