"Scrap the Monarchy" is a single by the Krown Jewelz, a band created by Kunt and the Gang, who had previously released songs as the Kunts. The song, aimed at the

British monarchy The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

, serves as a follow-up to the Kunts' 2022 single " Prince Andrew Is a Sweaty Nonce"; the track attacks

Prince Andrew, Duke of York Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger bro ...

William, Prince of Wales William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. William was born during the reign of his pat ...

and

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

. The single was released on 5 May 2023, the day before the King Charles III's coronation, reaching No. 9 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 1 in the

UK Independent Singles Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the re ...

History

The Krown Jewels previously released a series of tracks as The Kunts, which entered the UK Singles Chart despite little mainstream press coverage and no radio airtime. Three previous songs attacking the

Government of the United Kingdom His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

and the Conservative Party: " Boris Johnson Is a Fucking Cunt", " Boris Johnson Is Still a Fucking Cunt" and "

Fuck the Tories "Fuck the Tories" (stylised as "Fuck the T*ries") is a single by the Kunts, a band created by Kunt and the Gang, released in 2022. It is a satirical protest song attacking the Conservative Party, known colloquially as the Tories, who formed t ...

" reached the top ten in the singles charts. In 2022, the band released " Prince Andrew Is a Sweaty Nonce" during the week of the

Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II The Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II was the international celebration in 2022 marking the Platinum jubilee, 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. It was the first time that any History of monarchy in the U ...

, which reached No. 20 in the UK Singles Chart, and No. 1 in the

. On 6 April 2023, the band announced the details of "Scrap the Monarchy" and revealed that it would be released on 5 May 2023, the day before Charles III's coronation. They also revealed the lyrics to the track which, unlike their previous songs, contain no major

swearing Profanity, also known as swearing, cursing, or cussing, is the usage of notionally offensive words for a variety of purposes, including to demonstrate disrespect or negativity, to relieve pain, to express a strong emotion (such as anger, ex ...

in order that it could be covered by the press, played on the radio, and announced on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

's chart shows. The song makes references to

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

's relationship with paedophile Jimmy Savile and

Prince Andrew Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger broth ...

's involvement in the Epstein scandal, as well as claiming that

Prince William William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. William was born during the reign of his p ...

is guilty of

virtue signalling Virtue signalling is the act of expressing opinions or stances that align with popular moral values, often through social media, with the intent of demonstrating one's good character. The term ''virtue signalling'' is frequently used pejorativel ...

. The announcement also listed details of a music video featuring the band dressed as

guardsmen Guardsman is a military rank, rank used instead of Private (rank), private in some military units that serve as the official bodyguard of a monarch, sovereign or head of state. It is also used as a generic term for any member of a guards unit of ...

, the band with their heads on spikes, and a

look-alike A look-alike, or double, is a person who bears a strong physical resemblance to another person, excluding cases like twins and other instances of Family resemblance (anthropology), family resemblance. Some look-alikes have been notable individua ...

of Charles III featuring

saveloy A saveloy is a type of highly seasoned sausage, usually bright red, normally boiled and available in fish and chip shops around Britain. It is sometimes also available fried in batter. Etymology The word is believed to be derived from Middle ...

sausages for fingers; this move likely serves to make a mockery of the King's 'sausage fingers', as are the contrasting, abnormally thick hands on the cover. On Kunt's blog, a campaign was launched to get members of the public to record their own lyrics to the music, with nine to be selected for release as downloads. Eventually 30 versions were released of the song's launch. To promote the song, Kunt created an artwork entitled "A Waste Of Money", which consisted of 100 fake £10 banknotes featuring the King, which Kunt wiped his bottom with. In the first chart update, the song reached No. 17 in the singles chart. When this was announced on ''The Official Chart: First Look On Radio 1'', presenters

Vick Hope Victoria Nwayawu Nwosu-Hope (born 25 September 1989) is a British television and radio presenter, journalist and published author. Hope hosts the BBC Radio 1 drivetime show ''Going Home with Vick, Katie and Jamie'' with Katie Thistleton and ...

and

Katie Thistleton Katie Lorna Thistleton is an English television and radio presenter, journalist and author, best known for her work across BBC Radio 1 and previously CBBC. She currently co-hosts Radio 1's Going Home with Vick, Katie and Jamie, having previously ...

named the Krown Jewelz, but did not name the song. The song, however, was named on ''The Official Chart on Radio 1'', but not played. It reached No. 9 in the Singles Chart and No. 1 in the Independent Singles Chart. The song was the highest new entry the week it released, selling 22,870 copies.

Charts

References

{{UK Independent Singles Chart 2023 singles 2023 songs British punk rock songs Cultural depictions of the British royal family Protest songs Satirical songs Songs about kings Songs about princes Republicanism in the United Kingdom UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles Works about monarchy

History

Charts

See also

References