Ryan Cam

Ryan Cam is an upcoming Hip Hop/Pop artist from northern VA who just released his first project titled “No Pressure.” With his smooth beat selection, combined with his diverse flows and melodic hooks/choruses, Ryan is bringing a unique sound to the table right out of the gate. With a debut project like this, the young artist has set the bar high and is looking to grow. Ryan sat down with WGMU host Matt Dotson to talk about the EP, his NOVA roots, inspirations, and their old connection. Follow Ryan on Twitter at @ryan_cam_. - WGMU

We had the chance to sit down and talk to Ryan Cam, an up and coming artist still making his way through college and the music scene. He recently released an album called 'No Pressure' which is available on almost all streaming services (Apple Music, Spotify, SoundCloud, etc). I downloaded it and was THOROUGHLY surprised by the talent this man has! He'll be a huge name soon enough and I'm glad the team at Uncharted had the chance to help him break into the industry. Be sure to check out Ryan's new album as well as his newest video, which you can watch in full below!

Q) Tell our audience a little more about yourself.

I’m a 20-year-old college student currently studying at JMU. I’m a CS major and a Music Industry minor, but I plan on moving to either a city in California or Georgia after I graduate to pursue music full-time. I started making music less than a year ago but have gotten fully into it and really want to see where it might take me in the future.



Q) You have a new album on Apple Music, 'No Pressure'. Are you working on any new projects currently?

I’m super excited that I was able to get No Pressure available on almost all streaming services. I think that helped me establish my initial fanbase. I actually just released my first music video about a week ago for Ride My Wave and I’m working on a few new singles now. I’ve been sitting on one in particular for a while and it's definitely my best work so far. It’s coming out late August when people start going back to their colleges/school. I’m still learning a ton so I’m really excited to put that one out and see where we can take it.



Q) Any shows coming up soon?

Unfortunately, I don’t have any upcoming shows right now but we’re working on that. I just got a team together and that’s definitely our next step.



Q) What current artist would you most closely relate your music style to?

If I had to name an artist or two, I'd say my music is kind of a mix between Chance and Post Malone. That might sound weird, haha but it's tough to name an artist I sound like because personally, I feel like I’m on my own sound. I don’t think I’ve found my exact sound yet, but I’m definitely on my way. Especially with this new stuff I’m working on. People tell me it's tough to compare me to other artists cause it's just different, and that really encourages me to keep going and see how my sound will develop.



Q) Who is one person that has inspired you along the way, and how?

Instead of just one person, I think underground artists as a whole have inspired me a lot so far because I see them grinding and doing everything on their own and feel like I have the potential to hang right there with them. Since I’m completely DIY as well I like to study their moves and learn a lot from their production/engineering.



Q) How do you define success for yourself?

I’m very tough on myself and am always looking to grow, so I guess I’d define success by my growth as an artist and as an individual. I’ve already learned that it's so easy for me to get frustrated that I’m not where I want to be yet, but as long as I’m progressing and improving I try to stay happy but never complacent. I’ve also found that it's super easy for me to get caught up with the numbers and everything else, and forget about the art. Although all the other stuff is just as important, keeping the main focus on the art is a huge success for me.



Q) What are you most looking forward to being featured on UD?

I’m super excited to start getting my name out there and reaching a larger audience. That’s how I have to start growing my fan base and this kind of exposure is exactly what I need right now in order to reach out to more people. And I just have to hope they vibe!

Q) If you were stranded on an island and could bring 3 things along, what would they be and why?

I’d definitely bring my headphones and something to listen to music with. I’m always listening to music haha. And maybe a guitar cause I’ve wanted to learn for a while but haven’t had the time.



Be sure to check out Ryan's SoundCloud and social media!!

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/ryan_cam

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryancam_/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ryan_cam_

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ryancammusic/ - Uncharted Domain

Ryan Cam, an up and coming Hip-Hop artist from Leesburg, VA, has officially released his 2nd EP titled, RED. UD was first introduced to Ryan over the summer a week after he released the video to Ride My Wave, his first hit off of his No Pressure EP. The guy’s following has grown exponentially since then! At the time we first interviewed him, the video had about 1,500 views on YouTube. Since then, the view count has increased to 10K, the song has 33K plays on Spotify, and he has 26,000 monthly listeners. As I sit here listening to RED while writing this, I can tell there was a lot of time put into the project. The production is great and Ryan really shows how versatile his style is. You can listen to RED on your favorite music platform HERE. Check out his thoughts on the project below!



HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE ALBUM IN ONE SENTENCE?

Hmm, I’d probably describe it as a modern-influenced, hip-pop project. I don’t know, there’s a lot of different sounds on it and I really just wanted to experiment and keep pushing myself as an artist. I think I’m finding my unique sound by testing stuff out and seeing what works.



WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND RED? DOES THE COLOR STAND FOR ANYTHING AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU?
I feel like for every project I’m ever going to drop, the inspiration is just what’s going on in my life and what’s relevant to me. Recently, my career has been very relevant to me and I think that theme is scattered throughout the whole project. When I was naming it, I really wanted something that stood for all the main themes of the project: love, anger, passion, heartbreak, frustration. At first, I was thinking too literally about a name and then I thought of RED and to me the color just represents all those feelings in a very raw way.





WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NO PRESSURE AND RED?

