Oh, Lorde! Singer Reflects on Suburban Reality Vs. Unattainable Riches on “Royals”

The brilliant song, Royals, by the New-Zealand singer, Lorde, has been in heavy rotation on VH-1, and on KFOG here in San Francisco. VH-1 has honored her as their “You Oughta Know Artist” for September.

Lorde, born Ella Yelich-O’Connor, sports a mature-sounding voice, well beyond her 16 years. On Royals, she sings about the reality of a suburban lower-middle-class existence, compared in stark contrast to the excessive (entitled) lifestyles of the rich and bling-worthy, often presented in Pop, Rap, Hip-Hop, and Sports cultures.

“In a torn-up town, no postcode envy

But every song’s like:
Gold teeth
Grey Goose
Trippin’ in the bathroom
Bloodstains
Ball gowns
Trashin’ the hotel room … we don’t care
We’re driving cadillacs in our dreams

But everybody’s like:
Cristal
Maybach
Diamonds on your timepiece
Jet planes
Islands
Tigers on a gold leash … we don’t care
We aren’t caught up in your love affair

And we’ll never be royals (royals)”. She simply states, with self-assured self-acceptance, “That kind of luxe just ain’t for us.”

The slightly eerie video pulls you into the suburbs, capturing the stagnant life of two teenage boys in the townhouse jungle, passing time either sitting around, shaving their heads, or sparring in the living room, a far cry from Justin Bieber, racing his Ferrari through his gated community. The mostly vacant faces convey a longing for something more, indicating that maybe, just maybe, that luxe is something they want badly.

Royals, as a Pop song, is fantastic. It’s smooth with a head-bobbin’ beat, tribal-inspired harmonies, a touch of electro-synth, and an addicting syncopated hook you want to memorize and spout off without stumbling. With Royals, Lorde is ruling the airwaves. BSo