#solo ryan ross

[apollo3-1-5]

[waterberry-strawmelon]

so Panic! At the Disco is finally ending its run (or at least going on indefinite hiatus? More likely, it’s the first thing), and as much as I’ve hated the last two albums, it’s kinda wild how it’s the end of an era. The Emo Trinity, alive and thriving at last for the past 2 years—until the one side of it we had least expected to ever quit (even against his better judgement), has finally passed on. Isn’t that fucking weird?

Half of me is like “ding dong the witch is dead,” but the other half is almost in mourning, in some way. The End of All Things was closer than anyone ever imagined, I think, and it’s hard for something that’s been alive and kicking for all of your formative years to finally have run its course.

[rubbish78]

Ryan Ross adding some extra flair to the end of ‘But It’s Better If You Do’ at The Palladium Ballroom in NYC on 04/18/2008 (x)

[lunar-lakes]

anyone else annoyed/a little disturbed at ryan ross tiktok for being so insane over the picture annette posted. like i get it, he looks great and we haven't seen a photo/proof of his existence since the pumpkin patch thing. but like, they're frothing over him with the same fucking "well I'm afraid that iiii..." audio from the live in denver karma police cover. "HES BACK HES BACK OUR SWEET BABY HAS RETURNED" he probably didn't even know it was posted, he probably doesn't know about tyv stuff, or if he does, he just knows it's a remaster and nothing more. like i get being delusional about musicians is fun and all but this amount of idol worship is just... kinda creepy? ik a lot of fans now weren't there back when the stalker shit happened, or even later on when he was actually posting regularly. but im begging these tiktok fans to actually question themselves and remember why ryan left the internet in the first place.

[hillerska-official]

Glad he finally decided to stop brutally beating that beloved dead horse

[imnotavamp1r3]

♡ Things emos never say! ♡

This is inspired by ItsBlackFriday's video, 'Things Goths Never Say.' You can watch her original video here!

🎀 Andy Biersack is so ugly

🎀 Dahvie Vanity has the voice of an angel

🎀 Dying Is Your Latest Fashion is the worst Escape The Fate album

🎀 I hate Josh Farro's guitar solos

🎀 Falling In Reverse's new music is so much better than their older stuff.

🎀 It's just a phase, mom

🎀 I should get a belt in my size

🎀 I wish Tripp pants were more expensive

🎀 I'm so glad that most of Abbey Dawn's catalogue is discontinued

🎀 I think Denis Stoff is a really nice guy who just happens to be a really bad vocalist who makes really bad music.

🎀 Machine Gun Kelly made pop punk

🎀 Kellin Quinn looks so much better with short hair

🎀 Mikey Way is really good at making bread

🎀 My favourite holiday is March 22nd

🎀 Mikey Way should never bring back his Revenge era hair style

🎀 New Hot Topic >>> Old Hot Topic

🎀 Ryan Ross is not the greatest poet of all time

🎀 The American Football house is the last place I'd ever want to go

🎀 Yungblud's music is very good and original

🎀 Why would anyone want to dye their hair like Hayley Williams?

That's it, byeeee!!! ˚｡⋆୨୧˚♡

[lola-babylon]

Running the numbers on Brendon, Ryan, and owning the Panic! at the Disco legacy

Some people are a bit upset that Brendon Urie continued performing as PATD after Jon & Ryan left, or after Spencer & Dallon left. One of the primary criticisms you see floating around is that, by using the Panic name for his solo career from 2015-2023. Brendon was profiting off of Ryan's legacy as the main songwriter on the early albums.

Let's dig into that, especially the "profit" bit.

I've seen jokes about Ryan Ross working retail now cause he's broke. We don't know what Ryan does with his days and it's none of our business unless he chooses to share that information publicly, but AFYCSO alone has been certified 4x Platinum in the US, having sold 4 million copies. Ryan, being the main songwriter on the album, would one hopes receive a decent income stream for the royalties and has no need to work a job he doesn't want to pay the bills (recording contracts are usually a Kafkaesque nightmare, but hopefully they had a decent contract where the artists get a fair share of royalties, that it isn't all chewed up by record companies).

