Ryan Skyy

Ariana Grande achieves her fourth No. 1, and third of 2018, on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart (dated Dec. 8), as "Breathin" bumps (2-1).

The track, remixed by Dirty Werk, Chris Cox and Ryan Skyy, among others, follows fellow Sweetener singles "God Is a Woman" (No. 1 on Oct. 13) and "No Tears Left to Cry" (June 23). - Billboard

Ryan Skyy is a queer music artist, DJ and producer who just released a heavy new dance track called "DONE."

"DONE" features the impressively powerful vocals of Niki Darling and tells the story of the culmination of one's emotions at the end of a relationship. "DONE" was co-written by Skyy, Anthony Gibson, and Niki Darling, and was produced by Skyy.

The Huffington Post caught up the with the artist this week to discuss this new club-ready track, as well as how his identity as a queer artist informs his work.

ryan skyy

The Huffington Post: What is the concept for "DONE"?
Ryan Skyy: "DONE" is a song about facing the forces or people in your life who are causing you harm, realizing that all you need is yourself to be happy and that it’s ok to stand up for your own self-worth and say, “I’m all I ever needed to make me feel completed, and now I see that I deserve so much more. I’m walking out that door! I’m done! I’m done! I’m so done! I’m done with you!”

The song came from a collective experience that my writing/producing partner Anthony Gibson and myself shared in our own individual journeys, along with input from Niki Darling about past relationships and struggles we each faced. We wanted to create a song that people could use to find strength in their own situations to stand up for themselves. “I’m done!” is such commonly used phrase in our culture, and it’s something we realized more and more after we wrote and released the song. It’s the perfect power statement for what we wanted to convey. I think it’s become a universal record that really seems to resonate with people who hear it for the first time.

Why did you decide to collaborate with Niki Darling?
I met Niki in early 2014 when a song I wrote/produced was being considered for Katy Perry’s next album, and the record label, interested in the track, asked that I submit a version with female vocals on it. The original one I submitted had my own vocals and they wanted to hear how it would sound if Katy recorded it. Anthony, who is now my record label partner at Keystone Music Group, was styling me at the time and referred Niki to me when I told him I was looking for a female session singer that had the chops for the track. Niki and I worked together on that track and really clicked. About 4 months later she told Anthony and I that she was going to Europe to perform and wanted to move more towards dance music and asked if I’d produce for her. We sat down in November 2014 to write a track for her European trip and "DONE" emerged. Over the next couple of months the track really took on a life of its own and turned into this whole other thing. We never expected the three of us to click so strongly creatively and for the track to be so well-received. It changed the course of all of our careers and really is only just the beginning. I’m excited to see where things lead.

What does it mean to you to be a queer artist? How does your queer identity inform your work?
I wouldn’t necessarily say my “queer identity” informs me any more or any less than every other aspect of my life, but I won’t shy away from it either. As an artist, the only things I can draw from that are authentic are my own personal experiences and share them with the world. My deepest thoughts, deepest secrets and strongest emotions are the most authentic and interesting things that I can share. If they come from my gay experience, then so be it, but the themes I write about are universal. I may relate to them differently than others but in the end we all relate and are in this together.

Artists are the lucky few who are given a gift to see the world in a way that others can’t see on their own and it’s our duty to report what we see and serve as cultural historians of what is happening at that moment. Some of my favorite moments with fans are when they tell me that my poem or song helped put into words what they were feeling but didn’t know how to express. That makes it all worth it to me in the end.

What's next for Ryan Skyy?
I’m currently in the studio working on my follow-up singles while we’re finishing up a remix package for "DONE." The "DONE" remix package will include remixes by the legendary Dave Aude, DJ Strobe and a few other remixers who will showcase "DONE" in a different light and make the single club ready. I’ve also been DJing weekly in NYC and preparing for a spring and summer club and festival tour. - The Huffington Post

Ryan Skyy – hunky DJ (and friend of WOW) teamed up with OITNB‘s Taryn Manning on an unofficial remix of Lady Gaga‘s prolific “Til It Happens to You,” and it’s a hopeful, electrifying masterpiece.

Ryan lent his music to both of Marco Marco’s shows this past year – which you can check out all the looks here.

