royal & the serpent — MUSIC

by kaylee pickens

With over 95 million streams on her hit single, “overwhelmed,” Royal & the Serpent is breaking down the walls in music. 27-year-old, Ryan Santiago is more than just your average singer and songwriter. Songs like, “i can’t get high” and “phuck u,” showcase the raw magnetism that Royal & the Serpent embody. In an interview with Unclear, Santiago discusses their style influences, touring with PVRIS and Yungblud, and visuals for their latest releases.

How do you feel like social media, specifically TikTok, has expanded your audience?

R: “Oh I mean, I think tenfold. I think it’s the best tool that artists can use, especially right now in order to get their music to reach a lot of people. And I was blessed last summer when I had something go viral on [TikTok] and it changed my life.”

What’s the relationship between the lyrics and the video/visual for “i can’t get high?”

R: “The song ‘i can’t get high’ is written about a relationship. The feeling is like loving something so much that nothing that you do, nothing that you take, can get you as high as this person can get you. So the music video is this tragic love story between two people — it obviously doesn’t work out — and she ends up burning his car at the end of it.”

The cover for searching for nirvana is simple, but your pose, wardrobe, and demeanor speaks volumes. What was the inspiration for this EP and its artwork?

R: “I wasn’t initially planning for the pose. But once we got the negatives back, we kind of knew it encompassed everything this project was about. Which is this idea that I can’t figure it out and I’m almost taken to my knees in despair over this life. I don’t know, I think the white palette and keeping it really clean leaves it open for interpretation. We kind of just did it on a whim, it was one of those things where we needed a cover quickly, and I’m so, so happy with how it turned out.”

What was it like touring with Yungblud and the rest of his team? What have you learned or did you have any favorite memories?

R: “I think above anything else, getting to watch him play his shows every night was just super inspiring. I learned a lot from watching how he interacts with his fans. I think even virtually, he did such an incredible job of making them feel like they were right there with him. Not even right there with him, but they’re apart of him and what he’s doing. He has this really incredible knack for connection.”

What was your first night of performing like, now that you’re touring with PVRIS?

R: “It was so incredible. I can’t even tell you. I feel like it’s not even real, I have to pinch myself every day. It’s so nice to be in front of people again, but I almost forgot how long it’s been. I almost forgot it’s been almost two years. It’s such a blessing. Going into the tour, I wasn’t expecting much. I definitely wasn’t expecting full rooms, especially as the opener, but I have been pleasantly surprised every single night. The rooms are always full of people who are excited to see music.”

I saw your live performance with beauty school dropout for “phuck u” and wanted to know what is your style/wardrobe influence attributed to?

R: “My style changes all the time. Lately, I’ve been super inspired by Avril Lavigne, Harley Quinn, and anime characters. That’s my tour vibe. The live videos that are up on YouTube, they were more Courtney Love inspired.”

It’s been almost a year since “overwhelmed” was released, reflecting on this track, what are your thoughts on this song and its success?

R: “I definitely did not expect anything that happened to it to happen. I try not to have expectations in general, because everything is so unknown , especially in this industry. More than anything, I’m so grateful especially because of the stories I get to hear of how it’s affecting people. All these people are being seen and heard and they’re not so alone in these feelings that they’re having. It’s definitely changed my career. It’s so wild because I feel like this song is so much bigger than I am. It’s a fun little thing to surprise people with at shows. It’s the last song we play and everyone’s like ‘oh s***, I know this song.’ It’s definitely a fun game to play with people, if they have TikTok, too. More often than not, they’ve heard the song but haven’t heard of me. It’s wild and I still can’t believe everything that’s happened with it and I can only hope to have another song have that much success.”

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by cami liberty

For the past eight (nearly nine) months, we have all been experiencing what feels like a lull in time. If you work in the music industry, or are just a lover of attending live performances, you have especially felt this way. With venues empty, tour buses off the road, and meet and greets cancelled, we’ve all had to make adjustments with the COVID-19 pandemic. Many events have moved to online, and thankfully Yungblud has given us a full global digital “The Weird Time Of Life” tour to celebrate the release of his forthcoming album weird! (releasing on December 4th).

The New York City date was last night, and the show started off with a bang. UK-based Wargasm took the stage with their high energy, giving us a three-song set. Though I did experience a bit of buffering on my end, it still didn’t distract from the fact that it almost felt as though we were watching the show from the same room. After a summer without festivals, I was left with the energy that I would only get when attending Warped Tour, or the newer Sad Summer Festival.

Next the stage was set with old TVs producing static as the lovely Royal & the Serpent’s vocals struck through with her song “Choke” off her latest EP get a grip. Royal immediately engages you with her strong personality and moves.

Following “Choke,” projections of different patterns began flashing on the wall as Royal grabbed her guitar. The sound of soft rock reminiscent of the 70s filled the air as the song “Warn You” began with sirens ringing in between the choruses, and later a captivating guitar solo.

Royal’s songs were all catchy and showcased her beautiful voice throughout her set, including her duet with Yoshi Flower as well as closing with her hit “Overwhelmed,” which is currently in the Top 10 at Alt Radio.

After a short two-minute break, the moment we had been waiting for arrived. Yungblud entered the dark stage announcing, “This is a song about a person I love,” which started off his hit “strawberry lipstick.” The set had a full production with Adam Warrington on guitar and Michael Rennie on drums, flashing lights changing throughout the song before transitioning into the brand new song “ice cream man.”

Following was “weird!,” the lead single and title track of the new album. The song was first released back in April, and the lyrics “Come hold my hand / hold it tight / we’re in a weird time of life” still ring true with the current state of the world. It was bittersweet to hear the song live, making us long for the day when we can sing those lyrics at the top of our lungs together, with these hard days behind us.

Listen to mars on Spotify. YUNGBLUD · Single · 2020 · 1 songs.

Songs “mars” and “cotton candy” were next, also newly released off the new album. It was clear that even though there was no physical live audience, Yungblud was still out to give the same powerful, unique, and energetic show he always does. It’s not just the singer himself too – we have to send out a big thank you to the entire team that helped put this on, including the fantastic camera operators that caught all of the up-close moments that made us all feel like we were all front row (and this time we didn’t have to camp out).

Things started to calm down then as Yungblud was handed his acoustic guitar, giving us a brand new track, “it’s quiet in beverly hills.” He mentioned that he wrote the song when he was feeling low and felt as though he was around people that didn’t have his best interest in mind, and he adds that it was his fans that helped him and brought him back. We can’t wait until the album releases on Friday and we can replay this song over and over!

The set came to an end with one final new track, “teresa.” The singer started out on the keyboard with soft vocals before Adam and Michael joined in and they really started to rock out. “As long as I watch over you, you don’t need to run,” were lyrics that rang out over and over.

Despite it being a virtual concert, Yungblud’s passion never wavered. Whether he’s performing at an arena or is performing for an online crowd, he is 100% present. He draws you into his songs, words, and music. The only thing missing from the show was the screaming crowd, floor shaking from all of the energetic jumping, and the iconic water spitting from the singer (perhaps that won’t be returning in the near future).

So a big thank you to Yungblud and his team for putting on this tour in a time where we miss live music dearly. We were delighted to be introduced to Wargasm and Royal & the Serpent, and it gave us a small sense of new normalcy. After all, there’s nothing that feels like home quite like a Yungblud show.