Lorde wrote the song in half an hour at her home in July 2012 and during a school break, she and Joel Little recorded the song at Golden Age Studios in Auckland in one week. Lorde and Little wrote songs for her debut EP in three weeks. The title "Royals" came to Lorde after she saw a 1976 photograph of Kansas City Royals baseball player George Brett signing baseballs with his team's name "Royals" emblazoned on his shirt. She said during a VH1 interview in September 2013, "It was just that word. It's really cool."
It's a song about rejecting the luxurious and materialistic lifestyle of the wealthy and elite, and embracing a life that is more humble and simpler. The lyrics portray the singer and her friends as rejecting the indulgences of those in power, such as Cristal, Maybach, jet planes, and diamonds. Instead, they choose to focus on creating their own joy and success through meaningful moments, such as counting their dollars on a train to the party, and being "bigger than they ever dreamed". This theme of setting one’s own standards for a successful life is echoed in the chorus: "And we'll never be royals/It don't run in our blood/That kind of luxe just ain't for us/We crave a different kind of buzz". Lorde encourages listeners to be unapologetic in their choices and find their own idea of what it means to be "royal".
Since its release in the US, "Royals" has broken multiple records, many of them a result of Lorde's young age. At 16 years and 11 months old, Lorde became the youngest female artist in 26 years to top the Billboard Hot 100 since 16-year-old Tiffany topped the chart with I Think We're Alone Now in 1987. It also made Lorde the first New Zealand act to top the Billboard Hot 100 as a lead artist and the youngest musician to top the chart with a song written by the performer, surpassing Soulja Boy, who achieved this at age 17 with [track artist=Soulja Boy[/track]Crank That (Soulja Boy in 2007. Lorde became the youngest artist whose song stayed at number one for more than eight weeks, a feat that was previously achieved by 13-year-old hip-hop duo Kris Kross with Jump in 1992. It also made Lorde the youngest solo artist to top the chart since Mario who, at 18 years old, topped the chart with Let Me Love You in 2005.
In August 2013, Lorde became the second ever solo female artist to top the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, since Tracy Bonham in 1996. "Royals" holds the record for longest spell at number one on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart by a woman, surpassing Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know (1995), which spent five weeks at number one. The song topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for nine consecutive weeks and was the top-selling song by a female artist in 2013. It was certified fourteen-times Platinum in 2023 for selling over 14 million copies in the country.
On 15 October 2013, co-writers Lorde and Joel Little won the APRA Silver Scroll award, which honours original New Zealand songwriting. At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, "Royals" won Song Of The Year and Best Pop Solo Performance and was nominated for Record Of The Year. Lorde was the youngest New Zealander to win a Grammy and the third-youngest performer overall. "Royals" also won Single Of The Year at the 2013 New Zealand Music Awards, and the Most Performed Songs distinction at the ASCAP Pop Awards. It received a nomination for Song Of The Year at the BBC Music Awards and Best Track at the Q Awards.
'Royals'
Lorde Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I cut my teeth on wedding rings in the movies
And I'm not proud of my address
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 roomWe 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)
It don't run in our blood
That kind of luxe just ain't for us
We crave a different kind of buzz
Let me be your ruler (ruler)
You can call me queen bee
And baby, I'll rule (I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule)
Let me live that fantasy
My friends and I, we've cracked the code
We count our dollars on the train to the party
And everyone who knows us knows
That we're fine with this, we didn't come from money
But every song's like
Gold teeth, Grey Goose, trippin' in the bathroom
Bloodstains, ball gowns, trashin' the hotel room
We don't careWe'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)
It don't run in our blood
That kind of luxe just ain't for us
We crave a different kind of buzz
Let me be your ruler (ruler)
You can call me queen bee
And baby, I'll rule (I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule)
Let me live that fantasy
Oh
Oh (oh, oh)
We're bigger than we ever dreamed
And I'm in love with being queen
Oh
Oh (oh, oh)
Life is great without a care
We aren't caught up in your love affair
And we'll never be royals (royals)
It don't run in our blood
That kind of luxe just ain't for us
We crave a different kind of buzz
Let me be your ruler (ruler)
You can call me queen bee
And baby, I'll rule (I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule)
Let me live that fantasy
The lyrics of "Royals" by Lorde featuring Rashon Amiel are a commentary on the excessive and often unattainable lifestyles that celebrities and the wealthy lead, as portrayed in the media. The song contrasts this with the modest, everyday life of the singer and her friends. The opening lines, "I've never seen a diamond in the flesh/I cut my teeth on wedding rings in the movies," express her lack of exposure to the lavish lifestyles of the rich and famous.
