Philosopher kings are the rulers of Plato's utopian city of Kallipolis. If his ideal city-state is to ever come into being, "philosophers [must] become kings…or those now called kings [must]…genuinely and adequately philosophize" (The Republic, 5.473d).

The Philosopher Kings are a Canadian band who were most commercially successful in the late 1990s. The name of the band is derived from Plato's Republic, in which he outlines the design of an idealistic government, ruled by philosopher-kings. The group saw minor success in the United States with the single "Charms", which peaked at #36 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart in 1996.