Late Checkout: Romancing The Stoned Reimagines After-Hours in New Orleans

NOLA EDM: For those discovering you through Late Checkout — who is Romancing The Stoned, and what role do you play within Pure Intentions and Dr. Romance?

RTS: Romancing The Stoned is a creative who loves building experiences for audiences through event curation, music and art. I am the CEO and creative director for Pure Intentions. 

Tell us about your background, your sound, and how this project fits into your creative path.

I was born in New Orleans originally and grew up a good bit in HTX, I moved back in my early 20’s and I’ve been back ever since. I have a background in art and architecture. I absolutely love house music and event curation. House music speaks to me more so than any other genre,to me it is the mother of all electronic music. “Late Checkout” is dear to me because it takes me back to my roots of house parties or parties anywhere other than a club. To give the people something different than your typical club experience.

NOLA EDM: Late Checkout introduces a new after-hours series built outside traditional club spaces.

What inspired you to create this concept, and what gap were you hoping to fill in New Orleans nightlife?

RTS: I absolutely love the idea of occupying space differently, adaptive reuse so to speak. Every single space I walk into I’m thinking about how a party can be thrown in the space or what it would be like to experience the space much differently than its intended use. Trains, gyms, lobby’s,hotel rooms, it doesn’t matter, music can be experienced in all these spaces. New Orleans is a party city so it’s hard to reinvent the wheel but people crave different experiences within nightlife. That’s the gap that I hope to fill.

NOLA EDM: The idea centers on house-party energy, unconventional spaces, and extended nights.

How does that environment change the way you approach DJing compared to a typical club set?

RTS:

 Intimate spaces bring you closer to the people, the vibe and energy are totally different. While I love a club setting there’s nothing like a more intimate party atmosphere, you feed from the crowd differently. When you get to experience something in an unconventional space you almost feel a guilty pleasure from it. You ask yourself, “How is this happening right now?” 

NOLA EDM: This series flows from Midnight Train into an intimate after-party setting.

How do you plan the musical journey across spaces and hours — from warm-up to sunrise energy?

RTS: The train will kick things off with some feral energy, lively and driven by the atmosphere and of course the music, the after-party is the real journey, it’s the “Late Checkout” so to speak. We don’t want the partying to stop so it won’t. We’ll just shake things up a bit and move locations. The house party is where all walks of life meet and share an experience.

NOLA EDM: Pure Intentions has always emphasized intention, connection, and energy on the dance floor.

How does Late Checkout reflect the values of the collective?

RTS: Everything within Pure Intentions centers around these three things. Nothing is arbitrary, everything is intentional. These values are simply expressed within a different atmosphere. The same energy you feel at “Up To No Good”, The Mirage series etc you’ll feel here except you might be in a train or an Air Bnb kitchen.

NOLA EDM: Merch is tied directly to entry for this series — turning the drop into part of the experience.

Why was it important to merge fashion, access, and nightlife into one ecosystem?

RTS: At Pure Intentions we absolutely love fashion, it’s a part of who we are. Fashion like music is one of the highest forms of expression. It’s the first thing people see, but to me fashion isn’t just about what you wear it’s how you wear it.  The merch is not just a piece of clothing, it’s a relic, your tangible memory for whatever the night brings you at “Late Checkout”

NOLA EDM: For people stepping into Late Checkout for the first time, what should they expect to feel when the night finally winds down?

Is it release, intimacy, freedom — or something else entirely?

RTS: Hahaha I think that’s the gist. We don’t want the night to wind down, we want to go until we can’t anymore. People will continue to party or leave when they’ve had their fill of dancing, drinking, socializing etc.

NOLA EDM: Looking ahead, what’s next for Late Checkout after this first installment?

More locations, deeper after-hours, new collaborators, or expansion beyond New Orleans?

RTS: Definitely more locations, collaborations at some point and we don’t know we’ll just have to wait and see!!!