RAGS AND RICHES on 'Devil in Disguise', Viral Pressure, and Patience as the Ultimate Power Move
The duo opens up about the symbolism of their latest single, the realities of being an artist in today’s fast-paced industry, the balance between streaming exposure and fair pay, social media pressure and more!
RAGS AND RICHES are an alt-pop powerhouse of Kentucky-born brothers whose explosive live shows and energizing anthems have fueled a relentless touring schedule and millions of streams.
In our conversation, they unpack the symbolism behind their latest single Devil In Disguise, open up about the pressures of the modern music landscape, talk about unexpected songwriting twists, dream collaborations with Post Malone, upcoming plans, and more!
Chris Roditis, Musicngear: Welcome to Musicngear, guys! Your new single "Devil In Disguise" explores addiction using the glitzy metaphor of a blackjack game, equal parts glamour and despair. What inspired that concept, and how do you hope listeners connect with it on a personal level?
Hey! Thanks for having us!
It was actually inspired by Elvis and his addictions. We didn't want to write something that wasn't fully relatable, so we made it from the perspective of this woman that is the “devil in disguise” because everyone has dated someone that fooled them into believing they were something they weren't at all!
Musicngear: What gear or setup helped you craft the track’s electrifying sound? Any instruments, plugins, or production choices that were essential?
For sure! We use Image-Line FL Studio as our DAW, and this song was uniquely crafted because a friend of ours in South Carolina Will Mahoney, tracked the bass parts and guitar parts.
That, paired with some splice samples and Omnisphere, created this one. It really was one of the simpler production songs that we have released in a long time!
Accolades and all the numbers still don't change the music industry's natural process of 'your time will come'
Musicngear: What’s the one piece of gear that completely changed your songwriting or performance game, something you’d recommend to any artist trying to level up?
We had 4 writers on this song! I would say that changed the perspective as a whole!
Whenever we write with 3+ writers, that is game-changing and has created some of our biggest songs as a band so far!
Musicngear: You’ve built an impressive career in a notoriously unpredictable industry - 11 million streams, major support slots, awards. What’s been your toughest lesson so far, and what advice would you give to artists facing similar obstacles?
Thank you! Accolades and all the numbers still don't change the music industry's natural process of “your time will come”.
All of those things matter and slowly advance things, but to reach the next level takes patience and hustle!
Musicngear: If you could headline one show anywhere in the world, on any stage, with any lineup, even fictional or from another era, what would it look like? No rules.
That’s a great question! I would say Royal Albert Hall or Madison Square Gardens, and the lineup would be RAGS AND RICHES, Queen, Post Malone, and Nirvana.
I feel like it would be a wild show!
Musicngear: You’ve said your mission is to bring hope and energy to a generation of dreamers. What’s something about the current state of the music industry that gives you hope, and something that worries you?
What gives me the most hope is that artists have the tools and ability to do it all now at a high level.
Something that worries me or concerns me is that we all expect something to blow up on TikTok or IG in 10 seconds, or we fail. That’s obviously not true, but it can be frustrating to say the least!
Spotify and the other streaming platforms are a blessing and a curse
Musicngear: You’ve supported acts like Smash Mouth and Judah & the Lion, and played countless venues. If you could pick any dream collaboration, who would be at the top of your list?
We have ALWAYS wanted to collab with Post Malone! He is at the top of the list!
Musicngear: Streaming platforms like Spotify have transformed how music reaches listeners, though many artists talk about the challenges of earning fair compensation. From your perspective, how do you see the role of these platforms in today’s music industry? Αre they more of a help or a hindrance for artists?
I think Spotify and the other streaming platforms are a blessing and a curse. The amount of exposure and opportunity is endless…
It’s more of the payment side that will always be a struggle, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon!
Musicngear: Every artist has that one moment in the studio that’s equal parts disaster and genius. Do you have a “happy accident” story behind any of your tracks?
Peyton had a song that he had started working on based off of a story we heard on tour, but the story ended like the worst way that would not work for a great song. Haha, so, randomly he was like “ok…hear me out” and I knew he was about to shoot some crazy idea out.
He then proceeded to say we should write the song as like a murder mystery or the game Clue. We wrote the song, and honestly, it turned out to be pure genius! He can have the credit for that one!
Musicngear: What’s coming next for RAGS AND RICHES? Are there upcoming projects, releases, or tours in the works that fans should be excited about?
We have our brand new EP coming in the fall and a ton of shows all over the country built around that!
This year, we have a music video with every single song we are releasing, which has been super tiring, but awesome to have!
Connect with RAGS AND RICHES
Spotify / YouTube / Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / X
About Chris Roditis
Chris Roditis has been an active musician since 1995 in various bands and projects across a variety of genres ranging from acoustic, electronic to nu metal, british rock and trip hop. He has extensive experience as a mixing engineer and producer and has built recording studios for most of the projects he has been involved with. His passion for music steered his entrepreneurial skills into founding MusicNGear in 2012.
Contact Chris Roditis at chrisroditis@musicngear.com
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