Microphone veterans Royal Ruckus have returned with a new EP which is packed full of Golden Era-inspired, Boom Bap-esque, neck breaking Hip Hop. Royalty Check is the follow up to the group’s previous, and much loved project, World’s Okayest Rapper.
Always excited by new music from these Bakersfield, California natives, I’ve been bumping Royalty Check for weeks at this point. Before I speak on the new release, make sure to check out this other article I published about Summer of the Cicadas.
Royalty Check was created with multiple intentions: 1) deliver neck breaking Hip Hop that reminds us of the raw energy from music of the Golden Era and Boom Bap, 2) salute their hometown and the origins of Royal Ruckus, 3) establish connection with like-minded people while discovering self through history and storytelling.
As far as I’m concerned. All three missions accomplished!
As much fun as Royal Ruckus records always are, there is no denying the depth to the lyrical content and the amount of intelligent thought that is behind each release. Royalty Check is no exception.
Chunjay manages to trace his family’s roots across the US into California during the 1800s, share stories of growing up in modern day Bakersfield, and living the Hip Hop tour life while making listeners wave their hands in the air, bounce to the beat and break their neck with an unapologetic approach lyricism and the no holds barred production provided by DJ Sean P.
From my experience, it’s rare to find music with such depth that is equally as fun and care free as Royal Ruckus manages to be. Walking a fine line between having a healthy amount of fun and staying in touch with the spiritual self is something (in my opinion), Royal Ruckus does best
If you love Hip Hop, you’ll want to grab a copy of Royalty Check.
In the below interview spotlight, I was fortunate enough to get a few moments out of Chunjay’s busy schedule for a Q&A.
Full interview along with music and links below.
Be sure you check out the cover of Jump Around! Be ready for a workout!
Royal Ruckus in da house!!! How have things been going?
Chunjay of Royal Ruckus: DUDE, so good to hear from you, thanks for checking in. My MacBook helped me write that last sentence. Amazing. But seriously, things have been super good, super busy, and also super hard. Life is this chaotic place full of joys and sorrows, and we do our best to survive as long as we can. I lost a rapper friend, my boy J-Qwess, to cancer a few months ago, and it’s really thrown me for a loop, and I’ve been dealing with some depression apart from that.
At the same time, my life is going extraordinarily well otherwise. It’s kind of wild to have so many amazing things happening, but to mentally be in a bit of a fog. But alas, the fog is lifting, and I’m finding joy in little things again.
And dang, man, there really isn’t anything better than participating in the artistic community and drawing strength from the joys and sorrows of others, too. And on some emcee shit, I love rocking a crowd. Nothing makes the stresses of life give way to a rush like an engaged audience when I’m performing.
How do you feel about the response to your last project, World’s Okayest Rapper?
Chunjay: Man, that was such a fun project to do. It was great to work with CookBook, the record’s producer, and to really dig in to the songs with him in person, out in Los Angeles, and to be able to get in the studio with some incredible emcees who each bring something unique to the table. These last two projects are a labor of love, working with artists that I look up to and admire, and being able to take a bit of me and a bit of them and come up with something fresh and unique.
The response has been great, especially in the live performances. The World’s Okayest Rapper EP was written while I was on tour, and was written with live audiences on my brain. So the result is a very hooky album, with something on almost every song for the audience to participate in, beyond just clapping their hands to the beat. It really translates live, and it feels so amazing to be wrapping up a song and seeing almost the whole crowd—most of whom are hearing my songs for the first time—singing along to a new song. Such a privilege.
What can we expect when we click play on Royalty Check? Were you guys trying to accomplish anything specific or something different on this EP?
Chunjay: For sure, we wanted to create a positive, uplifting vibe with a solid golden-era feeling vibe to the songs, very classic hip-hop with breakbeats, scratches, and chopped samples. We had an incredible experience recording with DJ Sean P on The Summer of the Cicadas double album, and he’s had small parts to play on a couple other projects, and so I approached him with a particular vision for sound and content.
Content-wise, I wanted to pay homage to our roots as a group, which was three high school kids in Bakersfield, California starting a fake rap group that we eventually took seriously. So the lyrics are filled with references to where we came from, how I became a rapper, my graffiti writing days, and even a little bit of my own family’s religious-driven wagon train emigration across the US in the 1800’s, to land in California.
In short, I wanted to represent as strong as possible the things that shaped me as a person, and us as a group, but I also wanted DJ Sean P’s talents to shine. So, basically, he’d come up with the direction for the song in tone and general structure of the hook, and I would build from there. We also had a blast recording it in Texas.
It’s my understanding that this EP is part of a series. Where does Royalty Check fit into the series? What’s coming next?
Chunjay: When we released Summer of the Cicadas, it was intended to be the final chapter for Royal Ruckus. In fact, the second disc was originally a separate solo project of mine. But the response from our listeners has been so great, we’ve decided to blur the lines between me going solo, and Royal Ruckus continuing as a group. So at a lot of shows I’m introduced AS “Royal Ruckus,” even though I’m only half of the group!
Basically, these projects are me collaborating with other artists, but Flatline (Mike Walker) from RR maintains creative input, and determines his own level of involvement. So on Royalty Check, he’s on every song in some way, even though the project was written by me and DJ Sean P.
I’m working on the next few projects in the series at this time, and will have to save some of the details for later. But for now, I can tell you about two of them. One project is an electro-pop inspired project with Peter Daily, who has been playing with Pigeon John for the last 15 years and used to be part of the old Christian hip-hop outfit, Ill Harmonics. The other is with my boy Kid Courageous from Colorado, and all the songs are inspired by other Bakersfield artists, especially from the Bakersfield Sound country scene of days gone by.
These are sonically such unique records, I am just so excited about them.
You’ve been really active on the Podcast scene lately. What are some of the shows you’ve been featured on?
Chunjay: Oh man, yeah, it’s always a privilege for people to have me on and share my craft and thoughts with their listeners. I’ve been on a few, and try to keep links to them on our social media and website. Some of the more interesting ones are the interview on The Areopagus where I open up about my own history, especially as it relates to religious conversion; the guys on the Jiggy Jaguar Show (which was on iHeartRadio) really went wild about World’s Okayest Rapper; and of course I have a ton of great guests on my own podcast, Brews, Beards, & Shipwrecks.
I’ve also noticed you move across the map quite a bit. Is there a Royal Ruckus tour coming soon? Where can music lovers catch you live?
Chunjay: Oh for sure, I’m always looking for opportunities to play live and connect with listeners in person. Last year I performed in Montana, Florida, Texas, and all points in between. I’m trying to focus a little more on the Florida scene, since I am living in Florida and it makes it easier to connect with audiences if I can return with some regularity.
Another thing, we are collecting contacts for a house show tour. Anyone in the continental United States interested in having me come and play an intimate show in their living room or some private event at their local coffee shop or brewery should absolutely hit us up. It’s far easier than you would think, and we can show you how to do it.
Let readers know where the best place to connect with you online and listen to more music?
Chunjay: For sure, we are active on instagram.com/RoyalRuckusOfficial, facebook.com/RoyalRuckusOfficial, twitter.com/RoyalRuckus, and a host of other places. Subscribe to our channel on YouTube.com/c/RoyalRuckus, where we will more than likely drop half a dozen music videos this year. Of course, we’re on Spotify and Apple Music and ALL THE THINGS.
We’ve also made some cool little tools for you to enjoy at
Anything else before we sign off?
Chunjay: Yeah, don’t sweat the small stuff. And it’s pretty much all small stuff.
