The Trouble Is: We need more Alanna Royale!
Hot off a new record, indie-soul artist Alanna Royale is ready to show the world all of her sides as not only an artist, but a person who has struggled in this world just like many others.
A presence born for the stage
Trouble Is is Alanna Royale’s third studio album, following So Bad You Can Taste It, and her first album, Achilles, Royale has a clear gravitation towards big band sounds in the R&B-Soul genre, but creating a uniquely Royale sound. Alanna Royale has been shaping and toying with her distinct sound, evolving and perfecting what fits her ever-changing eras in life, since she was a child, listening to similar bands within the walls of her childhood bedroom.
"That personality was very much born in me and I would religiously watch Star Search [similar to The Voice or American Idol today] and was constantly listening to teen pop bands, realizing that there were kids doing exactly what I wanted to do, and I felt I could do it to,” Alanna Royale smiled. “I knew I wanted to be the center of attention, it felt right. At a very young age I loved dancing, singing, musical theater, just being a ham and cutting it up in class, honestly just disrupting all the children around me. As soon as I realized that I could do what I do and get attention for it, I knew that was how I wanted to spend my life."
The bands and artists Royale listened to inspired her drive to find a similar sound within her own career.
“I've always been obsessed with captivating people,” Royale explained. “You know like, Whitney Houston, Judy Garland, Madonna, Janet Jackson – people who are undeniably charismatic, driven, and talented. The way that someone can just capture a room and hold everyone in the palm of their hands is my obsession; I think it's like the most powerful thing in the world.”
Royale is clearly striving towards that, captivating the crowd every time she gets up on a stage. One can never expect the same thing from her shows, part of this is due to Royale’s choice to not have a set band of people to travel with.
“I used to have a set band for a really long time,” Royale began. “I grew up in the world of bands, where we all write songs together, we all share the money, we all do equal work; that was something that was drilled into my head since childhood. And then when I got to Nashville, things changed.”
“In Nashville, people are much more independent, renting out their work in a freelance style, or only playing select shows,” Royale revealed, “and it's actually great because everyone brings something different to the table and I can mix up the sound. It's not how my performance style started with my touring, but it's definitely how it is now! And now, I get to open up my records for creative opportunities like having one guitarist on a specific feature, or a certain drummer on a song that really fits their vibe. Now, I'm able to lean into everyone's individual contributions and strong suits, which ultimately makes the project better and better.”
Details in chaos
Royale has a specific example of a time where she knew a more unique and grounded show could be churned out for the audience and everyone involved when hiring artists she is unfamiliar with.
“I took on a last-minute show, and one of the horn players that I had grown accustomed to was on the road, so I had another horn player recommended to me, and he had about a week to memorize all of my music charts because I don’t want the music sheets on the stage, and he had absolutely no problem with that,” Royale retold, still clearly impressed by the player’s skill. “Later on, after he’s shown me he can memorize the music, he reveals that he had just been nominated for a Grammy, both proving he’s more than capable of playing a one-off show with me, and completely shocking me in turn. We performed and it was amazing, and yeah it reminded me that this industry is unpredictable. You have to be prepared for every single thing in the world, which can be extremely daunting and very tiring, but also very rewarding.”
Although an artist has to be prepared for everything when putting on a show, much less a tour, Royale has known this is what she has been interested in for years, finding all the right questions to ponder to create the perfect show.
“I feel like I can't even remember a single time where I didn't want to do this -- I just knew it was what I wanted,” she said passionately. “I would go to shows as a kid, and I was always very fascinated with questions like: how did everyone here get together? How do all these bands know how to play a show? How did they know where to put the show? How did the promoter get out word for everyone to come? I was always fascinated by the whole process. I love production. I love theater. I love problem-solving. I like being manic, all over the place, and spinning around like crazy; I thrive under stress.”
It’s a good thing she thrives under chaos in the lifestyle that’s chosen her. Not only is performing a very chaotic and unpredictable career, but so is the genre in which she performs and creates. Jazz, soul, and R&B have all been known for their improvisation in performances, one song never being played in quite the same way.
