Tip the Artist

Artist Bio

The village that they call The Moy in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, may be where Ryan Kelly resides, but he's just as comfortable calling the studio and stage home. He began his love affair with music and performing early on in his life, and he's remained faithful to his first love ever since.

Ryan developed his wide range of musical tastes from a lifetime filled with varied influences- from traditional Irish songs, to acoustic to rock to show tunes- and he's combined them all into his own distinctive style as a singer/songwriter, showcased on his two solo albums released to date, "In Time" (2010) and "Life" (2013).

Ryan started singing publicly at age seven, taught himself to play the guitar around age thirteen and began writing his own music not long after. He joined a well known local band, and won a place as a finalist in the National BBC Television "Country Cool" competition-where he placed second in the finals. Ryan's performed live with West Life, Girls Aloud and Simply Red in the "Children In Need" televised charity concert at the Odyssey in Belfast, sung the US National Anthem for his beloved Boston Celtics, and has performed for the US President and his family at the White House.

Ryan's talents don't end with his phenomenal musical abilities. He is also an accomplished actor. He's taken on roles such as that of Mickey Johnstone in the musical "Blood Brothers" and Judas Iscariot in "Jesus Christ Superstar" to much success and praise.

This brought Ryan to a new chapter in his musical journey- recording and touring as one of the original stars of the highly successful, platinum and multi-gold selling musical show, "Celtic Thunder". Performing with "Celtic Thunder" has allowed Ryan to showcase both his acting and singing abilities to audiences all across North America, Australia and beyond. His ability to transform onstage and make the songs he performs completely his own, have garnered him a large and loyal following. The audience's enthusiasm for his performances fuel his own onstage and make for a night no one soon forgets, and he enjoys every moment of it- "It's clichéd, but music is my life. It's what makes me happy and I feel blessed to be able to call this my job."

Now a seasoned performer, and no stranger to the studio, Ryan felt the time was right to share his own music with the world. He released his debut album, "In Time", in the Fall of 2010 to much acclaim and success. In addition to touring with "Celtic Thunder", Ryan has been touring a sold out show entitled "Acoustic by Candlelight"-featuring his own singer/songwriter compositions, and timeless favourites- with fellow Celtic Thunder member, Neil Byrne, across the United States, Canada and Austraila to very receptive and enthusiastic audiences. In January of 2012, Ryan was honoured to be nominated for and win the 2011 award for "Top Solo Performer in Concert" from the Irish Music Association. This award was just the newest highlight for Ryan in a career that hasn't seen its top heights yet, and he looks forward to sharing his amazing musical journey with his incredibly supportive fanbase for many years to come.