3 days ago
King Princess Debuts New Single ‘RIP KP' on ‘Colbert'
All hail the king. King Princess appeared on The Late Show to showcase her new single, 'RIP KP.' The evocative track is the first listen from the musician's forthcoming third album, Girl Violence, out Sept. 12.
Performing with her live band, King Princess, a.k.a. Mikaela Straus, offered an impassioned rendition of the song, which included a rollicking guitar solo and borderline NSFW cherry artwork. An official music video for the track will arrive later today.
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''RIP KP' is about the sexy side of girl violence – when love takes over your brain like a cordyceps and suddenly you're getting fucked all over your house, acting a fool,' King Princess shared in a statement. 'It's the perfect way to open the record: dramatic, unhinged, and a little tongue-in-cheek. I wrote it during a full ego death – leaving LA, my label, my old life – and somehow landed back in NYC making the music I would've obsessed over at 15. It's a slutty anthem for the lesbians. We need debauchery this summer.'
Speaking about Girl Violence, she added: 'Girl violence is very sneaky. It's not physical, it's deeply emotional, spiritual, and spooky. Women are both amazing and sinister—including myself—and it's my curiosity to understand all the love, loss, and changes that come out of my love for women. Why are we so inclined to cause and receive chaos? If you've experienced even an iota of it, then you'll have a story to tell. And these are mine.'
King Princess describes the album as 'a celebration of the craziness of femininity, in awe and admiration of the derangement,' which is fittingly connected to her move from Los Angeles to Brooklyn. 'I was not loving life, I didn't feel grounded at all. I realized my feet were dangling for years,' she said. 'Once I was back in the arms of the city I love, I started to feel easier and lighter about hard decisions that were actually in my best interest.'
Girl Violence is a follow-up to 2022's Hold on Baby, King Princess' acclaimed sophomore effort. The album included bombastic single 'Let Us Die,' a collaboration with late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. 'Taylor wasn't only down to play on the song, but he was also the most encouraging and wonderful presence during that session,' the musician told fans. 'I started sobbing at one point and Mark couldn't stop smiling. I have never felt so lucky. Taylor made this song what it is, and I can't wait for you to hear it.'
Since the release of Hold on Baby, King Princess has been pursuing an acting career alongside making her new album. She is part of the cast of the second season of Nine Perfect Strangers, airing now on Hulu, and she will star in Song Sung Blue alongside Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson later this year.
'You know when you're a little kid and you're doing plays in the mirror?' King Princess recently explained of acting in a conversation for Interview. 'All of a sudden, I felt like that again. I love music, but it's a bit different. A lot rides on you. In acting, you're part of a huge machine working to make this piece of art. It can be really freeing, I think.'
She added, 'Music has been my North Star since I was a little kid—I always knew I was going to be a musician. With anything that becomes monetized, it goes from being something you do for passion in your bedroom to something that you're now trying to one-up yourself in how successful or profitable it could be. I became victim to the age-old thing at some point where I was like, 'This isn't fun anymore.' That's when the acting thing came about, god bless.'
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