Ever since his brilliant performance on one of America's biggest summer shows - America's Got Talent - Ryan Andreas has been jolted into fame. His compelling rendition of Sarah McLaughlin’s "In The Arms of An Angel" had a rare combination of beauty and sadness. The formula made for explosive results from the crowd. It touched millions of viewers and catapulted a movement... RyanFever!
RyanFever has taken hold and fans are popping up all over the world. Ryan says "My Gmail inbox is about ready to explode from YouTube comments with love and messages from around the world. We're talking the UK, Quebec, Venezuela, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, Croatia, Russia. YouTube has penetrated the entire global market for me. I had no idea. Videos I posted on the day of the airing on NBC from my home studio - from my little tiny bedroom - are being watched in Japan. I could not in my wildest imagination believe that that could happen".
In less than 3 weeks Ryan's videos have had over One million hits. Fans are now lining up to have their picture taken with him or get his autograph. "It's crazy" he says, "I went from completely anonymous to signing autographs".
As a fan, few things are more apparent or appealing to listeners than emotional legitimacy. From the first notes we hear, we feel a vibe. We think we can tell the difference between real life pains from fake or artificial pain. And if the truth be told, most of the time we can. It's the emotion that grabs hold of us, reels us in, and then commands our attention. A little over three weeks ago 15.5 million viewers are watching America's Got Talent and in strolls Ryan Andreas, a gifted singer/musician who put the passion and soul back in music. Viewers everywhere were immediately invested in him.
During our interview I pointed out that I was unhappy because I was unable to buy any Ryan Andreas music for my iPod so I asked about a potential Ryan Andreas CD. He said "I'm in discussion with a producer to potentially start going towards that end..." He then said "Maybe I can ask you as a fan. Is it the voice that drew you in or is it the song that drew you in? I'm still on the fence about that." I told him "It's the soul in the voice of the song. I don't know if that makes any sense to you (or anyone for that matter), but there's something about the way you sing. It comes from the heart. So personally I think no matter what you sing, if it comes from your heart, it's gonna be huge. Honestly." The certainty is it's Ryan's emotional legitimacy that's the catalyst for his current success. His Vegas performance is a highly anticipated event for RyanAddicts everywhere. Myself included. And even though his stellar past performance on AGT is no guarantee of any future performances, I have no doubt that he will hit it out of the park!
Ryan a self-taught musician, picked up his first guitar during his teenage years. "I started playing when I was 15. I didn't want to be a singer; I just wanted to be like the next Santana, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix. I just wanted to be a guitarist that's all I wanted to do". And it was while trading acoustic guitar performances for donuts that Ryan taught himself how to play piano. "I played little coffee shop gigs. I swear I played coffee shop gigs when I was 16 or 17, no job, just in high school and I played for Danishes and coffee. I played for a cinnamon roll from the coffee shop
and that was cool with me. I can be in front of people and I can get free donuts! - Laughs - So when I started doing that I had to kind of change up my presentation - had to be different than just doing acoustic guitar all the time, so I started to teach myself the piano."
Throughout his life Ryan has always struggled with acceptance. He speaks candidly about how as a child he was an introvert who used art to help him get by. As he got older music became his therapy. He says "When I'm behind the piano or behind my guitar that's when I feel my most comfortable". It's through his music he finds that state of tranquility and during our interview he tells us what transpires when his eyes are closed.
Ryan makes it a point to let his fans know he is just a normal guy. "One of the things that I want listeners or readers to learn from the interviews I've done is that I'm such a normal guy. I sitll consider myself a computer geek". Well Ryan you are unlike any computer geek we know. Ryan says "...regardless of my continuation of the show from episode to episode, I hope they know the artist shall remain in victory or defeat. I will still be here and I will still be putting out music
and I will still be trying to continue to touch you and I would only hope that if I were to leave the show they would still remain fans of the artist cause that's what I am. I'm not just a contestant. I'm gonna be a continued artist/musician out there hoping to make a living doing what I love to do".
Viva Las Vegas Ryan! We'll be rooting for you and your continued success both on and off the show.