“I love horns,” Royale gushed. “I've always loved horns. I think horns add a dimension and a depth that is so underappreciated in music. I love big band music, swing music, jazz music, just anything lush. Old Quincy Jones records, Otis Redding records -- music that has so much depth that you don't even know what's going on.”
“There are some times when I make a record where we have a sound in a song that is tucked so far away, but we mix it so low; that sound is the candy, that's something that's happening that your brain can hear as part of the whole picture, but you can't really identify it,” she smiled. “It's usually the hardest part and the most expensive part, I can attest to that, but horns and strings and all the auxiliary instruments that are outside of the rhythm section, give you such a gift that takes your songwriting and your performances to such an insane level.”
There are carefully executed details in the chaos, you just have to have the ear for it!
Royale did not have to even think for a moment before adding, “I think the change in music, performance style, bandmates, etc., is something I look forward to. I don't want to stay the same. I don't want to listen to an artist who's doing the same thing over and over again.”
Since there is so much improvisation and simply having fun on stage, having an attentive staff on hand to help run the show with a smooth course is essential. The average concert attendee has no idea about any of these inner workings to put on a lively and engaging show, but Royale wants her viewers to know and publicly appreciate the hard work being put into her shows by every crew member, on stage and off.
“There is so much about a live show that depends on someone who is not in the band, someone who has not been at rehearsals, and that is the sound engineer,” Alanna Royale said with a serious note. “The sound engineer sort of holds us in their hands. A lot of artists will tour with their own sound tech and that makes sure that they have the same sound every time. The hired sound tech knows what they like in their in-ears, if somebody wants more bass, more vocals, etc., we're always at the mercy of the sound tech. Shout out to the live sound engineers: please be patient, show us mercy; and to all the artists out there: do the same for your sound engineers.”
As aforementioned by Royale, she was attending live shows from a very young age, the direction in which her life went from those interactions was of no accident. Royale took life by the reigns and watched as her dream became a reality.
“It was a very natural sort of evolution to my life – once I started performing, and people started to really see me, I gradually was introduced to more and more people that helped to boost my platform.”
Revealing the second Alanna
Looking at Alanna Royale’s platform before she released her debut album Achilles in 2014, dropping teasers in her EP Bless Her Heart in 2013, her sound and style has grown much fuller and more mature.
“I finally have my third record out and I'm getting to play the songs I want to play,” Royale said. “The Trouble Is album cover features two Alanna's, and that’s because these two entirely different versions of myself are trying to learn to live together while they are going through good times, bad times, ups, downs, in the spotlight, off stage -- learning to live together and move through life together. And I feel like the more I've leaned into not only the good sides of myself, but also the sides I know I need to improve, the more liberated I feel and the more liberated I can be. The more I can help others to liberate themselves. I’m looking forward to taking the show on the road and having people experience this record after working on it for so long, it all makes me very excited to bear my soul to my listeners.”
After three albums, Royale disclosed that she felt she was hiding a piece of herself from her listeners, falling into the facade of displaying only the bright highlights from her life, omitting what stresses her out and her darker days. She knew she had to write what was real and put away the societal social media brain.
“I don't look at any social media at all before 11 AM,” Royale revealed. “I have to allow my brain to wake up and get a hold on the day. I have so many different methods of organization alone, that I try and stay as organized as possible. I'm the boss, I have to communicate with so many people about so many different things, such as my label, radio, PR, everything. I need my brain to be in a good position, and if I open my phone right away and start looking at everything, I start to spin out. I cannot get a hold of anything.”
Even singers and artists struggle with the information overload and choice fatigue cellphones present to the human brain every day, but Alanna Royale shared her tips to avoid the screen and how she still finds inspiration in a tech-driven society.
“Reading is a great way for me to sit down and be quiet, and not have a screen in front of me. It's also a great form of inspiration for my creative writing, I love to learn new words. I really want to have one of those painfully pretentious vocabularies. I want to be bringing new words and feelings, finding new ways to say the same things.”