But if you look at the album sales over time, this is where it gets interesting.

(well, interesting to a stats and facts wonk)

Here's the Recording Industry of America's certification record for AFYCSO - you can check for yourself here

The album went platinum, meaning sales of a million copies, in 2006, a year after it was released. It took another 9 years for the album to double that figure, selling 2 million copies by 2015 and achieving 2x platinum. But then things took off, with AFYCSO reaching 4 million sales by June 2023 and the resulting 4x platinum certification.

But what stands out here is this - AFYCSO was released in 2005. And fully half of all sales of AFYCSO took place after 2015.

2015 was the year that Panic became a solo project of Brendon Urie's. It also marked the start of the period of some of the band's highest sales since the early days, including their first number one charting album, a second number one album, and (Jebus, please save us from) the single "High Hopes". And Brendon toured extensively - musicians used to tour to encourage people to buy their albums; now that most music is digital musicians rely touring as their largest source of income, which is one of the reasons why a ticket to see Led Zeppelin on their 1975 U.S. tour cost $31 adjusted for inflation to 2023 dollars, but seeing any decently sized musical act in concert these days will set you back well over $100 and that's just for starters.

(I told you I was a stats wonk).

Anyway, through all that work, Brendon was using the Panic name, sure. Was he entitled to? That's not my point here. What he was doing was keeping the Panic name in the public mind, entertaining old fans and winning new ones (not my thing, but again that's not my point) and in those years, those fans purchased 2 million copies of AFYCSO, and as the main songwriter on the album Ryan has received the largest share of the royalties from those sales. Ryan earned and was entitled to that money, of course, but would AFYCSO have sold two million copies between 2015 and 2023 if Brendon had retired the Panic name and continued as a solo artist?

Let's be realistic. No.

When people heard High Hopes or any of the other post split music, they were hearing a Panic at the Disco song. If they liked it, they'd look up the artist Panic at the Disco, find the band's earlier work, and buy/stream it. If they'd heard High Hopes as a Brendon Urie song, and looked up the artist Brendon Urie, is it likely they'd have followed the bread crumb trail, learned about this now defunct band called Panic at the Disco Brendon used to be in, and bought that band's stuff too?

We could go back to 2004/2005 and debate whether Panic would have made it as big as they did back then without Ryan's songwriting skills and determined online hustling of the band. Or without Brendon's vocals and stage presence, or Spencer's creative vision for their image and live performances. Or without that they were all so young, they were just crazy brave enough to put their all into the band when if they'd been only a few years older, they might have been worried about the future enough to stay in or go to college, or train as a hairdresser or whatever. Or for that matter whether they had all that, and the right sound at the right time, and made the right connections, oh and they weren't exactly bad looking. There's so many reasons bands do or don't make it. Just talent is never enough. Trying to work out which parts of Panic's early success were due to the respective talents of Ryan, Spencer, and/or Brendon nearly 20 years on is like trying to unscramble an egg (even Brent paid a role, through the loans his parents provided to help pay for the band's practice space and van for the early tours). But it's unrealistic to say Panic was a success solely because of Ryan or that Brendon trampled all over that to get to the top solo. Either way....

Brendon Urie continuing as Panic has been, financially, very benefical for Ryan. Brendon continuing with the Panic name has meant AFYCSO was from 2015-2023 the first album of a very successful currently touring act, and not a footnote to Brendon Urie's career from his now defunct first band (I don't see it that way at all - this post is about album sales and money, not artistic integrity). And Ryan has received the royalties from albums that would never have been sold if PATD officially disbanded in 2009 or 2013 or whatever.

And whilst Ryan has been at home restoring antique cuckoo clocks or whatever he chooses to do, Brendon's been missing his family, home, and dogs, getting up at 4am to catch flights, living out of suitacses, answering inane interview questions, sleeping on tour buses and wondering what country he's in today - and, indirectly, making Ryan money. If Ryan only cared about money he probably would have continued on with Panic past 2009, but I'm sure the royalties he's received since 2015 haven't been a burden either. I'm not saying Ryan owes Brendon anything, he doesn't, and Brendon only lived that life because he loved it, or thought the performing bit made it all worth it (along with making a bunch of money for himself).

