Ryan Williamson

Ryan Williamson is a multi-disciplined professional musician born and raised in North Jersey. While he holds a degree in guitar performance, he is also a skilled piano and pedal steel guitar player. He has worked with artists big and small as both a songwriter and performer, and emphasizes musicality, collaboration, and stylistic range over conventional boundaries.

He was raised with the influence of a musical household - two parents who, despite not musically inclined, shared a taste for diverse styles of music (which he mirrors), including Sade, Stevie Wonder, Led Zeppelin, Willie Colon, Bill Monroe, Herbie Hancock, and the Grateful Dead. It lead him to pick up the piano and the guitar soon after, in his early teens. After committing solely to the guitar, Ryan spent years honing his craft, with a period of intense dedication throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. It was in this timeframe he discovered his love for the music colloquially known as jazz. 

Soon after, he enrolled in multiple programs with a focus in jazz guitar, including NJPAC's Jazz For Teens and the Berklee School of Music's "Guitar Sessions" one week intensive. He performed at the renowned Jazz à Vienne festival in Vienne, France in 2023 through JazzUp. This led to his application and acceptance into the prestigious jazz studies program at William Paterson University. 

WPU gave Ryan an immersion into the live music scene of the greater NYC area, with his college career centered around frequenting numerous jazz clubs and jam sessions alongside countless hours of practice. He studied under the tutelage of Bill Charlap, Russell Malone, Dave Stryker, and Bob Devos, to name a few. He was also part of a selected ensemble that had the privilege of opening for Branford Marsalis, and performed at the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival with the university's big band.

Having completed his Bachelor’s Degree, Ryan utilizes this rigorous training into all areas of music in which he partakes. He has played at numerous NYC venues including the Cutting Room, the Bitter End, Dizzys Club, the Mercury Lounge, and Nublu, as well as private engagements at American Dream and the Newark Airport. He has played with David Ayscue, Hannah Reimann, Julian Harper, Sam Tunkel, and the Kyra Cioffi Octet. 

He has also fronted several projects of his own including BLÜECRÜE (vocalist/guitarist) and HOMESTER (pedal steel guitarist). Ryan composed music for the short film The Renaissance Man, directed and produced by Estelle Barbieri, and in addition to film scoring, he has composed music for commercials.