Interview with Ronnie Romero

Interview by Chris Willow with Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow lead singer – Ronnie Romero.
Chris:  – What are your emotions after your first ever Rainbow performances at Loreley 17th and Festlatz at Bietigheim-Bissingen 18th June and Genting Arena, Birmingham 25th June?  Did you feel nervous, excited, happy?
Ronnie: – Of course I feel very happy, it was a great experience, playing with Ritchie and all the band on the same stage, enjoying all those Rainbow and DP songs… was truly amazing!

– You have sang Stormbringer – David Coverdale song, Sixteen Century Greensleves and some more from the Dio era. How do you feel about Ian Gillan Songs? Were Ian Gillan songs harder to sing than Dio ones?
– Well, I don’t think that the Gillan songs are hard to sing… are different, other technique, other feeling, but at the same level of interpretation than the Dio ones, or Coverdale, even Turner songs.

– How do you find Bob Nouveau as your backing singer? Are you happy with harmony when singing together?
– Of course, Bob is an amazing musician, with a great sense of harmonies, and He can sing very very well, so, He makes me feel really comfortable with his harmonies.

– Who is your favourite rock composer and why?
– A hard question… it depends. Obviously Ritchie, for me is the best, but I really like other bands with other styles, like Toto, Kansas, Journey, Steve Ray Vaughan… I don’t know, Im a big rock and roll fan, all rock and roll music style!

– How big audience you were performed infront of before Rainbow concerts ?
– I’ve been lucky about that, because before Rainbow, I was working for the most important rock and roll radio in Spain, and they have a lot of shows around the country with big production, so sometimes we have been playing for 5, 7, 15, or even 30 thousand people per show.

– Did you have had any professional trining in singing ? Did you take any singing lessons ? If so so who was teaching you ?
– Never, all that I know and my way and style of sing is made by my own, listening music, imitating singers, the best ones of course (laughts). I never want to have lessons, I prefer to sing naturally.

– You have a very unique sound of your voice. You can sing high and I have heard it already. But how do you feel to sing low ?  I mean the way like Ian Gillan sings in ‘Place in Line’ for example.
– I prefer the mediums and high tones, but It’s ok for me, I love that way to sing low notes like Gillan, it’s more like the classics.

– When you want to reach some big dynamics you sing more from your stomach or just screaming like most of heavy metal vocalists do ?
– It’s like a mix, with the head resonators but with the chest to, this kind of technique is called “mixing voice”, so you can make this high notes but giving “body”, and not just a thiny sound.

– How do you get along with Ritchie’s guitar ? Does it recquire some special phrasing from you ? Is it easy for you to sing with him ? What tonation you sing the best in ?
– Really good, Ritchie is an amazing musician of course, but he always make you feel comfortable, he really understand this relationship “singer-guitar player”, and I think that’s the reason why he made good to all the singers what they has worked with him.

– How do you feel about composing with Ritchie ? Did you talk to him to write some material in the future?
No, we don’t have any conversation about that, just rehearsing for the shows… we’ll see what happens in the future.

– What do you do when Ritchie decides to reactivate Rainbow for good? I mean do you leave Lords Of Black or will be singing in both bands?
– Of course I can make both… Ritchie knows that Im in a band when they call to me for this gigs, so they understand my situation. Everything is fine, is just a matter to be organized.

– Do you listen to classical music ? And who is your best classical composer and why?
– No too much, but obviously I know and listen the most classics, like Beethoven or Bach.

– When and where were you born Ronnie and at what age was your first approach to singing and what was it ? Did anybody from your parents was musicaly active ?
– I born in Chile 34 years ago, in a family of musicians, so I have always been connected with music and to many different instruments. My grandfather play the saxophone, my father was a singer, my brother play drums… and I start to sing when I was 7 years old, or some…

– How do you feel about Birmingham inside venue concert ? Was any difference to sing there and to sing open air in Germany. Any new experiences after Birmingham concerts ?
– Obviously the sound its different, but I feel very well in both kind of venues.

– There was a big crowd in Germany and UK. What would you like to say to all of them, to all Rainbow and Deep Purple fans and your personal fans just after the Lorelay, Bietigheim-Bissingen and Birmingham performances ?
– Well, I just want to say that I feel very, very gifted for all support and love before and after the shows, Rainbow fans in UK and around the world they are really nice people with me,  so I just can say a big thank you!! And I really hope to see all of you soon again!.