California native, Inland Empire bred, King Royal, (born Troi Jo’Vaughn Ivery) with his rough rugged raw voice, brings a new edge to the music industry. He started rapping at the age of 14 on the first day of his sophomore year. A group of other students, who he would later befriend, ignited a freestyle battle in the gymnasium bleachers of Etiwanda High School. Although King Royal had never written a rap or free styled before, he learned on this day, that hip-hip is not only a way of life, but his life. Influenced by icons such as: Lil Wayne, Kendrick Lamar and Young Thug; King Royal prefers to seclude himself in a darkroom with ambiance lighting or his car parked on the street at night, allowing him to spiritually submerge into lyrical masterpieces. King Royal describes his music as a variety. “It’s not just for the streets, not just music for the ladies, not just music about my life.” However, his quest to deliver meaningful bodies of work and substance is of high priority when he’s creating music. He recorded his first track over the soulful beat of Rick Ross’s Maybach Music Part 2, in the garage of an associate’s house. His parents we’re unaware of his yearning interest to write and record songs, until he returned home later that night to premier his first ever recorded production. Coming from a competitive household, he was nervous to unveil his song. However to his surprise, his family was highly impressed, considering nobody in the house knew he rapped. At 16, he released his first mixtape, Total Royalty, May 4, 2012. His mixtape sparked local success, inspiring King Royal to get right back to work on Total Royalty II. During the initial phase of development, Total Royalty II was scheduled to be released as a mixtape, but after grueling months of recording and artist development, what King Royal thought would be a mixtape, elevated to an album of great inspiration. On November 9, 2015 King Royal dropped his video War in the Streets, leading to the release of his album, Total Royalty II was released November 17, 2015, launching himself as the premier artist off his record label, Royal Diamonds Entertainment, founded by King Royal and his father. Four months later, dedicated to the hustle, King Royal dropped the movie-like video Pinnacle on March 17, 2016. King Royal is the truth, because a lie can’t stand alone.
Over the course of the next 2 years, King Royal focused on fulfilling his 4th year at Cal State University of San Bernardino, recording his 3rd project, And It Was So…, building his brand, and ensuring complete ownership of his masters. In a quest to fulfill complete entrepreneurship, King Royal and his father understood the importance of purchasing and owning their own barcode. Because the person that owns the barcode, owns the product. So his projects were removed from all streaming platforms temporarily until ownership of his own barcodes was established. During this time King continued to work intensely on his album covering emotions, family issues, social ills affecting the community and country as a whole. And then the unexpected happened, ISIS affiliates carried out a terrorist attack on the city of San Bernardino killing 14 people and wounding 22 others at the Inland Regional Center. This influenced King Royal to reflect on his music and purpose on a greater scale, stating, “When ISIS hit the “dino” it affected everyone, no matter who you were. It was crazy because you would always see things like that happen in other countries of the world, but it hits you so much deeper when it happens in your city. You start to move different, not necessarily in a sense of being paranoid but more so just always on your toes. It ignited something in me that made me want to hustle that much harder for the city, for the county as a whole. Not only is my region overlooked, but when we get put in the spotlight it’s never for positivity. So that whole situation made me want to be the light for my city, for the I.E.” His father refers to him as the Marvin Gaye of Rap because of his ability to search his soul and cover various topics capturing the struggle, social degradation, love, sex, pain, good times and last but surely not least, God. Although from the West Coast, King Royal refuses to allow himself to be boxed into a region and/or a particular sound or style, when creating his music or rocking his brand.
Destined to build a conglomerate in the Inland Empire, King and his father mapped out a plan to advance his brand and elevate his company to the next level. During their crusade, immeasurable hours were spent developing their clothing line, Total Royalty Apparel and King Royal and Royal Diamonds Entertainment merchandise. His Total Royalty Apparel was designed to influence others to exemplify an esteemed way of thinking of one's self, subliminally sending a message filled with positive energy inspiring others to manifest their dreams and believe on a higher level, “You Are As You Think.” He stated, “We are gods, so I walk like a god.” Understanding the power and influence of music and fashion, it was imperative for King Royal to be highly involved in the process of design and launching his apparel, ensuring his brand was distinguished and displayed at the highest degree. Strategically King and his father felt it was important that his music and online store, royaldiaomondsent.com, demonstrate substance and value collectively.
King Royal completed his 4th year of college, and over the summer, prior to entering into his 5th year, he made a decision to switch his major from computer engineering to business. With an intent to elevate his knowledge, purpose and expand his brand, King Royal and his father transferred Royal Diamonds Entertainment to a Limited Liability Company (LLC). His time away from releasing music was spent perfecting his business model and manifesting an album to inspire rap culture to be hip-hop again. As demonstrated through his song “In Case They Come”, he purposely annihilated the beat like the emcees of the past to display the lyrical combat he enjoys and the essence of the craftiness that defined Hip Hop executed by pioneers such as Run DMC, LL Cool J, Ice Cube to name a few. Turning only 22 this past January 2018, King Royal has positioned himself to cultivate his legacy, inspire hope into his generation through black excellence and continue to propel the spirit of Hip Hop through studying the iconic greats like Tupac, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, Drake, Rick Ross and Meek Mill. He considers the new dudes in the rap game as “just competitors.”
When questioned about his lyrical content and actual involvement in some of the activities mentioned, as so many rappers boast about, he expressed, “through living you naturally create experiences, some good, and some bad, through our choices or situations we’ve been inevitably exposed too. I speak for me…I narrate for my family, friends and others subjected to harsh living, injustices, etc, who don't have a voice.” “I want others to know that I was birthed from the seed of hustlers, however I made a choice to seek higher learning, an education, understanding that knowledge is power.” King Royal is exactly what the culture enjoys, “Hip Hop!”