Lesley Ryland

Originally born in Key West Florida, my name is Lesley Ryland. I’m a central Florida indie rock artist, a former Ringling College of Art and Design, Fine Arts and Digital Film major, trying to connect the talents of my art with my original music and get my voice heard. The best way to describe my music is indie rock with catchy lyrics, a dance beat and classical undertones. Some of my influences are Metric, Santigold, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Arcade Fire, Tegan and Sara and a million more. My music is very personal to me, as an artist and musician. My songs are definitely a part of me; they have healed me in times when I needed healing and, hopefully, they will be the songs that hug you when you need a friend.

As an Indie artist, it is easy to find struggles along your way. Indie artists have to write their own songs, do all the promotion and design, make music videos, design merchandise, connect with fans, and distribute their music. I felt alone in the world until I started networking on Twitter.

It’s important to make strong, helpful connections. Word of mouth is the strongest promoter that I have found. If you make something that someone likes, they are going to talk about it and eventually it will make its way around.

All I do is research. It is important to know what resources are out there and the ones that will benefit you. Most of them are free. I personally got tired of sending demos and press kits to record companies and never hearing a response back, let alone any feedback. I stumbled upon Chartburst, an online platform that connects unsigned artists with record labels, A&Rs and managers. Artists compete in a two-week chart battle for their specific genre. When the chart ends, the top 5 bands are reviewed and given feedback from labels such as: Island Records, Interscope, Sony and a bunch more. Receiving feedback helped me understand what labels were looking for and how to improve my sound to reach a bigger audience.  

Don’t give up hope, just work hard and believe in yourself. If you put your heart and soul into your work and put it in front of your potential audience, the art of social networking will get your music traveling to ears around the world. With the present status of the music industry becoming a “do it yourself” industry, the sky is the limit. It’s time for the hardworking writers and musicians to have their voices heard; let’s start supporting each other. 

Check out the video me and my friends made for my original song Cut Deep:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTdYsnrjbCo&feature=youtu.be

The Lesley Ryland EP was released and is now available on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. I’m currently in the writing stages of my first full-length album MindRace, which will be released in summer 2014. Be sure to look out for my project on Kickstarter to share the MindRace experience with me.

Keep up with me on Twitter, so I can keep you updated on the MindRace Visual Music Tour, where art and music collide. The MindRace Tour will connect artists with musicians and give you a show and feeling you have never seen or heard before. With light shows, video streams, art installations and interactive art, MindRace will be the first of its kind.  2014 has a lot to bring and I can’t wait to share all of my projects with you. Lots of new music, art and shows coming soon. Eight song ups to listen to.

Lesley Ryland
@Lesley_Ryland
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Click on the link or cover art to get your own copy of  The Lesley Ryland EP: