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Sometimes success is all about being in the right place at the right time. Nothing could be more true of Bryan Reilly’s amazing rock ‘n’ roll ride over the past decade, but add to the serendipity one more special ingredient: talent. Sure, it’s helped to be asked to audition for Ty Stone, and to get to record with superstars like Bruce Springsteen and Kid Rock, but that’s not all luck; Bryan kills on the drums.
It all started at a Detroit Guitar Center store where Bryan worked part-time when he moved back to Michigan after graduating from our Recording Arts and Entertainment Business programs. “While I was working there I got into teaching, and it turned out that the parents of one of my students owned a recording studio [Harmonie Park] downtown,” Bryan says. “I worked [there] for two years part-time, until I was promoted to chief engineer in 2010. I left Guitar Center, but a few months later a friend I had worked with there offered me an audition for Ty Stone’s band. Their current drummer had other obligations and wasn’t able to tour, so I went up against eight other guys with four days to rehearse, killed it and got the gig.”
In 2011, he played drums for Ty Stone (signed to Atlantic Records) and did over 40 sold out shows across the country. “We played everywhere from Detroit’s Ford Field and Comerica Park, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, Chicago’s United Center, the Kid Rock Cruise and many more,” Bryan says.
Bryan moved on from Harmonie Park in August 2012 and joined RMS Sound Studios in Birmingham, Michigan, where he currently resides. Most recently he has spent the past few months finishing up work on Stewart Francke’s newest record, Love Implied, on which he is not just playing drums and guitars, but also producing, engineering, and mixing. Bryan was previously considered for a Grammy nomination in 2011 for his work on Francke’s collaboration with Bruce Springsteen, “Summer Soldier (Holler If Ya Hear Me).”
“I am also currently working on Ty Stone’s new record, which is really a mix of all styles of music. It sounds really hip and modern with influences from old rock ‘n’ roll and soul music,” Bryan says. “I am engineering, co-producing, mixing, playing drums, bass, guitars, mandolin, piano. We are hoping to release it on Atlantic Records later in 2013.”
In between these big-budget recording and touring gigs, Bryan is still finding time to return to what really inspires him: Detroit’s ever-vibrant new-rock scene. “Ty and I also started our own independent record label called Minor Label Records, based out of RMS,” he says. “I’m working with Kaleido, a Detroit rock band with killer musicians and a great female front singer – producing and engineering their new record. We are trying to give people a shot and build a community in Detroit where everyone works together and helps each other out.”