This post has focused on AFYCSO, though of course Ryan also gets royalties from Pretty. Odd, which has had a long overdue reappraisal from audiences who realise it's really fucking good. (I'll use the correct punctuation this once, but there was no way I was going to add an exclamation point every time I typed the word panic). Anyway, crunching the numbers on one album was enough. But Brendon didn't profit off of Ryan's legacy by continuing as Panic. It's been very profitable for them both.

[t-a-l-i-a18]

GEORGE RYAN ROSS III WHO THE FUCK LET YOU COOK SO HARD IN THIS SONG

(he does the guitar solo in it [I think don’t quote me on it I saw it on Reddit or smth])

[apollo3-1-5]

RYAN ROSS IN 2022

[cjkie22]

A non-exhaustive list of why you should listen to hit dirtbag boyband Bears in Trees:

their music is really amazing. you'll love it.

especially if your Spotify wrapped was on the pov: indie side of things

and even if it wasn't.

songs for every emotion

absolutely beautiful lyrics

sometimes these lyrics make sense. sometimes they don't. that's part of the fun.

songs about platonic love !!!!!

songs for the queers! the aros! the aces! the enbies! the trans community!

my dad likes them. doesn't sound like a lot, but it's an achievement.

(more underneath the break)

iain (bass/vox/lyrics) has "ginger" tattooed on the back of their head. if that isn't iconic I don't know what is.

on the note of iain, they were the first person i was aware of that used they as a pronoun, and that changed my life

they have a discord server! it's a really lovely community. i am not biased in the slightest. (discord.gg/sandbox) (https://discord.com/invite/thesandbox) (i will personally send you an invite i don't actually know what the link is)

they should DEFINITELY be on the heartstopper soundtrack

if I'm remembering correctly in the tiktok where they said they should be on the heartstopper soundtrack, they also said 3 out of 4 of them were in some way queer. seems like a good thing to me.

they opened for you me at six earlier this year. it was my first time seeing them live. and WOW.

I met some of my best friends through this band. I'm not joking; big shout out to the mojo dojo castle house, I'll never forget that weekend.

they're hilarious on the internet

you might cry at several of their songs for a million different reasons

BearBerry records

they have a tumblr blog @/bearsintreesofficial (iirc). I'm not gonna tag them but

BiT gigs are a safe space. I may have almost fainted at my last one (new cross inn, August 2023) but I've never met so many kind strangers and genuinely lovely people

merch is super comfy and really cute.

it gives stardew valley and animal crossing (trust me I'm right)

after the new cross gig (sweatiest gig in the world), despite surely being exhausted, callum (uke/keys/vox) took my bereal and i got my mini lesbian flag signed by them all

I turned out not to be a lesbian, which possibly makes it funnier, but the flag is stuck on my wall still

cryptids would LOVE their band

dash.

there's also a community minecraft server for discord members

BiT postcards !!!!

gosh and the bit stickers

they covered stick season on an Instagram live

they also do the funniest twitch streams

iain and the mountain

the raccoon email address

george (drums/production) is elite. the drum fills in doing this again? iconic. also has a specific really cool shirt I want to steal

wedding. dress. tiktok.

callum doesn't wear shoes on stage. apparently this was common knowledge but it sure surprised me at new cross.

the austrian soft drinks advert

iain make up looks

callum plays the flute. I want to say classically trained flautist but i may be wrong.

none of them have EVER bribed any members of law enforcement

their songs are very tattooable

talking of tattoos, nick (lyrics/guitar/saw him play the uke on stage once) has L + R tattooed on his forearms (iirc). absolute genius and I am stealing it when I get more of my patchwork sleeve done

iain releases solo music to under the name pet yeti. it's ethereal. callum also plays flute on one of them.