…and has scratched countless (and epic) remixes of Paris Hilton, Adele, and the Weekend. Check out all his other music on his website here. - World of Wonder

Need to know. Get ready for the powerful dance track this summer. Ready to get on the dance floor? Ryan Skyy's latest dance single may be titled "DONE (feat. Niki Darling)," but this NYC-based DJ/producer/singer-songwriter is just getting started. Beginning April 29, Skyy embarks on "The DONE Tour," a club tour of the East and West coasts that coincides with the release of all-new track — with remixes from the likes of Dave Aude, DJ Strobe, and Rico-Alexis — and he'll have singing sensation Niki Darling and dancers on stage with him as well at select locations. - OUT Magazine

American DJ, producer and singer/songwriter Ryan Skyy has unveiled his luscious remix of Janet Jackson & Daddy Yankee’s ‘Made For Now’.

Blessing the rework with his slick dancefloor-ready grooves, Ryan‘s production utilises rhythmic deep-house chord patterns, and is released on Janet’s new Rhythm Nation imprint.

The label, a recording and distribution partnership with indie publisher Cinq Music, aims to showcase the best in Latin and Urban music, with Cinq co-founder Barry Daffum adding, “Janet is incredibly innovative, she’s a true music superstar!” - Rave Jungle

American DJ, Producer and Singer/Songwriter Ryan Skyy has unveiled his luscious remix of Janet Jackson & Daddy Yankee's 'Made For Now'.

Blessing the rework with his slick dancefloor-ready grooves, Ryan Skyy utilizes rhythmic deep-house chord patterns and is releasing “Made For Now” on Janet’s new Rhythm Nation imprint. The label, a recording and distribution partnership with indie publisher Cinq Music, aims to showcase the best in Latin and Urban music, with Cinq co-founder Barry Daffum adding, - ONE EDM

American DJ, producer and singer/songwriter Ryan Skyy has unveiled his luscious remix of Janet Jackson & Daddy Yankee‘s ‘Made For Now’.
Check out ‘Made For Now’ (Ryan Skyy Remix)

Blessing the rework with his slick dancefloor-ready grooves, Ryan’s production utilises rhythmic deep-house chord patterns, and is released on Janet’s new Rhythm Nation imprint. The label, a recording and distribution partnership with indie publisher Cinq Music, aims to showcase the best in Latin and Urban music, with Cinq co-founder Barry Daffum adding, “Janet is incredibly innovative, she’s a true music superstar!“ - VENTS Magazine

American DJ, producer, and singer/songwriter Ryan Skyy has unveiled his luscious remix of Janet Jackson & Daddy Yankee’s ‘Made For Now’.

Blessing the rework with his slick dancefloor-ready grooves, Ryan’s production utilises rhythmic deep-house chord patterns and is released on Janet’s new Rhythm Nation imprint. We caught up with Ryan and spoke to him about the remix, and how he approaches reworking an original... - The Music Essentials

"'DONE' is a universal track with a powerful message; it’s full of creative energy from talented writers who wanted to channel their frustrations from being DONE with their relationships into a club-ready dance track. With a jump towards a completely original production, this single is completely unique and shows the world more of who Ryan Skyy​ really is." - Noise Porn - Noise Porn

The gentle and soft-spoken DJ, songwriter and singer Ryan Skyy has just released his new video “Done,” along with Niki Darling and label partner Anthony Gibson. Together they make an exciting and explosive team; however, separately they each have so much to offer with their talent and creativity.

Ryan is an amazing producer and musical creator. I found him to be interesting, candid and beyond creative. Instead of an interview, I felt like he was presenting a story he wanted to share with the world.

So Ryan, you met Niki Darling about a year ago, correct?
Yes, about a year ago.

What have you been doing together?
This is the first song we’ve done together. I originally met her because I had a track being considered for Katy Perry’s album. I had submitted a demo that had my vocals on it, and they were interested and wanted to hear it with a female voice. So Anthony had suggested Niki. She wasn’t really doing dance music, so I didn’t know if that was something she would be open to. Then four months later Anthony mentioned to me that Niki wanted to do a track for “the kids”—that she wanted to get into doing house/dance music—so we decided to sit down and write a song together. It totally turned into this whole other thing that we were not expecting it to. It was really kind of a magical thing.

When did you start DJing?
I’ve only been DJing for about a year.

Really?
Honestly, I never saw myself becoming a DJ. I’ve always had dreams of being an artist. I taught myself how to play piano when I was a kid and have been writing songs ever since. It kind of runs in my family actually. My grandma used to play piano for silent movies. My cousin was a songwriter in the 1950s. I actually didn’t know that much about the dance world until I went to college. During that time I was bartending and then became a club promoter in Pittsburgh. That’s really how I got into it. Being around it all the time and seeing the effect it had on people and the love that they had for each other really made me fall in love with dance music!

