We The Kings just kicked off their “From Here to Mars” Tour last week in Orlando. The tour is hitting venues across the US through April 9th, including a sold out stop at NYC’s Gramercy Theatre this Thursday, March 24th! WTK’s headlining tour is in support of their latest album, “Strange Love.” Also featured on the tour lineup are AJR, She Is We, Elena Coats & Brother James.
We checked in with We The Kings to hear what fans can expect on this new tour and some of their most memorable fan encounters. Read our interview below and check out all of their upcoming tour dates! Be sure to grab a copy of “Strange Love” on iTunes so you can sing along on tour!
SecretFangirls.com: How would you describe a We The Kings concert in 3 words?
We The Kings: Sexy Dance Party
What are you looking forward to most about the new tour and being on the road again?
I think the best part about being on the road is the fact that we get to meet all of the fans who have been supporting us through the years and tell them “thank you.” Our fans are the reason that we are able to live our dream and without them it wouldn’t be possible.
Is there a song from the new album you can’t wait to play live?
There is actually a brand new song that we put out called “The Story Of Tonight” and we’ve all been so excited to play it live because this will be the first time we’ve ever played it in front of a live crowd! Playing new songs is nerve-racking sometimes because we strive to put on an amazing performance but also we try to add different qualities to the set that make each show special to that specific city and crowd.
Do you have any pre-concert rituals?
We have a pre-show chant that we started doing before each show about 5 years ago that has really caught on. Now our entire crew gets in on the chant and even a lot of the fans who know it chime in if they’re in an area close to stage and they can hear us screaming it backstage. Unfortunately if I were to type it out, it wouldn’t have the same impact, so you’ll just have to come to the concert and hear it for yourselves 😉
Who have you totally fangirled over?
We actually don’t get too starstruck around other celebrities because once you realize that they are just normal people too, it doesn’t make you feel nervous. However there was a night on tour that Robin Williams came out for because his daughter Zelda was a fan of the music. He sat on one of the tour busses while we were playing Halo and described the characters in a comedic fashion while everyone was playing and he had everyone rolling on the floor with laughter. I remember when he walked on to the bus, it felt like all of the air was completely sucked out of the room. He is definitely the one person that I can remember all of us being starstruck by. RIP Robin!
What artist(s) would you love to collaborate with?
This question is always so hard because there are so many musicians and songwriters that we would kill to collaborate with, but if I had to name a few I would say Chris Martin of Coldplay and Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters. Both Chris and Dave are incredible at what they do and when they each write a song and put it out in the world you can ALWAYS tell that it’s their song. The passion and realness that their songs have is something that I’ve been inspired by for a very long time and I hope to one day be someone else’s dream collaboration.
What music did you listen to growing up?
Growing up I was introduced to the Beatles by my mom who was a singer and songwriter. The first song she taught me was Blackbird and I remember falling in love with playing the guitar. I would literally sit in my room and play guitar until my fingers felt like they were going to fall off. Then once high school came around I remember listening to everything that Blink 182 and Green Day put out. I loved the punk rock adolescent sound that made me feel invincible and made me feel like I was part of something. Music was definitely my escape when I needed it, so I can truly say that I listened and absorbed every piece of music I could get my hands on.
Earlier this year you asked for fan stories about seeing you guys live for the release of “Story of Tonight.” What was your favorite story you got from that?
We’ve been so fortunate to actually have fans, and when we hear of the amazing stories they have of why they became a fan of We The Kings, it truly amazes us to see how much we’ve impacted our fan’s lives. We’ve had fans get engaged to our music and had brides walk down the aisle to our songs. We’ve had fans who were overseas in the military who said that listening to our music connected them with the family and friends that they missed. We’ve had fans that said our music got them through the most difficult times in life and in a lot of cases has saved their lives. It’s sometimes hard for us to believe that we could reach so many people but we’re incredibly humbled by the fact that our music has helped inspire people. Meeting the fans is one of the greatest things about being in this band and we love hearing all the stories, so if you’re reading this and have an awesome story about We The Kings then come to a show and tell us 🙂
On that same note .. What’s a memorable show that you’ve been to as a fan?
We got to play Lollapalooza in Brazil a few years ago and Foo Fighters played. There were about 70,000 people in the crowd when they went on stage and they crowd went wild. It made me remember why I loved music so much and also reminded me of all the shows that I used to go to just to see my favorite bands play. Not every band can put on a performance that you remember for years to come, but Foo Fighters definitely did, and I can only hope that We The Kings does the same.
Is there anything you’d like to say to your fans?
Saying “Thank you” wouldn’t be even close to enough of what we actually would want to say to them. They have inspired us to stay on this journey and continue writing music for the world to hear. The best part about being on stage is seeing everyone sing every word to every song we play. There is truly no other feeling in the world like it, and for that we owe our fans our lives.
We The Kings “From Here To Mars” Tour
March 23rd – TLA – Philadelphia, PA – Buy Tickets
March 24th – Gramercy Theatre – New York, NY – Buy Tickets
March 25th – Brighton Music Hall – Boston, MA – Buy Tickets
March 26th – Altar Bar – Pittsburgh, PA – Buy Tickets
March 28th – A&R Music Bar – Columbus, OH – Buy Tickets
March 29th – The CroFoot Ballroom – Pontiac, MI – Buy Tickets
March 31st – Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL – Buy Tickets
April 1st – The Blue Moose Tap House – Iowa City, IA – Buy Tickets
April 2nd – Madrid Theater – Kansas City, MO – Buy Tickets
April 3rd – Marquis Theater – Denver, CO – Buy Tickets
April 5th – The Rebel Lounge – Phoenix, AZ – Buy Tickets
April 7th – Slim’s – San Francisco, CA – Buy Tickets
April 8th – House of Blues – Anaheim, CA – Buy Tickets
April 9th – Troubadour – West Hollywood, CA – Buy Tickets
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