Tarrus Riley’s 2006 hit “She’s Royal” achieved a milestone of 100 million views on YouTube on Wednesday, July 19. The music video was directed by Rupert Campbell and Richard Delapenha and was produced by the legendary saxophonist Dean Fraser for Riley’s “Parables” album on VP Records.
Tarrus mentioned in an interview with the Jamaica Observer that he conceived “She’s Royal” as a way to boost women’s self-esteem. He wrote the song to help women feel good about themselves, particularly those affected by the lingering impacts of slavery on self-esteem.
His identity as a Rastafarian also played a significant role in the song’s creation, highlighting the belief in viewing themselves as kings and princes and the need for their women to feel like queens and princesses.
The song originally had a different title, “She’s Got It”, as Riley revealed to the Sunday Gleaner. However, a conversation with a friend during the sheltering from hurricane Emily in 2005 prompted him to reconsider the message of the song, thus leading to the birth of “She’s Royal”.
On Spotify, “She’s Royal” is Riley’s most played track with 33 million streams. It’s followed by “Superman” with 20 million plays and “Lighter” with Shenseea, which has 17 million plays. His collaboration with Major Lazer and Ellie Goulding, “Powerful,” has garnered over 280 million plays on Spotify.