We had the pleasure of interviewing Ryan Oakes over Zoom video!
Rising alt/hip hop artist Ryan Oakes recently released his debut album WAKE UP via Position Music, and he shared the last single prior to release. Teaming with AViVA, Oakes drops “GROUND ZERO” where he tears through bars with tenacity, only for the chorus to ponder, “Am I losing my mind?”
“You can be your own worst enemy,” Ryan says. “You can be super self-destructive, slow your own soul down, and get in your own way if you think too much. It’s a moral battle with yourself.”
AViVA shares, “In ‘GROUND ZERO’ I wanted to highlight the journey it takes to get to a place of resilience and coming back to the line, again and again, no matter the knockbacks.”
The video for “GROUND ZERO” is the final chapter of a story Ryan has been telling via his music and accompanying visuals over the course of the last several months. “We wanted to go above and beyond with the visuals for this album. We wanted to set a new standard, instead of a bunch of individual videos, they ended up being one large cohesive video split into clips that tells a story,” he explains. “It follows me through Slumberland which is a clothing brand I’ve built alongside my music, where all my nightmares come true. I “WAKE UP” in a lab and finally escape only to come home to find my psychotic girlfriend has turned into a robot killing machine. Upon making my escape, she jumps in the car with me (which is the “GROUND ZERO” video) and I drive us off of a cliff — inevitably killing us both, essentially ending the loop where I “WAKE UP” and start the entire thing over again.”
GROUND ZERO Music Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrFsFVeJO8Y
In support of WAKE UP, Oakes will be embarking on his first-ever headline tour. The “WAKE UP” dates kicked off May 14 in Phoenix, AZ and concludes on June 2 in Los Angeles, CA with a show at the Peppermint Club. The tour makes stops in, among other markets, Nashville, TN, Chicago, IL and in Brooklyn for a show at Baby’s All Right on May 24. Layto and Cherie Amour will support on select dates. In addition, Oakes is also confirmed for the Welcome To Rockville festival in Daytona Beach, FL on Friday, May 19, the Louder Than Life Festival September 21 - 24 in Louisville, KY, as well as the Aftershock Festival in Sacramento, CA on October 8.
Over the past ten years and across over 250 tracks, Ryan has built an empire in true DIY fashion with no label or team behind him. Along the way he cemented himself in the alternative and rap music zeitgeist through his distinct brand of left-of-center punk and biting alt/hip hop. Now signed to Position Music and working with a number of producers including Zach Jones, Jayden Seeley, Matty Beats and Curtis Martin, Oakes is ready to release WAKE UP, his first LP. Ryan has been sharing hints of what is to come on WAKE UP via the release of several singles that fans and press alike have latched onto as they have garnered over 4 million streams collectively. They include “RUINED (with Ekoh), DOWN, which tells the story of Oakes' personal mental health journey, “WAKE UP,” “HEAVYWEIGHT" with alt rock phenom Loveless, and his collab with Epitaph Records’ Magnolia Park, “WHITE FLAG,” a trap rap-meets-punk explosion, and last month’s piano-laden “SPACESHIP” with Abigail Osborn.
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