Royal & the Serpent

One Liner: Gothy, unpleasant electropop with some heavy metal snips

Wikipedia Genre: indie pop, electropop, pop-punk
Home: New Jersey

Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 13
Both Weekends.

Sunday at 3:30 on the Ladybird Stage.

Thoughts: One of those sorta goth pop singers.  We've had a number of those come and go through the festival over the years.  Sort of hard to quantify, because some songs sound like EDM, some sound like lite metal, one sounds like some sort of gypsy pop.  Who knows.  Lots of goth imagery and face makeup though.  She is a featured artist on multiple of the top songs in her Spotify - rather than them being her tracks.  Things I have never heard of, like Stand Atlantic, Arcane, Slash Puppy, Sleeping with Sirens, Jutes, or Lindsey Sterling, and them some I have heard of like Demi Lovato(?!?).  The thing that makes this weird to me is that she doesn't have an especially amazing voice - why are so many other tiny artists seeking her out to add vocals to their song?

Ryan Jillian Santiago was born around the time I graduated from high school.  She was a competitive dancer as a child, until she apparently shattered both of her heels at age 14 while jumping from a stage.  Gaaaaaaah.  Don't do that!  She got into musical theater and taught herself how to play guitar.  At 18, she moved to L.A. to attend art school and bartend.  She says that the stage name translates to "Me + My Ego."  Which, errr, sure.  I guess I missed the part where she is actual royalty?

No albums, just three EPs.  2021's searching for nirvana, 2022's IF I DIED WOULD ANYONE CARE, and 2022's Happiness is an Inside Job.  We have issues with capitalization, I see.  The top song that she is featured on is one from Gayle, who was hear at ACL previously, with her catchy "abcdefu" song that somehow has over a billion streams.  The top track that is just from Ms. Santiago is a single that was featured on that first EP.  "overwhelmed" has 213.1 million streams.

Another popular track about being anxious.  Between her and Doechii, we can fire up an anxiety party for all of the youth who need a mental health break.  Don't love it.  Top track after that is "FUCKBOI REJECTS" from the second EP.  11.3 million streams and just a terrible song name.

Well, that is a weird detour into a more straight-pop direction.  Well, a dark as shit straight-pop thing, but that is a terrible song.  If Avril Lavigne had no filter and tried to out-raunch Eminem.  I thought about providing you with a new single, but honestly, if what you have heard so far is appealing, then please feel free to search that out on your own.