She goes on to describe the extravagant lifestyles that are often portrayed in popular culture, contrasting them with the simple pleasures that she and her friends enjoy, like "counting dollars on the train to the party." Despite the luxurious and glamorous lifestyles of the rich and famous, the singer asserts that this kind of "lux" just isn't for her, and that she and her friends "crave a different kind of buzz."
The chorus of the song emphasizes her desire to be her own ruler, "let me be your ruler, you can call me Queen B," rather than conforming to societal expectations or chasing after fame and fortune. The song's overall message is that true happiness and contentment can be found in living a simple life, rather than in pursuing material wealth and fame.
Line by Line Meaning
I've never seen a diamond in the flesh
I have never seen an actual diamond, in person or real life
I cut my teeth on wedding rings in the movies
My experience with expensive jewelry is limited to what I've seen in movies, particularly the ones where they show off wedding rings
And I'm not proud of my address, in the torn up town
I'm not particularly proud of where I live, in a town that is not in the best shape
No post code envy
I don't envy people who live in fancy areas with high-class postcodes
But every song's like gold teeth, Grey Goose, trippin' in the bathroom
In the songs that I hear, the themes are often about flashy things such as gold teeth, expensive Grey Goose vodka, and using drugs in bathrooms
Bloodstains, ball gowns, trashin' the hotel room
The lyrics to these songs also reference things like bloodstains on clothes, fancy ball gowns, and trashing hotel rooms
We don't care, we're driving Cadillacs in our dreams
Despite not having all of these luxurious things, we still dream of having them, like driving a Cadillac
But everybody's like Cristal, Maybach, diamonds on your timepiece
But it seems like everyone else aspires for even more expensive things, such as Cristal champagne, Maybach cars or diamonds on watches
Jet planes, islands, tigers on a gold leash
People in the song seem to have even crazier desires, such as owning a private jet, an island, or even a tiger on a leash made of gold
We don't care, we aren't caught up in your love affair
Regardless of all these things, we don't care about getting caught up in relationships full of materialistic things
And we'll never be royals
We will never achieve the status of being a royal with all the luxuries that come with it
It don't run in our blood
Achieving royal status is not in our DNA or lineage
That kind of lux just ain't for us
That lifestyle of luxury just doesn't suit us
We crave a different kind of buzz
We desire a different kind of excitement or enjoyment
Let me be your ruler, you can call me Queen B
However, I am willing to be a leader or ruler in my own right, and you can call me Queen B
And baby I'll rule (I'll rule I'll rule I'll rule)
I have confidence in my own abilities to lead and rule
Let me live that fantasy
I want to live out that dream or fantasy life that others sing about
My friends and I we've cracked the code
My friends and I have figured out the secret or trick for enjoying what we have, despite not having expensive luxuries
We count our dollars on the train to the party
We are mindful and keep track of our money as we take the train to the party
And everyone who knows us knows that we're fine with this
Those who know us understand that we are content with our situation
We didn't come from money
We were not born from wealthy or privileged backgrounds
We're bigger than we ever dreamed, and I'm in love with being queen
Despite our humble beginnings, we have achieved things we never thought were possible, and I love the feeling of being in charge or having control
Life is great without a care
Our simple lifestyle without too many materialistic cares or worries is great
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Ella Marija La Yelich O'Connor, Joel Little
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Ahmad-ot4oc
Lets be honest
This song owned the world for a while
@toni4110
Nope
@arkhamknight9001
My dad play this in his radio all day when I first came to canada
@tedbundythefrogman9814
I just heard that song.
@Ahmad-ot4oc
MENOL MALFOY I mean the song is 7 years old, how can you JUST hear it???
@rafee9442
This song completely changed Pop
@kaylacoded
Remember when this song was all over the radio?
@silencio7216
ItsJustKayla was yeas
@jackuin3387
Yeah, it was during a shitty period in my life and before I finished school. I still find myself looking back with rose tinted glasses regardless, for some reason.
@kaylacoded
Jackuin lol