Where do you see all of this going: you, Niki and Anthony?
Everything has been moving so quickly for us. This is only the first song we’ve worked on together, so it’s really just the beginning, but we are very excited, because we feel a deep creative connection to each other and haven’t experienced that on this level with anyone else we’ve worked with individually. It’s been a wild ride so far. Within a month we wrote/produced the song and shot the music video, and then within the second month we debuted on Vevo and launched our NYC and West Coast tour. So I can only imagine where things will lead for us! I’ve been producing for about two years, so I’m still kinda new to it, but I’ve been a singer-songwriter my whole life. I started doing pop, piano, vocals, more acoustic kind of stuff, and then I started to get into dance music, because in Pittsburgh, where I went to college, I became a club promoter. That’s really how I fell in love with dance music. I didn’t start out doing dance music that much; I think it’s because I wasn’t exposed to it enough. Then when I got involved in nightlife, bartending and stuff, I was around it all the time. That’s when I really fell in love with it. The way people reacted, the love that they had for each other, that’s where it started.

Yeah.
Even though I’ve only been DJing a year, everything started to move really fast, and I saw that as a sign that that’s what I’m supposed to be doing now. I would love to be like a Calvin Harris, producing for other artists, writing songs, but also releasing my own tracks as well.

His new album is amazing.
It is! I really relate to him, because I sing as well; he sings, he puts out his own tracks and he’s DJing. That’s everything I wanna be doing. I love it. I’d love to see myself go in that direction.

That’s a good direction to go in. Where are you going to be in 10 years?
I see myself producing for major labels and artists, releasing my own album(s) and traveling the world.

So do you DJ regularly?
Yeah, mostly in New York.

Where?
Different places. Cellar Bar for the NSA party, HQ Fridays at the Ritz, Foreplay Fridays at BPM, a monthly Zodiac party at The Monster, New Year’s Eve at Shadow Boxers and then I travel a little bit. I spun a few times on Fire Island last summer, headlined at Pensacola, Fla., Pride and performed at an international summer showcase event with Neon Hitch, Steve Grand and Erika Jayne.

How exciting.
Yeah! Pensacola Pride was actually my first gig. I was so scared. It was my first time getting up in front of people. I performed my whole life. I went to performing arts school, but that sort of thing does not make me nervous. But something as technical as DJing, you just gotta do it to get comfortable. So it was a scary moment, but it went well. It was cool. I was really happy about that.

Where on Fire Island?
The Pines.

So you’re a Pines boy?
Um, yeah! So we’re going to LA this week and performing in West Hollywood on Sunday. Niki and I are both performing on Sunday at Sur Lounge in West Hollywood.

Nice.
I’m excited.

Yeah, I would be too. So you’re a new addition to a crayon box; what color are you, Ryan? Now remember, you’re a new addition.
I’m a color that doesn’t exist?

Yep, I know you can do this one.
Wow. I’m aurora borealis.

I can tell you’re artistic! Now, you’re a porn star. What should I call you?
My name: The Night Slammer.

How seductive.
That’s kind of like a wrestling name.

You’re naked in a store window, holding a sign. What does it say?
“Finally Free.”

Name something that you’d want me to know about you.
When I was in college, I threw an illegal rave inside my office building. I had my own business, so I threw the rave inside my office building.

Good for you.
Yeah, but I almost got caught by the cops! I guess I was really excited by my newfound love of dance music. The whole thing was really crazy, but now it’s a fun memory I can look back on. - Get Out! Magazine

This week Ryan Skyy is featured on the front and back cover of Get Out! Magazine! 60,000 hard copies are distributed up and down the east coast in Boston, Rhode Island, Philly, NYC, Baltimore and DC. Thank you to everyone who has supported Ryan up until this point. - Get Out! Magazine

The DJ/producer talks dance clubs, circuit parties, and more

Ryan Skyy's latest dance single may be titled "DONE (feat. Niki Darling)," but this NYC-based DJ/producer/singer-songwriter is just getting started. Later this spring, Skyy will embark on a club tour of the East and West coasts that coincides with the release of all-new "DONE (feat. Niki Darling)" with remixes from the likes of Dave Aude, DJ Strobe, and Rico-Alexis. Until then, Ryan is vying to win a spot spinning at Matinee Las Vegas 2015. (You can help him win and listen to his entry set at matinee.ryanskyy.com. Simply “like” and “share” his photo once there to vote. Polling closes April 17, and the top two vote-getters win.)

While Skyy waits for the results, we were able to fire off 10 questions on subjects ranging from his favorite dance club to his SkyMall shopping habits:



1. Last place you vacationed?
Cancun. It was my first time in Mexico. The water was soooo beautiful and I found a megaclub that blew my mind with the music and production.

