We interviewed Ryan Hamilton about his career in music and how he coped when he experienced cyberbullying as an adult
DtL: Can you tell us a bit about your journey so far?
Ryan: Happy to share a bit of this crazy adventure, so far. Music has been my life, career, and coincidentally, my livelihood for about 12 years now. My former bands (Smile Smile and People On Vacation) brought me my first taste of real success, and turned my dreams into a reality. Both bands enjoyed a lot of success actually, and both had the potential to be a much bigger deal than they were. Sadly, both projects fell victim to greed, egos… and the dark, dirty ways of the big, bad music business. A couple of years ago I decided to leave my label/management and start over. I knew it was a big risk. But I was determined to do things RIGHT. I am convinced that you can be a good, honest person and still have success in this crazy business. I reached out to a few friends, started my own label, and put together a small, dedicated team of trustworthy folks. I put a lot of pressure on myself to work harder than ever. Not only has it been the most rewarding (and successful) couple of years of my career, so far… We just found out my debut solo album, Hell of a Day, was named as one of the top 200 Power Pop Albums of All Time! So crazy! We’ve sold more albums, played for more people etc than ever. It feels AMAZING. We just finished recording the 2nd album on our own. I think this new one is going to catapult our band into a whole new, exciting world. I can’t wait!
“It actually never occurred to me that bullying could happen as an adult”
DtL: How did you come across Ditch the Label?
Ryan: Sadly, after I disassociated myself from my former musical world, I upset a handful of people behind the scenes (don’t get me started on the similarities between people that bully and “big” record labels & managers). I started getting TERRIBLY cruel emails. I was bullied when I was in school, but I know others had it much worse. It actually never occurred to me that bullying could happen as an adult. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that things like, “I hate this band” or “I don’t like this song” come with the career I’ve chosen. But the emails I started getting were different. They were personal. It went on for 2 YEARS. I eventually had more than I could handle, and we got the appropriate authorities involved. We caught the responsible parties, and seem to have put an end to it. During that 2 year struggle, I started reaching out on the socials for help, support etc… A friend pointed me in the direction of Ditch the Label. From the moment I stumbled upon your amazing organisation, I was a fan. You guys not only helped me. You help people every day.
“A friend pointed me in the direction of Ditch the Label. From the moment I stumbled upon your amazing organisation, I was a fan. You guys not only helped me. You help people every day.”
DtL: If you could go back in time, what one thing would you tell your younger self?
Ryan: Not to be so quick to trust people. Especially those making promises motivated by money.
DtL: What are your most prominent challenges, and how do you overcome them?
Ryan: The biggest challenge is competing with all the money and greed in the music business. It’s very difficult for independent artists to get the attention that mainstream, “big” artists get. Because we don’t have the power, and seemingly never-ending financial support that the others have to promote. We’re still figuring out how to overcome that. But I feel like we’re doing an amazing job so far. It definitely feels like a David VS Goliath sort of thing… and if I remember correctly, David wins in that story, right? 😉
DtL: What does it mean to be a man in 2016 and what needs to change?
Ryan: 2 things:
1) Unfortunately, it seems far too many men are still motivated by power and money. Somewhere along the way, a lot of people seem to have forgotten what it’s like to be a good person… just to be good… for unselfish reasons. I think everyone is inherently GOOD. But in today’s world, there seems to be a lot of “What’s in it for me?”. For me, that’s what needs to change. Men (and women) seem to have lost a bit of their inherent moral compass unmotivated by selfishness and greed. It makes me sad.
“A lot of people seem to have forgotten what it’s like to be a good person…just to be good… for unselfish reasons”
2) Online bullying. So many men hide behind their computer screens sending terrible emails, making cruel Facebook comments, Tweets etc… It is UNREAL how much this is happening. It’s happening EVER SINGLE DAY. It also seems to be getting worse as time goes on. But that could just be the current political climate. Haha. Seriously though. The days when you had to have the courage to walk up to someone and say it to their face… those days seem to be LONG gone. Now we see cowards around every online corner. Saying awful things just because they can. They can be racist, sexist, political… and just plain mean. They seem to be determined to ruin someone’s day. For no good reason. Something I learned from Ditch The Label is that it’s probably a reflection of their own unhappiness… but regardless, it has to stop.
DtL: Did you ever experience bullying? If so can you tell us what happened and how you overcame the experience.
Ryan: I did indeed experience online bullying. As I mentioned before, I dealt with terribly cruel emails (from fake addresses) for over 2 years. It actually got pretty scary for me, my family and my band. But we traced the IP addresses, compiled all the evidence we needed, confronted them, threatened legal action… and it seems to have stopped. One thing the people that bully don’t realise, is that online bullying actually leaves a quite large (and very specific) paper trail.
I shared a more in depth explanation, here: https://youtu.be/v6aHIdx-Qn8
That video has now been shown in schools all over the world… and helped put an end to countless situations where people were being bullied. I am SO HAPPY I was able to share my experience, knowledge etc… and do some good in the process.
“I dealt with terribly cruel emails (from fake addresses) for over 2 years”
DtL: What advice would you give to any of our readers who experience bullying?
Ryan: To use the resources that are available. There are SO MANY different tools we have, that most are not aware of. I was SHOCKED at how many helpful things were literally at my fingertips. Not only wonderful organisations like yours. Things like tools to trace an IP address for an email. You can track down someone who is bullying you online, stand up to them, and probably put an end to it in a non-violent way.
DtL: What has been your proudest moment so far?
Ryan: I would have to say not letting the negativity and coinciding personal struggle of the online bullying, internet haters etc… affect my drive, work ethic and belief in myself (and my band). I could have let it get me down, but I didn’t. I can’t tell you how rewarding of an experience it is to enjoy success in the midst of all of that.
DtL: What does the future hold for Ryan Hamilton?
Ryan: You know… I’m not sure. But I’ve never been more motivated, or more excited. All I’ve ever wanted to do was make a life making music. I’m getting to do that! I don’t expect to ever be “Beyonce famous” … but all my fingers are crossed that I get to keep making music, and keep growing and nurturing this incredible musical following, and family I have created.
DtL: Is there anything you would like to add?
Ryan: Yeah there is! Haha. Never be bullied into silence! Stand up for yourself. Believe in yourself. Don’t let ’em get you down. You really can do anything you want in this life. Just believe in yourself and put in the work.
I’d also like to add that the new album from Ryan Hamilton & The Traitors is on it’s way! You can preorder via PledgeMusic now, here: http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/ryanhamiltonnewalbum and the album will be available everywhere else Feb 2017. Shameless plug, I know 😉
