Royel Otis doesn’t do flashy gimmicks, make bold, brash statements or lay down anything that could be confused with cheese or syrup.
Nevertheless, their ascent has been rapid.
The Sydney duo of Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic went from a development project, to cracking the Billboard Hot 100, cleaning up at the ARIA Awards, and, more recently the top spot on a Billboard chart, doing so in bullet time.
On Friday, Aug. 22, the indie-pop duo put a smacker on us in the form of Hickey (via OURNESS / Capitol Records), the followup to their 2024 debut Pratts & Pain which cracked the top 10 on the ARIA Chart in their homeland, peaking at No. 10. It’s a collection that is, at times, dreamy with hints of psychedelic pop, nostalgic twists, and the stuff that gets parties started.
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After the “rollercoaster” year that was 2024, says Pavlovic, during which they cleaned up with four ARIAs, and their cover of The Cranberries’ “Linger” for SiriusXM entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 94, the years-long friends cruised into songwriting mode.
“We just kind of work together, bounce ideas off each other or whatever,” Maddell explains. The songwriting process, he continues, “it’s just us showing each other ideas, like demos that we’ve recorded at home. Then we just work from there. I don’t know how anyone has actual schedules or a routine of how they write songs, personally.”
Trust the process. Great songs, good vibes and a cracking live set have placed Royel Otis on the bill for the biggest festivals this year, including Glastonbury Festival, Lollapalooza Berlin and Chicago, Fuji Rock Festival, Pukkelpop, and Reading & Leeds.
On Spotify, Royel Otis has amassed more than 10.8 million followers and counting. Last November, Ourness partnered with Capitol to get Royel Otis into the hearts and minds or more music fans. The process did its thing when Hickey single “Moody” became their first-ever No. 1 on a Billboard chart, summiting on the Adult Alternative Airplay tally in July.
For his work guiding the band, Ourness co-founder/director Andrew Klippel was named as Billboard’s Executive of the Week, and manager of the year at Australia’s 2025 AAM Awards.
And why the name Hickey? “Because love bites harder than any other emotion in the world…” the lads remark on social media.
Stream Hickey below.
