Meet The RoneyBoys

First things first, please introduce for me the members of The RoneyBoys…

Israel is our eldest brother. He is very intuitive, and spends a lot of time in his own head. His nicknames are “Captain Obvious” and “Professor.”

Isaac is the middle child, but he acts like he’s the oldest. He’s the good taste curator of the group. He has a wonderful sense of humor, and is shy by nature…but appears very outgoing when the cameras turn on.

Ian, the baby, is the tallest (ironically), and we call him “Brutus” because he goes hard at everything in life; especially his vocals.

Let’s hop right into this latest single / video, “We Can Do Better,” by Jessica Jarrell, which you guys are featured on— Tell me about this particular track? How did it come to fruition?

We were at a music video shoot with B. Howard, and he asked us to listen to an amazing song that he had just recorded earlier that day with Jessica Jarrell. He asked us if we liked it, and we told him that we loved the song and the message. Not long after that, he sent us the session and asked us to put our vocals on it.

So this is also a collaboration with B. Howard, correct? How then did this connection even come about?

We actually met B recently because of a YouTube cover that he and Jackie Jackson found of us singing “Never Can Say Goodbye,” by (The) Jackson 5. They loved our performance of the song, and got a-hold of us through Instagram…and the rest is history!

Y’all semi-recently unleashed a brand new EP, Start It Right — Conceptually, what does that title represent both to and for you all?

This is the third of a series of EP’s that we have been working on for the past five years. Each EP leads into the next one. We decided to call the final one Start It Right, because it marks off the end of the EP era of our lives to the beginning of, hopefully, a larger project. We pretty much used these EP’s as a way to help people find out about us as musicians and songwriters.

Tell me your whole inception into music? When did y’all first become interested in it? And how did it all begin for The RoneyBoys?

That’s really a hard question to answer for us because we were born in the same house, and literally started singing and listening to music together before we could walk or talk. Isaac used to make up songs in his baby language. Eventually, we started going to our cousin’s house, and recording songs in their basement studio. Isaac started playing around on the keyboard when he was about two, Ian started playing the drums and ukulele when he was four, and Israel went from the ukulele to playing bass and guitar by the time he was a teenager.

Now you all hail from Wichita, Kansas, right? Who do you all consider to be your strongest musical influences?

First, we want to give a big shout out to Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis who shaped our musical foundation. We are influenced by all of the legends, especially Motown and ‘70’s, ‘80’s, and ‘90’s R&B. Our more current influences are Bruno Mars and, of course, the amazing B. Howard.

At what point in time did y’all consider this to be y’all’s career path?

When Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis told us that we needed to consider doing this as a career.

With that being said, how do you all classify your sound and / or style?

We are heavily influenced by R&B / Soul music.

In having said that, what individual role – both personality wise and stylistically – do y’all play when it comes to the group’s overall dynamic?

We are all brothers and, luckily, we get along really well and respect each others’ gifts and talents. Israel is the lyricist, Isaac comes up with the pretty chords, and Ian brings the hot sauce with his runs and adlibs.

What particular string of events actually led you all to linking up with your mentors, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis?

Uncle T and Uncle Jam discovered us from a YouTube video where Ian was singing “The Lazy Song” by Bruno Mars at age 9. They invited us to their studio, and we started working with them the same day. We started homeschooling, going up to their studio 5 days a week, and coming home on the weekends just to do laundry.

How much input do these industry heavyweights have when it comes to your whole creative process?

We have over 10,000 hours of studio time with Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. They taught us everything about recording, songwriting and producing, along with their workflow and studio etiquette.

What has been the biggest lesson you all have learned or taken away from working with these living legends?

We learned that the most important thing in life is to be a good person and to treat people with respect.

Switching gears here, what exactly do you all want people to get from your music?

We want people to feel hopeful, happy and uplifted.

If you all could collaborate with any one artist, living or dead, who would it be and why?

Michael Jackson.

If you all could play any venue in the world, which one would you choose and why?

We want to go where our fans are; wherever that takes us.

In terms of longevity, what do you all feel it is that will continue to sustain you in this grueling industry?

Our love for family, and our love for humanity.

Do you all have any other outside / additional future aspirations, maybe even completely away from music?

We haven’t really thought about doing anything besides music, because that’s all we have ever known.

To date, what has been your biggest career moment(s), at least thus far anyway?

Performing in front of Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson at a Grammy Museum gala.

Looking ahead, say five or maybe even ten years from now, where do you all see yourselves?

We hope to have established ourselves as musicians and songwriters, and we hope that everybody who has invested in our lives and careers will be proud of us.

The RoneyBoys In The Studio With B. Howard

As for the immediate, what’s next for The RoneyBoys?

We would love to start meeting other songwriters and producers, and creating amazing music with them. We have a ton of songs that we’ve been working on with B. Howard, and a vault of songs at FlyteTyme Studios with Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, that we hope will be released someday.

Is there anything I left out or just plain forgot to mention?

Nope, you pretty much covered everything.

Any “closing” thought(s) for our readers?

We want to wish everyone a very blessed and successful 2021, and we hope everyone is staying safe and healthy.