Royal Blood on fame, early gigs and their first ever songs

2 September 2023, 08:00

Mike and Ben tell Radio X all about their early years, their debut live gigs, their first ever fans and there's even an EXCLUSIVE unheard Ben Thatcher song!

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Royal Blood have returned with their fourth album Back To The Water Below - meaning 2023 has been a hectic year for the duo of Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher, with headline sets at Kendal Calling, TRNSMT, On The Beach, support slots with Muse and a place on the Glastonbury Pyramid Stage bill between a Foo Fighters "secret" set and Arctic Monkeys. Not bad.

However, the lads had to start somewhere. Radio X asks Mike and Ben about how they got started in music: the first albums they bought, their first live shows, their first time on TV and loads more. Watch Royal Blood take our "Radio X Firsts" challenge. You'll find out:

Whose first album was Aqua?
Whose first gig was Goldfrapp at the Brighton Dome?
Which of the two bought All By Myself by Celine Dion as their first single?
What it was like being approached by Razorlight fans at the Barfly?
...And there's an exclusive airing of Ben's first ever song Don't Smoke Whatever You Do.

Royal Blood's Back To The Water Below is out now.

FIRSTS asks some of the biggest artists in the world to reflect on some of the milestone moments in their career; from their first gig, to the first time they headlined a festival. FIRSTS reminds us all that, no matter how big you get, we all have to start somewhere.