Royal Pirates
| Royal Pirates 로열 파이럿츠 | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Seoul, South Korea |
| Genres | Rock |
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Labels |
Apple of the Eye Co. (wiki) Universal Music Korea |
| Website |
royal-pirates |
| Members |
Kim Moon-chul Kim Soo-yoon James Lee |
| Past members | Richard Kim |
Royal Pirates (로열 파이럿츠) is a Korean-American rock band debuted in 2013. The band consists of Kim Moon-chul (vocals, guitar), Kim Soo-yoon (drums), and James Lee (bass guitar).
Members
Royal Pirates has three members. James Lee (Lee Joo-hyun 이주현) plays guitar and bass. Andrew Kim (Kim Moon-chul 김문철) is the leader, lead vocalist, and plays guitar. Kim Soo-yoon (김수윤) plays drums and guitar.
History
2004-2008: Fading From Dawn
The group was formerly known as Fading From Dawn from 2004 with the guitarist-vocalist Kim Moon-chul, drummer Kim Soo-yoon and bassist Richard Kim, Moon-chul's older brother. They used to play at several Korean events in California, such as the annual Korean Festival in Orange County. After Richard's death in April 2008 in a car accident in Pomona, California, they rarely played live anymore since they had no bass player.
2009-2012: Popularity, YouTube and demo releases
With their talent and originality, Royal Pirates gained fame on YouTube by uploading covers. In September 2008, Moon-chul and Soo-yoon posted their first cover "Time is Running Out" by Muse on their YouTube account. After that, they kept uploading rock versions of hit songs such as "Nobody" by Wonder Girls, "Mirotic" by DBSK, and "Circus" by Britney Spears, the latter reached 18 thousand viewers in just two weeks and was also featured on Britney's homepage.
Their first original demo was released on the internet was "Royal Villain". Soo-yoon's song "Like Butterflies" was also released soon after.
In May 2009, Royal Pirates appeared on Korean News Channel YTN where they were presented as an independent rock band which became a new YouTube sensation, getting over ten thousand views with their powerful instrumentals and brilliant videos.
They covered the song "Sorry Sorry" by Super Junior in Spring 2009 and after the video was posted on the Korean website Cyworld, the band received an invitation from the writer of Star King to appear on their show. However, the band declined the invitation since they had "major conflicts with school" and "scheduling was difficult for both of [them]". Also, they did not want to leave the image of a "Cover Band" to the world and to Korea.
James Lee joined Royal Pirates as a bassist in September 2009 and in October 2009, Royal Pirates appeared on KOME channel to introduce their new bassist.
In March 2010, Royal Pirates released the music video for their new original song and demo "Disappear". They declared that "This is not the actual debut of Royal Pirates. This MV was made independently for the fans and also for promotion of the band."
2013-present: Debut
Royal Pirates made their Korean debut on August 25th 2013 at Inkigayo with their digital single "Shout Out".
On January 15th 2014, Royal Pirates released their first EP in Korea "Drawing The Line.
On March 24th 2014, Royal Pirates released their first album in Japan "Shout Out", which also included English versions of the songs Shout Out, Drawing The Line and Fly To You.
Royal Pirates performed on several music programs as guests of Kim Kyung Rok of "VOS".
The band also performed on a world tour with actor Lee Min Ho. As guests on the Reboot: Minho Tour, they performed at venues in South Korea, Japan, China and more.
On August 27 2014, Royal Pirates released their second EP "Love Toxic", which included the English versions of the songs "Betting Everything" and "You". The band then later released a Taiwanese Deluxe version of their "Love Toxic" EP, featuring tracks from the "Drawing The Line" EP, as well as a Japanese edition, which included the Japanese version of the title track "Love Toxic".
Discography
Digital single
| Single # | INFO. | Track List |
| 1st | Debut Single《Shout Out》
|
Track List
|
| 2nd | 《Betting Everything》
|
Track List
|
| 3rd | 《서울촌놈 (Seoul Hillbilly)》
|
Track List
|
Mini album
| Album # | INFO. | Track List |
| 1st | 《Drawing the Line》
|
Track List
|
| 2nd | 《Love Toxic》
|
Track List
|
Mini album (Japan)
| Album # | INFO. | Track List |
| 1st | Debut Album《Shout Out (JP)》
|
Track List
|
Album (Taiwan)
| Album # | INFO. | Track List |
| 1st | 《LOVE TOXIC》
|
Track List
|
Filmography
Music videos
| Publishing Date | Track Name |
| August 25, 2013 | Shout Out (Synth Rock Version) |
| January 14, 2014 | Drawing The Line |
| January 16, 2014 | Drawing The Line (Band Version) |
| July 31, 2014 | Betting Everything Acoustic Ver |
| August 13, 2014 | 서울 촌놈 (Seoul Hillbilly) |
| August 26, 2014 | 사랑에 빠져 (Love Toxic) |
| August 31, 2014 | 사랑에 빠져 (Love Toxic) (Performance ver.) |
| October 7, 2014 | 사랑에 빠져 (Love Toxic) (Chinese Subbed by Universal Music Taiwan) |
Non-promotional broadcast appearances
| Member(s) | Television Show |
| Royal Pirates |
|
| Moon-chul Kim |
|
| James Lee |
|
| Soo-yoon Kim |
|
Commercials
| Member(s) | Commercial |
| Soo-yoon Kim |
|
| James Lee |
|
Awards
- Energy FM KPOP-Hall of Fame Awardee, "Love Toxic" (Oct0ber 12-November 2, 2014)
Exclusive Video
RP TV
Published on official YouTube channel.[1]