Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor is commonly known by her stage name, Lorde, which is a reference to nobility, inspired by her interest in royalty and aristocracy.
"Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been reading up on royal families of all kinds,” she says. “I’ve just found it super fascinating—the crazy, opulent lifestyle, and some of them were so young and shouldn’t have been ruling countries at all. There was something so tragic and awesome about all of it."
"Obviously I've had this fascination with aristocracy my whole life. Like, the kings and queens of 500 years ago... they're like rock stars. If there was a TMZ 500 years ago, it would be about like Henry VIII and Marie Antoinette and all those people."
"I've been writing music since I was about 12 or 13, just mucking around with people and doing vocal coaching and stuff. Then I started working with Joel Little, and we just started making stuff. It just happened," Lorde said during a 2013 interview.
Lorde wrote the lyrics to Royals in just 30 minutes at home in July 2012. Joel Little later refined the lyrics and recorded the song for The Love Club EP, which was released on November 22, 2012. Royals debuted as a single in the U.S. on June 3, 2013, and became a major hit, reaching the top of the Billboard Hot 100. The song also appeared on Lorde’s debut album, Pure Heroine.
Lorde found inspiration from the lavish lifestyles of Jay-Z and Kanye West, especially their collaboration on Watch the Throne.
“I really enjoyed it. I can get absorbed in Kanye’s world, but a part of me is always like, ‘This is kind of bullshit’—all the crazy extravagances he’s talking about," she said.
The influence of George Brett
The title Royals came to her after she saw a photo of baseball player George Brett with Royals on his jersey. "That is so cool. That word is so beautiful and how can I incorporate that into something," Lorde said in a Vevo interview.
"Upon releasing the song, Lorde said in an interview with Vogue, 'The first weekend we put it out, I went on SoundCloud and saw all these people I didn’t know were listening to it, and I think I realized this is bigger than just me and my friends... [The first time I heard it on the radio], I was in my parents' living room. My sister had called the radio station to request it, and I felt very proud but very shy.'"
“Every situation I’m in, I’m thinking about lyrics,” says Lorde. “I’ll be at a party and enjoying it, but at the same time looking around and thinking about the translation, and how I’ll write about it. You can never shut that off as a writer.”
Lyrically:
In the opening lines, Lorde establishes her distance from luxury: "I've never seen a diamond in the flesh / I cut my teeth on wedding rings in the movies." She goes on to describe her humble beginnings: "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
Blood stains, ball gowns, trashin' the hotel room. We don't care, we're driving Cadillacs in our dreams"
An insight into how Lorde constructed her songs was given during an interview when she stated, 'The lyrics, "We're driving Cadillacs in our dreams," was something I had written in a diary when I was like 12 years old. I found the diary and thought, "That's kinda cool."'
"But everybody's like Cristal, Maybach, diamonds on your time piece. Jet planes, islands, tigers on a gold leash. We don't care, we aren't caught up in your love affair."
Lorde wrote Royals at the age of 16, noting "I definitely wrote Royals with a lightness in mind, and there is definitely a humorous tone to it. I wasn't trying to be aggressive and anti-consumerist. I was definitely poking fun at a lot of things that people take to be normal. I listened to a lot of hip-hop and started to realize that to be cool in hip-hop, you have to have this sort of car, drink this sort of vodka, have this sort of watch, and I was like, 'I literally have never seen one of those watches in my entire life.'"
"And we'll never be royals (royals)
It don't run in our blood
That kind of lux 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"
In these lyrics Lorde critiques the materialism that are glamorized in pop culture. With lyrics like "And we'll never be royals... "That kind of lux just ain't for us." It shows she knows this opulent lifestyle is far from her reality. It doesn't "run in our blood." She craves a "different kind of buzz." She values creativity and authenticity over the false happiness of material things.
"Let me be your ruler... you can call me Queen Bee," Lorde embraces a kind of self-made power, embodying a "fantasy" that lives in her mind.
The lyric "We're bigger than we ever dreamed" continues the theme of fantasy, while "And I'm in love with being queen" shows she enjoys imagining this life of power and status.
In a video of Royals, posted May 13th, 2013, Lorde wrote in the description, "lately i've been waking up at 4 or 5 a.m., turning things over in my head. so much to think about, so much to break down and process and decide. i'm only at the beginning, but it has always been important to me that everything feels cool, feels right. this song means a hell of a lot to me, and to others, and i guess what i tried to do is make something you could understand. a lot of people think teenagers live in this world like 'skins' every weekend or whatever, but truth is, half the time we aren't doing anything cooler than playing with lighters, or waiting at some shitty stop. that's why this had to be real. and i'm at that particular train station every week. those boys are my friends. callum's wearing a sweater that used to belong to me. so it all feels right, and i can sleep. thanks for being with me all the way so far -- so much to come, such great heights. i'm just getting started. enjoy xx"
Lorde drives the message home in the final verse. The lyric "Life is great without a care" rejects materialism and social pressures—a mindset worth considering at any age. It's tough, but worth considering. "We aren't caught up in your love affair" distances her from luxury. It suggests that true happiness comes from living authentically and letting go of expectations.
"Royals" achieved immense success, winning two Grammy Awards—Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance—in 2014. It also earned a Billboard Music Award for Top Rock Song, an MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video, and multiple honors at the New Zealand Music Awards and APRA Music Awards.
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