Conversations with Ryan Flores

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Flores

Hi Ryan, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I am a California Bay Area native with Czech and Mexican roots (Czexican or Czex-Mex, as I like to call it). Colorado is where I spend one-quarter of my life sleeping. I moved her with my erstwhile girlfriend and bandmate in 2010 by way of the Ozarks- where I drank copious amounts of alcohol and played in a tango band while attending Missouri State. I am a writer, music producer, and a photographer. My poetry has appeared in literary journals, magazines, text books, waste baskets, and recycling bins. I have been working on my first novel since I was a toddler.

Music has been my livelihood for the last decade. I am the founder of Heart Shaped Records, which is a small music label and entertainment company here in Colorado. I basically started the label to release music for my various projects, including Viva la Noche, Moonhoney, Love In Water, Leopard & the Vine, and Ryancito.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Smooth road? Not at all. I have struggled with self doubt, financial hardships, procrastination, anxiety, depression…. I certainly don’t want to misrepresent my path as being one fraught with misfortune or failure. I have it good and I am sustaining myself as an artist/entrepreneur. Still, it hasn’t always been easy. Thankfully I have found my niche and persevered.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a writer, producer, and photographer. I also dabble in design. I feel my various influences set me apart in the live performance. I love mashing up classical music, pop, house, and latin- all with a rumba. I play close to 200 gigs a year and bill what I do live as “Latin Gypsy” music—a mixture of Tango, Flamenco, Mariachi, Caribbean, and Balkan styles infused with pop. I am a multi-instrumentalist and play several instruments simultaneously, making for a rhythmic and danceable sound.
I think I am most proud of the new lyrics I am writing. They are something I really strive to craft. Maybe it’s a product of the ad nauseam literary analysis and writing workshops from my degree in literature.

I released a conceptual triptych (Mestizaje) under my name last year that follows the path of the conquest out of Europe into the New World. I am currently working on a follow-up album to the triptych entitled “Remedio” and already released the first single, “Madrugada”, on all platforms. I am also working on a singer-songwriter electronic album entitled “Little Sparks” under the moniker Ryancito- with the first singles coming this summer. I have a book of poetry in the works as well, entitled “Ceremony of Hands”.

Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
“With great risk comes great reward.” I believe risk is crucial for any creative endeavor. I took a risk quitting my job and starting the record label full time. It was scary but here I am, 10 years later, with no day job. I’m super thankful for all the support people have offered me and my art over the years. I wouldn’t be here without it. I think I’ve increased my appetite for risk artistically. I’m writing things and recording music I never would have in years prior. I think humans can always distill the essence of whatever we are doing or going through into a binary of trust and fear. The more we trust ourselves and our process the more we are inclined to take risks. The more we fear the less we put ourselves out there. I’ve learned to lean into trusting myself more. Fear breeds self sabotage, doubt, and procrastination. At some point as an artist or entrepreneur, risk, like failure, is just another factor in the equation of success.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: ryanaflores
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ryanfloresband
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/heart-shaped-records
• Other: https://www.facebook.com/heartshapedrecords