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Discovering Hail Your Highness: A Journey Through Sound and Community
Updated: Sep 22
Live and In Person
On July 18, Northern Michigan dream rock band Hail Your Highness will return to The Coin Slot. They will perform alongside Grand Rapids-based indie rock band Low Phase. This promises to be a dreamy, emo night, perfect for midsummer.
Two Sisters, One Genre
The band is made up of sisters Jessie and Niki Bobenmoyer. Since 2016, they have dedicated themselves to creating a sound you really can’t find anywhere else. Their roots lie in hardcore metal and punk genres. However, they later shifted into Midwest emo, shoegaze, and indie. These influences heavily shape the music they produce today.
Yet, the sound of Hail Your Highness cannot be tied down to just those genres. Some listeners have noted trap and R&B aspects woven into their song introductions. To Jessie and Niki, this eclectic mix is intentional.
“That's always been our goal,” Jessie said. “We never want to be a genre-specific band, if that makes sense. We just want Hail Your Highness to be the genre, you know? Whatever song we write—whether it's heavy, dreamy, or indie rock—it's our genre because we're playing it.”
Behind the B-Side
All music created by the pair stays within a small circle: Jessie, Niki, and their sound engineer Brian Thorburn, based out of Indianapolis. Their relationship has grown over the years, becoming not just a necessity after recording but a beautiful addition to their artistic process.
Their song “Ends of the World” from the recent EP Wonderdust is an example of a track that was challenging for the two to connect with. It faced a lack of structure and what felt like endless revisions.
“We tried switching around parts, trying to get it to feel right, making sure singing parts were distributed evenly,” Jessie explained. “When we sent it to our engineer, we thought, ‘Well, it's at least finished. The bones are there. We'll see what he does with it.’ When we got it back, we were shocked at the final product.”
Niki added, “We were so burnt out finishing that song. It would be midnight, and we’d be railing into the microphone as pissed as possible because the song called for that. Then, we’d get it back from our engineer, and we were like, ‘This is insane.’ We still have those moments all the time, even after two decades of doing this.”
The song, originally placed on the B-side of the release, became one of the top-streamed tracks off the EP.
What’s Coming Next
Throughout their discography, similar themes and sounds tend to pop up from release to release. This trend will undoubtedly continue into their upcoming EP. This new work reflects the current economic and climate status, stemming from a backlog of over fifty songs created over the past several years.
“It deals a lot with religious deconstruction too, which is something we’re very passionate about,” Jessie explained. “We think it’s important to get those feelings out right now.” She also hinted at an exciting feature they plan to keep under wraps for now, saying, “I think a lot of people who used to listen to us in our heavier days will be stoked.”
In addition to working through their backlog, Niki hopes to collaborate with musician friends for upcoming EPs, whether vocally or with other instruments.
Youth Centers, Stages, and Festivals
Community has shaped Hail Your Highness from the start. It’s no surprise that the sisters began their journey in community-centric spaces.
“Our parents had a youth center when we were teenagers. We booked bands and played at the shows. So, we have a lot of experience with that,” Jessie said. “We were playing at least once a week, honing our craft and getting comfortable in front of people.”
Coming from Grayling, where their style of music was sometimes disregarded, the sisters used songwriting to connect with like-minded individuals.
“Our biggest reason has always been to find community through music,” Jessie described, detailing the shared energy of a gig as “sacred.”
For Niki, the stage offers a clearer path to connection than everyday life.
“It's the most honest way we can communicate with the world. If we can have our instruments and sing and show ourselves, it’s a lot easier sometimes,” she said.
However, given their ages at the time, places to perform were less accessible than for other performers in Northern Michigan.
“I was also a minor,” Niki recounted. “We started when I was 14, so it was tricky to travel. We couldn’t play bars; it was all about being strategic, and we played a lot of festivals.”
A Journey to Respect
Despite their adjustment to the stage during adolescence, they soon faced another obstacle: the gender gap, especially in harder metal spaces.
“It was difficult up here because we were producing a sound that, at the time, had no definition. We were too heavy for pop markets and not heavy enough for the Legion Hall shows,” Niki explained. “We would get booed off the stage.”
Jessie echoed her sentiment.
“We learned we had to be better than the boys we were playing with to be taken seriously. We practiced every single day for ten years. It was nonstop. It’s a blessing and a curse because we feel very comfortable now with playing and performing. It’s nice not to hear comments all the time.”
The sisters have carved out their space in the music scene, appreciating those who have supported them for a decade.
Aware of the safety concerns many women face at shows, the two started an initiative called “Safe With Me.” This program aims to create a safe space for women in bands, women attending shows, and anyone who identifies as a woman, allowing them to perform and attend without fear of harassment.
DIY, Not AI
Having played together for over two decades, starting at ages seven and ten in their shared bedroom, the sisters have witnessed significant changes in the music industry.
“It's a strange time to be a musician right now. Ten years ago, people said it was the best time to be a musician. You don’t need a label or a manager because you have all these tools to do it yourself,” Jessie remarked. “Now, with streaming, artists have to fight to be paid fairly. There are no unions or safety nets if you can’t perform. And now we’re battling AI-generated music.”
“It’s easier than ever to access recording software and build a song. But with generative AI, people can call themselves musicians by just plugging in a prompt,” she said. “It feels dystopian.”
Hail Your Highness often uses the phrase “DIY not AI” across their social media, promoting the importance of keeping humanity at the center of art. They handle all aspects of their merchandise, management, and booking. Remarkably, they have never signed a record deal, despite it being the “ultimate dream” for many musicians, as Niki puts it.
“We’ll keep doing our best to encourage people to buy physical media, come out to shows, and support independent music. That’s the backbone of the industry, and we often get treated like second-class citizens,” Jessie said.
The pair has created a Patreon community called the Starborn, offering streaming tiers where they upload every EP and record they’ve released since 2008. This initiative allows fans to own music that may not be available elsewhere. It also serves as a time capsule for both Niki and Jessie as they share older tracks and create physical replicas, such as CDs, for purchase.
To support *Hail Your Highness, check out their Patreon, follow them on Instagram, or catch them live for free on Saturday, July 18 at The Coin Slot in Traverse City
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