Khris Royal was born in New Orleans and started playing saxophone at seven. He studied at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) and earned a full scholarship to Berklee at sixteen, coming home with a sound steeped in jazz but open to everything the city throws at him.
He leads Dark Matter, a band whose blend of jazz, hip-hop, and funk has made Royal one of the most in-demand young bandleaders in the city. He has toured with Rebelution and played with George Porter Jr. & the Runnin' Pardners, and Dark Matter backed Big Freedia's acts at the 2019 Freedia Fest during Jazz Fest.
Dark Matter's single "Step Children" features fellow New Orleans keyboardist Nigel Hall — a meeting of two of the city's sharpest young funk minds.
