Life & Work with Roy Covington of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Roy Covington

Hi Roy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started singing when I was about six years old. I remember my parents sent my siblings and I to spend the summer with my (maternal) grandmother. She had us in the church choir singing our little hearts out. I sang in choir in elementary, middle, & high school and ended up at Chowan University for a year. There, my two friends, Justin Kelly and Maria Cox helped me navigate how to produce. We made a detour and joined the Marine Corps… You know, life happened. I still made music but didn’t really take myself seriously. Fast forward 13 years and now I’m here in Los Angeles following my dreams. The very thing I’ve known what I wanted to do since I was that young’n in the church choir. I say that to say, it’s never too late to get back to what it is that you were put on Earth to do and for me, it’s music.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s definitely not been the smoothest of roads. I could ramble for days about challenges I’ve faced, but I’ll spare you the time. The main challenge, for me, was getting comfortable with the rasp in my voice. I spent three years as a Marine Corps Drill Instructor. Running and screaming in various temperatures paired with limited resting time can definitely do some damage to your voice. Because of this I used to constantly compare myself to other singer/songwriters, envious of their smooth buttery voices and how they made singing look so effortless. I would question my own abilities and that questioning helped cast the biggest shadow of doubt in my head. I have learned since that comparison is the most successful thief of joy. I realized that I can do exactly what it is I want to do, so long as I stay the course and stay true to who I am as a singer/songwriter. I can confidently say that everything I have been through or done has definitely prepared me for where I am today. No regrets.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a singer, songwriter, producer. My music is very R&B driven and I take a story telling approach to my songwriting. There’s not many folks that sound like me. Not only because my voice is quite smokey, but because I intentionally create music that sounds different from other artists. I think individuality is what makes an artist stand out amongst the crowd. For too long, I’ve tried to fit in and it never really made me comfortable.

How do you define success?
Success isn’t monetary. Success isn’t status. Success isn’t labels or clothing or anything of the sort. Success is literally a state of being. Like, money is cool, but are you happy? For some money is happiness, which is great. For me, success is exactly where I’m at right now and headed towards. It really just hit me the other day and I quite literally had the heartiest laugh and gave thanks. I am a single, black, queer, musician turned veteran turned musician (again) living in my own place in Los Angeles following my dreams. Twelve year old me would have NEVER thought this was possible. So to be here, now, with a great group of friends is truly a blessing. I am success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://unitedmasters.com/a/roycovington
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roycovington_
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RoyCovingtonIII
• Twitter: https://x.com/roycovington_
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RoyCovington

Image Credits
All image credits: Dario (@d.vision_ on instagram)