trumpet joe

the four of them never look like they are dressed for the same event

someone once edited the bears in trees wiki page to say that Ryan Ross was in their band

silly geese

that time we got singing? poetry? performance art? of THAT harry potter fanfiction

according to tiktok, iain and nick once had to sneak into their own show because they were underage

nurby

I have a video in the depths of my camera roll of them covering Mama by My Chemical Romance on a twitch stream

sonick

all of them give me gender envy at different times

their newest single (bart's bike) features banjo

patreon content

yelling it gets better with a room full of people was a healing experience.

tilly

modern baseball and fall out boy adjacent in my brain

if you like bears in trees you're automatically hot and really cool

they did a song with noahfinnce and its really super good

callum also featured on a myriad song which is also really super good

bit songs feel like coming home. they feel like hot chocolate and a blanket on a cold night. they feel like a warm hug. they feel like surviving and falling in love with life again and overcoming the worst things. they feel like victory, because you didn't think you'd make it to adulthood. but I'm 20 now. and I'm still here. I've almost graduated uni. and that's what bears in trees feels like.

all of their songs!!!! amazing!!!!

please feel free to add to this list. I'm taking suggestions.

[loveontherocks]

good grief ryan ross has some of the most obnoxious stans ever. instead of actually streaming the young veins or his own solo music they always just seem to hate on brendon even though the project has been disbanded or constantly harass him on his socials about him taking "his" band back even though he left on his own accord and doesn't seem interested in being in the limelight again. They overinflate his contributions to the band and seem to ignore that it was a collaborative effort from ALL of the members (him, brendon, jon, spencer) i'm sure he'd hate seeing ppl mainly using him to constantly attack an old friend. no wonder why he stays off of social media! poor guy

[saturninemartial]

I'm a casual listener. Why does everyone hate Panic? Or rather Urie?

I was an OG fan back in 2005/06 but tapped out after the second album, so I wasn't fully aware of all the drama, so I had to look some of it up.

P!ATD was started by childhood friends Ryan Ross and Spencer Smith; Urie wasn't invited until later. The original lineup was rounded out with bassist Brent Wilson, although he was later replaced by Jon Walker. It was Smith, Ross, Urie, and Wilson on their first album; and Smith, Ross, Urie, and Walker on their second. In 2009, Ross and Walker decided to leave the band, mostly on creative differences with Urie. So there goes one founding member, Ross, and another core member, Walker.

Dallon Weekes, whom you might know from IDKHOW, joined as bassist after this; with Ian Crawford on guitar. Smith, Urie, Weekes, and Crawford recorded and released an album in 2011. During the recording, Crawford left bc he wanted to create "real, genuine music."

Smith, Urie, and Weekes recorded another album that was released in 2013 and soon went on tour. Smith left for a bit for addiction reasons; and in 2014, Urie said it didn't look like Smith was coming back; and in 2015, Smith confirmed he wasn't coming back. So Ross and Smith, the original two creators of the band, are now gone; and Urie is the only one left from the original lineup.

In 2017, Weekes announced he was leaving so he could focus on his own band, IDKHOW. That's the final "replacement" member, and from then on, it's just Urie. Since then, Urie has used the Panic! name for what is essentially a solo career, creating music that is so far gone from the original vision and slapping someone else's name on it. The creators of Panic!, Smith and Ross, left a long long time ago, and Urie has essentially acted like nothing happened and hasn't really given them credit. It's been the Brendon Urie Show for ages; more than one person left because of creative differences with him specifically. The Panic! name was never his to use yet he kept on using it, I guess for clout?

Then we get into the allegations against Urie. I'm on mobile and at work so I don't really have time to add receipts, but googling Brendon Urie allegations will bring up a ton of links. Basically, there are allegations of him sexually abusing fans, possibly minors. He's also publicly made some nasty rape jokes, and used the word tr*nny. I think I'm just scraping the surface here.

Overall he's an intensely unpleasant person who's been happily profiting off someone else's concept and name without credit for years. He's used Panic! as a vanity project, and the shit he's put out isn't even good.