Royale explained that she picked this trait up from one of her college professors while she was studying music composition.
“I had a professor who told me ‘You can only write as many songs as you know’,” Royale started. “He asked me one day, ‘can you play all your favorite Stevie Wonder songs on piano?’ And I responded, ‘No, I can only play some.’ And he asked, ‘Can you play all your favorite Beatle songs on guitar?’ And I responded, ‘No, only some.’ And he explained, ‘you can only write as many songs as you know. You need to learn every song that you love.’ And I feel the same way with words. I have to read other people's stories, and other people's lives, and other experiences, and open my mind up so I can tell as many stories and have as many new ideas as possible.”
Trouble Is with everyone
In tandem with many, Alanna Royale and her big personality took the isolation of COVID-19 very hard and came to a depressing realization that the world was losing its empathy, and after experiencing a collective tragedy at that!
“I have found that there is a serious commonality between every person, and for one reason or another, we have come to the conclusion that we're all so different and we couldn't possibly understand each other,” Royale said sadly. “No one has not been through a dramatic family moment, no one goes through their whole life without knowing someone who has a severe addiction issue – or, for a broader example, we all lived through COVID-19. We all went through the horrors of COVID-19.” Royale noted.
“Opening up about my own personal struggles and the life that I've gone through has created a lot of empathy, something we're very much lacking in today's society, and I think that that's a huge driving factor in what I do,” she said. “With my platform, I can look at someone and encourage, ‘Don't be mad because we're all in this situation. Let's find a way together to get through it’. It’s why I found it so important to put the two versions of myself on the album cover."
Royale wants to embrace herself as a whole, good and bad, and hope her listeners begin to realize the importance of that as well – in turn creating a brighter, more accepting world. This outlook on life energizes her performances, pushing her to create a captivating performance each time she gets on stage.
“I was invited to perform at Otis Redding's Homecoming this year,” Royale gushed and blushed. “I sang an Otis Redding song in front of his widow and whole family, and they loved it! I and everyone else were called over to his widow and given a ton of love from so many iconic people – people who have seen everything and everyone, they know it all, and I was asked back!”
With such a big personality it’s hard not to ask to see Alanna Royale perform again. Aside from her welcomed seat at the table with big classic artists, she’s even gained an impressive presence across the globe.
“I've been around the country all over and I have an amazing time touring in the US but I have a pretty big fan base and market outside of the US, particularly in Europe,” Royale revealed. “Europe has been very kind to Alanna Royale, and I'm most likely going to Europe in 2024, which I'm really excited to bring the show overseas to see all of these very dedicated fans. They're paying the highest shipping rates for my merchandise and records, and I'm just so grateful to have a fanbase that strong, that far away. I also have a lot of fans in Asia, Japan specifically, and Japan feels the farthest away. I feel like being in Japan and Australia, literally the other side of the world, just seems like one of the most remarkable things I could do. That's where I'm really looking forward to going.”
Trouble Is can be found everywhere music is sold both physically and electronically, including your local record store! If her album cannot be found at a location, simply request it to the clerk and it will arrive in a few business days. Alanna Royale and her team continue to push boundaries with their music, even in its physical form, pressing their 45 RPM vinyl on something called ‘regrind’.
“They use all of this wax that has fallen onto the floor from cutting vinyl all day to press our little 45 RPM singles onto,” Royale explained excitedly. “All that regrind, what would have been wasted wax, is instead made into these wonderfully adorable multicolored singles, and we get boxes of color variants. No box is one solid color, they’re all just so beautiful and get those vinyl collectors to our merch table.”
Following her platform’s message of interacting with people individually, and the importance of keeping that human connection, Royale assures that the best way to tell people about her music is a mutually beneficial way for her and her listeners, encouraging to spend time with your loved ones.
“I'm very grateful for any opportunity for someone to speak my name in public but there is a power in direct friend-to-friend, family-to-family, person-to-person recommendations, and if you like what you hear, just tell 10 people because there's a power in that that no algorithm can match.”
