Story & Lesson Highlights with Royal Fools of Culver City

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Royal Fools. Check out our conversation below.

Royal Fools, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: Have you stood up for someone when it cost you something?
We’re queer musicians, something we’ve never shied away from. It always stings when you’re reminded that homophobia is alive and well, even in Los Angeles. At one of our first ever shows, we were chatting with the headliners when one of the band members said the F slur. Everyone else there laughed.

Recently, we played a show in Big Bear, California, a city with a bit of a less progressive crowd. Before we played “Bats in the Attic,” a song about growing up queer, we took a moment to specifically denounce the damage President Trump’s second term has done to marginalized groups, specifically the kids in those groups. We wrote “Bats in the Attic” about our struggles with bigotry in our childhoods, and we hoped it would help kids who are facing the same issues today. We wanted them to know other people have gone through that and came out the other side. Trump’s attacks on trans kids, his violence towards immigrant children, and his pride in supporting the genocide in Palestine normalizes a world in which more children suffer. We got boo’s and had some industry suit walk out of the show. We’re still glad we said it.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are Royal Fools. Identical twin brothers who make the kind of alt-rock queer kids loved in the 2000s, but this time made by and for queer people. We have been tearing up house shows for years and now are moving onto bigger stages in the LA music scene.
We released our first EP and its accompanying short film “PROM” May 2nd of last year and will be releasing singles from our upcoming album very soon!

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
The most important relationship either of us have ever known is our relationship with each other. We’ve been best friends since birth. Everything we possibly could we would do together. We both love music and beyond Royal Fools being an outlet for that, it’s also our connection.

Now that we’re older and have our own lives and relationships, we’re always tied together by our music and our shared drive, our singular goal in life: playing TD Garden in our home city of Boston.

When you were sad or scared as a child, what helped?
Our parents’ basement was our spot of recluse. No matter what was happening upstairs or outside, we had a home in our cobwebbed infested, perpetually dank makeshift studio. Since we were kids we have poured every shitty feeling into songs, and by now we’ve written thousands. We really hope our music can be a spot of recluse for kids dealing with the same stuff we were.

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
Realistically, no. We have a lot of fun, we’re always either saying or laughing at stupid stuff. Our social media presence largely hinges on our funny content and we always want our music to feel danceable and exciting. We’ve both come into situations in our personal lives however, where people have this notion of us as incapable of being serious or handling heavy topics. Our insecurities and fears are often most candidly displayed in our lyrics.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Have you ever gotten what you wanted, and found it did not satisfy you?
All the time. Whether it’s a great show or a viral video, we’re constantly self-critical and often just want to be told how to improve. We’re obsessed with getting better. We’re both trying to work on letting ourselves revel in the good moments more. Being in an independent band is all about the little victories. It’s so important to take a breath and thank yourself for the hard work you put in and what you achieved because of it, because if you don’t, you’ll get exhausted fast.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://royalfoolsband.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/royalfools
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/company/royalfools/
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/royalfoolsband
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@royalfoolsband
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/royal-fools
• Other: open.spotify.com/artist/4OQMfxWWXrkJJlIuUfkrC8
  music.apple.com/us/artist/royal-fools/1671672595
  tiktok.com/@royalfoolsband
  tumblr.com/royalfoolsband

Image Credits
Madison Gee
Riley Tongberg