[frankierotwinkdeath]

No but seriously imagine it:

You’re seeing fall out boy on a concert. Everyone is having a great time. Fall out boy seem a little excited. “We have a surprise for you guys.” Patrick says. Fall out boy start singing “the take over, the breaks over.” When Patrick gets to the guitar solo, someone else starts playing …

Lights flash everywhere, and you see FOB singing “the take over, the breaks over” along with Ryan Ross. Everyone in the crowd is going wild and crying. Then if things couldn’t get any better, Ryan announces a new the young veins album.

[1i0v3ry4nr055]

RYAN ROSS BIRTHDAY CAKE 🎂, i just absolutely adore all of his writing-- from p!atd to tyv to his solo work. every single piece he writes has a way of resonating with me, so of course i had to celebrate the day he was born because without his work who knows where or who i would be today.

[foxes-that-run]

If I could fly

The TLDR is that If I could fly is about Harry being vulnerable with someone he is separated from by distance which is painful. Harry wrote it in February before the OTRA tour. When asked about it in the Track by Track, (1:52) Harry spoke about the album for 2 minutes, when prompted he covered his body language was closed before saying it 'kind of fell down, it was natural to sing it' then talked about Johan. Thank for sharing your music Harry.

When was it written

Harry wrote it with Johan Carlson and Ross Golan in Los Angeles. Johan said they wrote together several days a week over four weeks leading up to the On the Road Again tour, which started 7 February 2015. Harry wrote with Johan on ‘Just a Little Piece of your heart’, ‘I love you’, Maybe Someday and 'Stockholm Syndrome'. Johan said:

"He's such a good songwriter - it's an honour to write music with him. He's fantastic with the words and he can really put down lyrics that are very conversational and people can relate to. We're just having a good time."

Niall also said Made in the AM was written in January and February, before Zayn left the band in March. He also told Ryan Seacrest the bulk of the album was written before tour and recorded on the road.

Live performances

One Direction never performed it live and Harry hasn't since 2018. Harry included it in his first main setlist throughout 2018. He performed it on the B stage after Sweet Creature. When performing it live Harry paused, shushed the crowd with a finger for up to 2 minutes before saying "it's your turn" for them to sing the last chorus and "I feel it," both of which Harry led on the album.

What the band said about it

To Apple Music Liam said he got emotional listening to "the song Harry wrote", which is likely 'If I Could Fly' because his other writing credits were with 1D and/or 1D writers. Harry deflected answering what it is about but said it was a farewell (to a hoodie they had been joking about). The farewell is interesting to me as the lyrics are ambiguous to me, Harry sings of being apart from his muse, going out of mind and hoping they don’t run from him.

Julian Bunetta said to Rolling Stone:

“I remember when Harry first played it to me. That one I didn’t write, but I remember when I first heard it. We were in Westlake Studio for a week. I kept asking why he wanted to call it ‘If I Could Fly.’ It’s a great song, so it doesn’t really matter what it’s called, does it?”

The title is only in the first line, compared to 'for your eyes only' which is the main line of the chorus. If I could fly is a reference to the paper airplane necklace and Taylors Out Of The Woods "Two paper airplanes flying, flying, flying". It also sets the meaning of the song as about someone he's physically apart from rather than the band or fans.

Timeline

27 October - 1989 release, Harry and Taylor seen together again in November and December. (2014 timeline)

10 January - 4 weeks writing with Johan incl. 'If I could Fly'

16 January - The last time Harry and Taylor were seen together before the Exile BBMAs was Lily Aldridge's birthday. (WITW)

1 February - Taylor not at Harry's 21st birthday, in Nashville the next day, maybe broke up (Hunger and Coney Island).

7 February - ORTA tour start, end of writing period.

14 February - Style Music Video released and Two Ghosts written.

27 February - Harry posted the overgrown Winding Wheel.

7 November - Harry Tweeted 'If I could fly' before it was released. He had given Taylor the Airplane necklace on 7 November 2012.

Lyrics

If I could fly I'd be comin' right back home to you

"If I could fly" is not an obvious title for this song, but was important to Harry.

