Musical Trailblazer Roddy Bottum + Akashic Books Announce Bottum’s Memoir The Royal We (Nov 4)
A Heartfelt Reflection Of The Queer Icon And Faith No More Co-Founder’s Coming Of Age In 1980s San Francisco
Pre-Order The Royal We HERE
“A very honest and extremely well-articulated story of coming of age, parallel and within the evolution of the alternative music world.” - Kim Gordon “A brilliant and gorgeous book” - Courtney Love “Written with the right amount of flourish and punk abandon—what a treat.” - Chloë Sevigny “Vibrant…a melancholy tribute to punky, grassroots community-building.” - Kirkus Reviews |
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July 25, 2025 - Akashic Books and Faith No More co-founder, musical trailblazer, and queer icon Roddy Bottum have announced the November 4 release of Bottum’s memoir The Royal We. A heartfelt reflection of a San Francisco that once was and is no more, The Royal We documents Bottum’s travels from Los Angeles - growing up gay with no role models - to San Francisco, where he formed Faith No More and went on to tour the world relentlessly, surviving heroin addiction and the plight of AIDS, to become a queer icon. A deeply personal work of humor, commentary, and reflection, The Royal We is much more than a musician’s tell-all. There are personal tales of historical pinnacles like Kurt and Courtney, Guns N’ Roses, and recaps of gold records and arena rock—but it’s the testimonies of tragedy, addiction, and a deeply loving recollection of a remarkable scene that make this work so unique and intriguing. Writing about his harrowing past in a clear-eyed voice devoid of self-pity, Bottom’s emboldened and confident pronouncements of achievement and unorthodox heroism flow in an unstoppable train that’s both captivating and inspirational. Pre-order information for The Royal We can be found HERE. This autumn, Bottom will be discussing the book at special events in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Dates + venues can be seen below, with additional details and ticket info to be announced soon. |
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Roddy Bottum 2025 Book Events: Thursday, November 13 | 7:00 pm NEW YORK, NY Strand Book Store (828 Broadway)
Tuesday, November 18 | 7:00 pm LOS ANGELES, CA Skylight Books (1818 N Vermont Ave.)
Thursday, November 20 | 7:00 pm SAN FRANCISCO, CA City Lights (261 Columbus Ave) |
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PC: Joey Holman |
Roddy Bottum is a musician, writer, creator, and actor based in New York City. He started the band Faith No More in San Francisco in the early 1980s and toured the world, selling millions of records. In 1992, he came out of the closet and blew open the spectrum of what being gay in the world of rock music meant. That same year he also formed the critically acclaimed band Imperial Teen, cited as the original pioneers of alternative queer rock. Bottum moved to New York City in 2010 and has performed and created records with Crickets, JD Samson, Nastie Band, and Man on Man, a band with his partner, Joey Holman. He’s developing his Sasquatch opera project into a musical in New York City where he continues to live.
For more information on Roddy Bottum + The Royal We, please reach out to:
Josh Page and Henry Thomas at Shore Fire Media
Holly Watson and Michelle Politiski at Holly Watson PR
Johanna Ingalls at Akashic Books