by kaylee pickens
photo by conner sorensen
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.”