Sumith Prasad
FOX’s musical drama series ‘Monarch’ follows the Roman family, which comprises matriarch Dottie Cantrell Roman, patriarch Albie Roman, and their children Nicolette “Nicky” Roman, Gigi Taylor-Roman, and Luke Roman. The country music family’s fate gets rewritten when Dottie gets diagnosed with cancer. Upon the revelation of Dottie’s illness, Albie joins her children to honor the legacy of Dottie as a country music legend. As the show progresses, we get to see more of Albie and Dottie’s lives as singers and their growth to become the king and queen of country music. Naturally, the viewers must be wondering whether they are based on real singers. Here’s everything we know about the same!
Albie Roman is a Fictional Character
No, Albie Roman is not based on a real country singer. The character is conceived by creator Melissa London Hilfers as she was inspired by the Romanov dynasty, which ruled Russia from 1613 to 1917, to create a family of country music stars based in Austin, Texas. However, real-life country singer Trace Adkins plays the character Albie Roman and Adkins has succeeded in bringing his experience as a country singer to Albie’s characterization to make him appear authentic. “When I looked at the script, it just seemed like something that maybe I could contribute to as far as the authenticity of it,” Adkins told The New York Times.
“I know that world. What this show is about is something that I’ve lived for the last 25 years being in the business,” Adkins added. Although Albie is not the on-screen counterpart of Adkins, there are similarities between the singer and the character. “He’s very much like me,” Adkins told People. “I mean, I can look back over periods in my life where the train was perpetually off the track, and that’s Albie’s world,” he added. As far as music is concerned, Albie and Adkins share similar feelings as well.
“[…] with Albie, it’s about the music. It’s gotta be real and you’ve gotta be able to really sing it with conviction or people are going to know that you’re faking. I feel that way, too,” Adkins told Taste of Country. In the show, Albie is also a father who gets stuck in between his daughters Nicky and Gigi, who aspire to become the next big thing in the country music scene. Being the father of five daughters also helped Adkins to play such a father in the show.
Dottie Roman is an Original Character
Like Albie Roman, Dottie Roman is not based on a real country singer. However, Dottie embodies unparalleled ambition and talent, which reminds us of several country music greats, including Kitty Wells, who was known as the “Queen” of country music as Dottie is referred to in the show. Academy Award-winner Susan Sarandon plays Dottie in ‘Monarch.’ She had to educate herself about country music extensively to prepare for her character. Luckily, Adkins’ presence helped the actress. “Learning so much about that world and working with Trace, whose life-formative experiences are so far from my own, was just the best and also so educational,” Sarandon told The New York Times for the same feature.
Although Albie and Dottie aren’t real country singers, the creative heads behind the show were adamant about offering characters and storylines that are closer to reality. “There can be all the crazy s–t that may never exist in real life which makes for a great soap, but there has to be some realness — and that, coupled with the music was really, really important to me,” Jason Owen, one of the executive producers of the show and a renowned music manager, told Billboard.
Read More: Where is Fox’s Monarch Filmed?
