Ryan Naismith
Medium – 265 words
The spark was ignited in a small, dark bar on Nashville’s Music Row.
Ryan was just enjoying a beer and some conversation with the bartender, which led to a slightly-out-of-tune guitar being pulled off the wall and handed over to Ryan. That started an impromptu jam session, the guitar being passed around the circle — Ryan played Big City Small Town.
Later that afternoon, the echoes of Ryan’s song still ringing through his head, one of the musicians asked Ryan to play it for the crowd.
Ryan conquered his nerves, stepped in front of 40 or so people at Bobby’s Idle Hour, and began to play.
Based in London, Ont., by way of North Bay, Ryan is ever in pursuit of the perfect song — that musical story that takes a listener on an emotional journey. He writes and performs for people who listen with intention, delivering songs that touch on topics we may not want to talk about in conversation.
Although he didn’t quite know it at the time, the bug for songwriting came early to Ryan, and it did so through poetry. The cadence, the structure, the rhymes spoke to Ryan. But he also relished the challenge of telling a story in a different way. We have all heard a love story, but how can you tell that story in a way nobody has heard before?
His music is unique, a genre-busting confluence of Americana with distinct notes of folk, country, blues, and rock sprinkled throughout.
Ryan can be found playing around the London area, preferring small, intimate venues filled with people looking to hear a good story.