The opening of Taylor’s vault track The Very First Night is “I wish I could fly / I'd pick you up and we'd go back in time”

It is one of Harry's last One Direction songs, he fly's (over an ocean and woods) in the MV his first solo song, Sign of the Times, which works as a through line. Harry said to Jimmy Fallon that he 'would have been happy with a green screen' which sounds like the flying was his idea before he got concepts.

Harry has sung about flying and the distance separating him from his muse many times, especially in One Direction songs. This title and opening lyric are clear the song is about someone Harry is separated from by touring and living internationally:

Fools Gold "You're the shining distraction that makes me fly home"

Half The World Away "Never gonna be the same / 'Cause you're half the world away"

Lay down "Hearts are divided / Now that we’re worlds apart"

Trouble "And you know that i’ll be gone in the morning"

Already home "You don’t have to go, but you’re already leaving" and "From aeroplanes to the bullet trains, summer skies to the pouring rain / All the future plans we will never make, from a beating heart to the farthest place"

Daylight "If I was a bluebird, I would fly to you"

Canyon Moon "I'll be gone too long from you"

Daydreaming "You know I'll be gone for so long / So give me all of your love, give me something to dream about"

Since meeting Harry while writing Red, Taylor has sung about flying in more than 10 songs about him, most closely in The Very First Night: "I wish I could fly, I’d pick you up and we’d go back in time"

Home is also an important theme in Harry's music, home being with the person rather than a physical place.

I think I might Give up everything, just ask me to

Here, in Maybe Someday and in Taylors 'The Lakes' they have both sung about being together after giving up their careers, Slut! and Gold Rush Also has a similar message.

however on Harry's House in Music for a Sushi Restaurant and As it Was Harry started to say he should be able to have both because 'he's not going to go broke' or 'you know it's not the same.'

Pay attention, I hope that you listen 'Cause I let my guard down Right now I'm completely defenseless

Harry guards his privacy carefully, he has spoke in the Behind the Album that the world knew everything about him in the band and he found he didn't like that. To let someone in is important.

For your eyes only I'll show you my heart For when you're lonely And forget who you are I'm missing half of me When we're apart Now you know me For your eyes only For your eyes only

I really love the phrasing of 'when you're lonely and forget who you are' it beautifully communicates how highly Harry thinks of his muse, but knows they don't see themselves as he does. This is quite similar to

Lay Down: "Two Hearts are divided / Now that we’re worlds apart, They seem so hard to take"

Satellite "I can see you're lonely down there, Don't you know that I am right here?"

Little Freak "I was thinkin' about who you are / Your delicate point of view"

I've got scars Even though they can't always be seen And pain gets hard But now you're here and I don't feel a thing

This verse gets me everytime. Harry is speaking about past trauma, which he also touched on with Rolling Stone discussing his parents separating and wanting to protect his mother, as well as internet criticism. Taylor Swift has a similar story in Seven, and in Cardigan "You drew stars around my scars"

I can feel your heart inside of mine I feel it, I feel it I've been goin' out of my mind I feel it, I feel it Know that I'm just wastin' time And I hope that you don't run from me

To me the outcome for the relationship in the song is ambiguous, as it may have been for Harry. He’s vulnerable, hoping the person doesn’t run from him, but is leaving and thinks he wasting his time. To me this reflects a relationship that’s complex, but clearly special. As we can see with how Harry didn’t want to discuss the song.

This verse reminds me of these lyrics.

Sweet Creature "Two hearts in one home"

Where do broken hearts go "Mind is running in circles of you and me"

Fools Gold "You're the raise on the waves that calm my mind"

[swaglet]

when i was a senior in high school we played hey look ma i made it and high hopes as part of our parade tunes line up and i as the tenor sax player in the front row of the parade had to play the solos for both of those and my god every time i hear those songs they make my skin crawl and instinctively make me take an insanely deep breath like i'm about to play them. it has been like 5 years. brendon urie i hate you you ruined good music can you pay ryan ross all your money