Exclusive Interview Pop Culturalist Chats with Royaljag

This summer, San Bernardino-based trio Royaljag are releasing their highly-anticipated sophomore album, I Don’t Know How I Got Here. The six-song collection features their signature “chameleon pop” sound, which masterfully blends R&B, funk, disco, and, of course, pop. It includes their infectious new single, “909”, and finds the band heading in the direction that they’ve always dreamed of. Pop Culturalist got to speak with David, Jay, and Roland—a.k.a. Royaljag—about the upcoming release.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
David: I always loved taking things apart and figuring out how all the pieces work together. When I realized that I could do that with music, I dove straight in. I learned all my favorite songs and recreated them in my own way.

Jay: Any time that I went to my godfather’s, he would always play his acoustic. Finally, when I showed interest, he taught me three chords to an Avril Lavigne song, “Nobody’s Home”. [laughs] For the remainder of the day, I spent my time perfecting those shapes. I was addicted from then on.

Roland: I discovered my passion for music after learning my first chord progression. My brother learned a lead to play under it, and I loved how it worked. I loved the connectivity and chemistry between the instruments and the vocal melody. I knew then that I wanted to write my own.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Royaljag: Collectively, we believe Local Natives had the biggest influence on our career. They’ve shown us by example what it means to be in a band with your best friends and to value all of our different opinions. Their work ethic and original ideas still inspire us today.

PC: Tell us about your new single, “909”. What was the inspiration behind the track?
David: It’s kind of funny, actually. The inspiration behind “909” came from our ventures outside of our area code. Music takes us away from San Bernardino (our hometown) constantly, whether it’s playing shows in LA or the OC, or even recording music in Agoura Hills or San Diego. The long, late night drives back to SB after spending the day with our friends and creating music is incredibly exhausting, but we wouldn’t trade this opportunity for anything else.

PC: You also released a music video for “909”. How did you come up with the concept for the video?
Jay: We made the video with Alex Gilbert from the Nomads. We would meet every week to brainstorm and plan ideas. Alex came up with the concept after I told him a story about when I witnessed a gang of cholos posted on the wall of a liquor store observing another man’s nunchuck skills. It was unreal. I made my friends turn the car around to see it. At the end of it all, we landed on the idea of making a video that captured a few things we loved to do, but as an instructional dance video. We wanted to be silly about it, but also own it! Filming the video was the most fun process.

PC: Your new EP, I Don’t Know How I Got Here, drops this summer. What can fans expect?
Jay: Expect a fresh sound in contrast to Chameleon. We feel like we are finally going in the direction we’ve always wanted to when it comes to songwriting and creating grooves that melt into your brain. Also, whoever you’ve been crushing on lately, expect to crush even harder when listening to these songs.

PC: How does I Don’t Know How I Got Here differentiate itself from your 2017 EP, Chameleon?
David: Chameleon was a collection of songs that we had for years before we released it. Those songs were all worked and reworked a couple of times to keep up with how our writing style was changing over the years. With IDKHIGH, we feel like there was more intention with the songs we created. We wanted to go back to our roots, in a sense, by drawing inspiration from the music we grew up with. There was always R&B, soul, disco, or new wave being played in both of our households at any given moment. With this EP, our goal was to make sure that you are moving, honestly.

PC: If you had to pick one song that best encompasses the EP, what would it be and why?
Roland: “Dangerous” isn’t a single off the EP, but we believe the track holds a lot of the sonic quality and soundscapes we wanted for this next body of work. It was actually a song idea we had in the bank during the making of our first EP in 2016-2017, so it had a lot of time to marinate and was something we kept in our back pocket for a while. It makes sense now, looking back at when these songs came about. David had bounced us a little clip of a synth line/part he was working with and we lived with that for a long time! From that point on, it was so clear what this next chapter of Royaljag was going to sound like. We knew how it was going to sound even before we wrote it.

PC: After the EP is released, are there plans to hit the road?
Royaljag: We really, really, really, really, really want to. We haven’t been on a tour before and we would love IDKHIGH to be the reason for our first one!

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
David: Big Time Rush

Jay: The O.C.

Roland: Vampire Diaries

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
David: Ghost Rider

Jay: National Treasure

Roland: The Hot Chick

PC: Favorite book?
David: Frankstein

Jay: I read in elementary school, and that was Goosebumps and Captain Underpants.

Roland: SLAM Magazine

PC: Favorite play or musical?
David: High School Musical

Jay: Rent

Roland: Grease

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
David: Miranda Cosgrove

Jay: Keith Urban

Roland: Hunter Hayes

PC: First album you bought?
David: Supermodel by Foster the People

Jay: LimeWire

Roland: Take this to your Grave by Fall Out Boy

PC: First concert you attended?
David: AP Tour watching Family Force 5, A Rocket to the Moon, and 3Oh!3 [laughs]

Jay and Roland: Fall Out Boy headlining the Honda Civic Tour in San Diego

PC: An album that you changed your life and why?
David: : I didn’t listen to anything other than Michael Jackson growing up. I know there is a lot of recent negativity attached to his name and it pains my heart, but I would be lying if I said anything else. Thriller changed my life because it instilled in me a standard of what music should be. There wasn’t one song on there that I did not like. Whenever it was on, it was hard not to sing, dance, or smile.

Jay: Fall Out Boy’s From Under the Cork Tree was constantly on repeat when I was learning guitar. It was one of the few records that I learned every song from start to finish. I’ll forever hold that record, and that band, close to my heart. They’re the reason why I play in a band today. FOB stan for life, honestly.

Roland: Same with Dave, but *NSYNC’s self-titled album was definitely a game changer, too! It showed me what a great pop melody sounded like at such a young age. It made me want to be in a boy band—it still does to this day!

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
David: Madison Square Garden

Jay: Red Rocks

Roland: Greek Theatre

To keep up with Royaljag, follow them on Twitter and Instagram, and pick up “909” on Amazon Music, iTunes, or stream it on Spotify.