Ryan Perry

Ryan Perry launched his professional career as a blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter at age 13, fronting Homemade Jamz Blues Band alongside younger siblings Kyle and Taya, the latter then nine years old. Three years afterward the group became the youngest act in the history of the 23rd International Blues Challenge, where they claimed second place and secured a contract with Toronto’s NorthernBlues Music imprint. Beyond their performances, the siblings drew notice for their homemade instruments; Ryan’s guitar and Kyle’s bass were constructed from Ford auto components that retained the company’s emblem. Following four releases issued from 2008 through 2013, multiple national tours, and placements in the television series Justified, Ryan stepped out on his own in 2017 and delivered his first solo album in 2020.

Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, Ryan is the eldest of three children of Renaud and Tricia Perry, the latter still serving as his manager and publicist. Drawn to electric blues early on, he sought guitar instruction so he could play the work of B.B. King, Albert King, Jimi Hendrix, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. His father initially enrolled him in formal lessons that failed to engage him; after several additional teachers, Renaud arranged an apprenticeship with local blues musician Jabbo when Ryan was 12. Although the older player hesitated at first, Renaud’s position as a police officer helped secure the arrangement. By the conclusion of their opening session—held, fittingly, on Jabbo’s front porch—the veteran musician expressed eagerness to pass along all he knew.

Renaud also placed Kyle and Taya in music instruction, while Ryan and his brother constructed their own instruments. Ryan described the method to NPR in 2008: "Basically, what we did was bolted on a neck, took the electronics from a regular guitar, and just shoved them in the body of this muffler. On the back of it is a license plate, covering the giant hole that we cut in it. And then we have exhaust tips that we put at the end of the guitars."

The trio, with Taya still only nine at its formation, began performing locally and then throughout the region. After nearly four years of rehearsal and songwriting they appeared at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in 2007, finishing second and becoming the youngest ensemble ever to compete there. The prize brought a recording agreement with NorthernBlues Music. Their debut, Pay Me No Mind, received international praise; Ryan was 14, Kyle 12, and Taya 9. They followed with I Got Blues for You in 2009. Though more polished than the first record, diminished attention resulted in weaker sales, after which NorthernBlues ended the relationship. The band experienced further fluctuations, self-releasing The Game in 2010 and Mississippi Hill Country in 2013 while accumulating tens of thousands of touring miles during school breaks. The group disbanded in 2017.

Thereafter Ryan worked as a session musician and assembled his own ensemble. In 2019 Ruf Records of Berlin signed him, leading to his contribution of a cover of Chuck Berry’s “I Want to Be Your Driver” for the label’s Rock ’n’ Roll: A Tribute to Chuck Berry compilation, which also featured Joe Bonamassa, Albert Castiglia, Joanna Connor, Walter Trout, Robben Ford, and Sonny Landreth. Late that year he recorded High Risk, Low Reward at Studio Erde in Berlin alongside producer and bassist Roger Inniss and drummer Lucy Piper; the sessions wrapped in several days, and the album appeared in March 2020. Although slated for the label’s Blues Caravan alongside Whitney Shay and Jeremiah Johnson, the tour was canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The record nevertheless registered on multiple European streaming charts.