My name is Ryan Terrigno. I'm a 30 year old singer-songwriter from Orange, CA. My musical journey began at the tender age of thirteen when I received my first electric guitar from my grandparents for Christmas. It was a Fender Stratocaster - the same guitar Billie Joe Armstrong from Green Day played. My life was never the same.  

When I was 16, I started my first legitimate rock band. We called ourselves Wester. Our sound could be described as blending the best elements of the Drive-Thru Records roster, with a whole lot of Thrice influence. This band was my entire life from 2000-2005. We released one EP and one Full Length album, both in the U.S. and Japan. The southern California scene treated us very well, often landing direct support slots under national acts, with an eventual climb up to headlining status.  When our Full Length album was released in Japan, we were invited to tour the country for a 2 week stint. Fond memories of this tour will go with me to my grave.

Despite our moderate success, all good things must come to an end. It wasn't long after returning home from Japan that Wester called it quits. Life has a way of pulling people in different directions, and it was time for us to put that chapter of our lives to rest. Now, I'm not a believer in the old adage that "everything happens for a reason", but I do believe Wester ended so that I could dive headfirst into my next musical adventure. Enter We Are The Arsenal...

Following Wester's demise, I took six months off from band life to lock myself in my bedroom and just focus on writing songs. I taught myself to use whatever low-end recording programs were available to me at the time, along with whatever gear I could dig up on my retail salary. This included an old microphone from the 70's that shocked my mouth constantly. In the end, I think all the electric shock therapy actually worked to my benefit. This was a creative time for me. I was writing a lot, and I was writing with purpose. You couldn't tell from the muffled demos, but these were epic rock and roll songs. They were never meant to live on my hard drive. And they didn't. 

We Are The Arsenal was born in February of 2006. With a handful of songs and an intense new level of determination, I called my former drummer and good friend and we began the project that would envelop the next 7 years of our lives. During the span of WATA's career, we released 4 EP's and 1 Full Length album, both domestic and internationally. 

I was fortunate to reach several milestones throughout my years with We Are The Arsenal. We received regular airplay on the world famous KROQ. Filmed two official music videos. Licensed several songs to MTV reality shows. Headlined every major venue in southern California. Toured the United States. Opened for numerous national acts. The list goes on and on. It truly was some of the best years of my life. 

In 2013, after 7 long years, We Are The Arsenal decided to throw in the towel. It just felt like it was time. The musical landscape had changed a lot, and we decided to branch off in different directions to continue focusing on our own individual forms of self-expression. In any art form, it's important to expand your horizons, never limit yourself, and ensure you're always growing and staying true to yourself.

Enter Ryan Terrigno, Singer-Songwriter. By the time WATA called it quits, my personal life had changed exponentially since the day we had started. I gained a fiance, a dog named Charlie, and a whole lot of bills. Some may refer to this as "growing up." Mind you, this whole growing up thing is something I spent a lot of time trying to avoid. But here we are.

2014 was the year I decided I would focus on what always lied at the core of Wester and We Are The Arsenal all along - my songs. It's funny - I played in rock bands for over a decade, wrote and recorded 7 albums, and still never really considered myself a songwriter. I certainly never used the term to describe myself. I guess I just never wanted to take credit, or felt I deserved it. Which in retrospect could have been my downfall as a frontman...lack of arrogance and cocky attitude. I never wanted the attention, I just wanted to play music and have people listen.

I spent all of 2014 building my home studio. This time I was gonna do it right, with real gear and real microphones. Luckily my fiance allowed me to convert the entirety of our 2nd bedroom in our apartment into a studio. I began writing furiously once again, just like I did when Wester broke up. However, this time it was different. I had spent so many years writing in the mindset of a rock band, that this new process felt like starting over. I had a sense of freedom in my writing that I hadn't felt before. This time around, my opinion was the only one that mattered. If an idea was great, it was because of me. If an idea was terrible and cliche, it was because of me. It was like learning how to walk again, as a solo artist.  I even took to the stage numerous times throughout the years to flex my muscles as a live solo performer. While this is a little more stressful than being on stage with a band, it's still an incredible feeling to be up there sharing the songs I've written with an audience.    

Here it is, 2015. I'm now two years shy of the 20 year mark in my music career. I've now been playing and writing music for almost 2/3 of my entire life. I spend my days as a Product Manager for a tech company. I spend my evenings with my girl and my dog. And I spend my nights locked away in my studio writing and recording my life's work. I do this now not because I have rockstar ambitions. Not because I think there's a fortune waiting for me out there. I still write and record music because I have to. Even if no one ever hears the songs I continue to create, I know that I was put on this Earth to write them. It's my hobby and my passion, and I'm eternally grateful to have music in my life.

I am currently writing my debut solo album. I haven't decided whether it will be an EP or a Full Length album, but I'm incredibly happy with the songs I've completed thus far. I know that it will be called "Chasing Ghosts". Though the genesis of each track spawned from an acoustic guitar, the album will feature full instrumentation all performed and programmed by yours truly. I am planning a release date by Summer 2015 across all major online outlets and streaming services. So please stay tuned. 

Thanks for reading about my musical journey. I hope you enjoy what I create.