2. Do you prefer to travel by land, sea, or skyy?
Hahaha, definitely by skyy! I love to fly.

3. Have you ever flown Ryanair or bought anything from the now-defunct SkyMall catalog?
I’ve never flown Ryanair, but I hear they are coming to NYC with some insanely low-priced packages to Europe to celebrate crossing the Atlantic, so I have a feeling I’ll be trying them out real soon. Skyy Mall I also haven’t tried. Recently, I had a very bad experience with an airline and I definitely found myself screaming: “I’m done! I’m so done! I’m DONE WITH YOU!”

4. To watch on a long flight: Entourage with Nora Dunn or Veep with Kevin Dunn?
Veep. I don’t have a lot of time for TV but I do love HBO programming. It’s thoughtful, edgy, and refreshing. I love Girls!

5. All-time favorite gay bar/club for dance music?
VIVA Saturdays in NYC at Stage48. The energy, music, and crowd are MASSIVE in every sense of the word.

6. All-time favorite bar/club for acoustic music?
I’d normally say Joe’s Pub or The Bitter End, but this time I’m going to say United Palace Theater in Harlem. That’s where I saw Adele perform right after “Rolling in the Deep” came out, but right before she really blew up. It was a rare moment to see her in a smaller, intimate space, and I happened to fall into front-row seats without realizing it when I bought general admission through her website presale! Her voice was truly flawless live. Every inflection, every note, landed beautifully and she captivated the audience with just a chair and her mic stand.

7. Circuit party you’d most want to attend and hear your music played?
MATINEE Las Vegas! I’m in the running this year for their All-Star DJ contest (currently in 3rdplace) and included a circuit remix of "DONE" in my set by Tom Siher. I would LIVE to hear my music played for that crowd!

8. Three songs on your cross-country road trip playlist?
Tove Lo’s “Talking Body”, Kygo’s “Stole the Show”, Ellie Goulding’s “Love Me Like You Do”.

9. On vacation, how long could you be unplugged?
Probably longer than I think, but I start going through it around day three.

10. Next adventure?
We’re planning a European Tour for the fall. I’ve travelled to and performed in Italy twice but that’s it! There are so many countries I want to get to and see. I can’t wait to explore! - OUT Traveler

DJ/producer Ryan Skyy has released a 2014 remix of Whitney Houston’s ‘Queen of the Night’ in celebration of the upcoming Lifetime TV biopic, due to air in 2015. - Frontiers Magazine

Multi-talented DJ/Producer/Vocalist Ryan Skyy has released the official music video to his new single “DONE” feat. Niki Darling on VEVO today through record label Keystone Music Group.

THE INSPIRATION BEHIND DONE

The inspiration behind DONE came about in November 2014 when the three co-writers were talking about how DONE they were with their relationships and they decided to channel their frustrations into a track that is universal and coins the terms “I’m so done!” and “I’m done!”

MUSICAL BREAKDOWN

“DONE features belting vocals by Niki Darling and the verses build up to this deep, deep bassline that really represents how we were all feeling in the moment. It’s the ultimate I’m over his sh*t song!” says Anthony Gibson.

The song starts off with a string ensemble, and then builds up with the vocals, piano, guitars, and synths layering on. By the end of the verse, the vocals are soaring, the music is climaxing and it all releases into the deep bassline. When the bridge comes in, the full string ensemble arrangement comes in that Ryan Skyy composed. By the final chorus the strings, deep bassline and full dance elements all come together to give the song the satisfying finish that it requires. The track ends with a single violin that fades to silence.

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“We knew that the string arrangement throughout the song, and particularly the ending, is very unexpected when compared to a standard pop or EDM format, but we didn’t go into the creation of this with conformity in mind. We were solely focused on making a song that best represented the emotion of what we were collectively feeling. The strings are critical to the emotion behind the storyline and lyrics of DONE,” says Ryan Skyy.

The music video premiered in NYC Monday(January 12th) to a private guestlist of industry and media folk, and will have it’s LA premiere on Sunday January 25th at HERE Lounge in West Hollywood. - Stacks Magazine

Check it out…The new club mix of Jessie J’s “Burnin Up” , by DJ/Producer Ryan Skyy,The remix was debuted this past weekend at Teatro Barcelo (a.k.a. Pacha Madrid) by DJ Vibes and as of today Nov 11, 2014 it has 8,700 plays on SoundCloud and over 3,000 downloads on dirrtyremixes.com. - Addicted to Radio