I think one of the biggest differences is that RED is catered more to what sound is popular right now. It’s a more polished sound. I took my audience in mind and wanted to make something relatable and current, but also keep my vibe. I wanted to focus on the production and quality of the music as well, and I think the quality of this project is much better. It feels more well-rounded to me. But I’m not totally dropping my old sound, I’m still gonna keep that other vibe as well.



WHAT WAS THE MOST FRUSTRATING PART ABOUT MAKING THE EP?

I didn’t realize how much harder it would be to make a second EP. People have expectations now and it’s difficult to find a balance between pleasing old expectations and growing as a new artist at the same time. So, I’d say the most frustrating part was wrapping my head around what I wanted this project to sound like as a whole and going from there, which is one of the first parts of the process.



WHICH SONG WAS YOUR FAVORITE TO MAKE AND WHY?
I think B Roll was my favorite to make because I initially made it just for fun without thinking about putting it on the project but it had this unique bounce to it. And then going through the process of finding the right feature was fun. I had a few rappers come in to record verses for that part (shoutout Tyler haha) and everyone killed their verses! But when I heard what Indica did on it, it just fit so well and it matched the bounce so I was like that’s the one.



WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL WHEN THEY LISTEN TO THIS EP?

Hmm that’s a good question. Since its a project I really want people to feel lots of different emotions through it, but overall I wanted to keep a “real and relatable” vibe to it. I feel like so much music nowadays is shallow but my goal is to always keep my true self in my music. So even if a song sounds shallow, look into it, there’s probably a real message underneath.


FOLLOW RYAN ON SOCIAL MEDIA:

Twitter: @Ryan_Cam_

Instagram: @RyanCam_

SoundCloud: Ryan_Cam

Facebook: RyanCamMusic - Uncharted Domain

After listening to years worth of underground artists, JMU student Ryan Cambetes took it upon himself to grab a microphone and overcome his fear of releasing his own music.

“With music, you’re really putting yourself out there,” Cambetes, a junior computer science major, said. “It’s who you are and it’s how you’re feeling at the time.”

Cambetes released his first project “No Pressure” in May under the name Ryan Cam. It’s composed of seven tracks he describes as “upbeat, feel-good hip-hop.” He credits Chance the Rapper, Post Malone and the darker side of R&B as current influences.

In the project’s first track, “College Casa,” you can hear the unmistakable hip-hop influence right away. But instead of hardcore rapping, Cambetes follows slower beats with vocalization and speeds up with the tempo. This is one of many aspects of Cambetes’ music that allows him to both fit into and stand apart from the genre of hip-hop.

“I don’t want to say that I’m a rapper,” Cambetes said.

Cambetes says this to make the difference distinct. He identifies himself as an artist and not a rapper.

“It’s hip-hop, but with singing,” Garrett Lazorchak, Cambetes’ cousin and a senior computer science major, said.

Other underground hip-hop artists like Healy and Matt Burton have influenced Cambetes because they work in and can control every aspect of their sound. Like them, Cambetes engineers his own songs and does the mixing and matching of the individual pieces that create each track.

This kind of passion and control over his music is what allows him to stand out among other self-made, independent artists.

“They just kind of make it happen by themselves,” Cambetes said. “I look up to some of these guys and I, like, really study what they’re doing.”

Cambetes also explained that “No Pressure” is a kind of response to the societal norms and expectations he grew up with. To him, graduating high school and moving on to college was a no-brainer, and because of that, it took away the excitement of truly following his passion in life. If he hadn’t continued school, he would’ve felt like “the outcast.”

“This album I really made to kind of just break away from feeling all that pressure,” Cambetes said.

Along with norms, Cambetes doesn’t stick to one path of sound. He bounces between genres such as hip-hop and R&B by collaborating or buying beats from other artists. Although he does create his own beats using a computer and keyboard, Cambetes believes that by finding different sounds through others’ music, he can expand his own sound and allow it to evolve.

When placing a beat into his own track, Cambetes plays around with its individual parts so that it can fit the vibe of his song and the theme of his project. In the end, he takes those beats and makes them his own form of art.

“It’s never just, like, a copy [and] paste thing,” Cambetes said. “I like to add my own flavor.”

In the track “Ride My Wave,” you can hear distinct beats and melodies mixed together underneath Cambetes’ vocals. He’s able to break from classic hip-hop by adding in steel drums, traditionally found in reggae music, and using other smaller track pieces that link the song to a more pop music vibe.

This allows Cambetes to develop his own range of sounds he identifies with as an artist.

Thomas Kronenber, a junior materials science and engineering major at Virginia Tech, has been with Cambetes from the beginning of his music career. He describes Cambetes’ work ethic in a way that’s true of many artists, whether they’re upcoming vocalists or legends in the rock ’n’ roll world.

“He’ll ask me what’s different because he wants me to find out if the work that he did is actually making a difference,” Kronenber said. “If I point it out, then he’s like, ‘Good, then I’ve made a good improvement.’”

When listening to “No Pressure” on Spotify or Apple Music, you can hear the young, developing artist that Cambetes is. His tracks will capture your ear with their catchy hooks and relatable lyrics. It’s music made by a college student for other college students.

“I’m still so young and still so new, everything I hear still influences me and my sound,” Cambetes said.

Today, Cambetes will release a single on most music streaming services, which he’s been working on for about two months. Listeners should prepare to hear a more developed sound from Cambetes as he continues to grow and discover his own identity as an artist. - The Breeze

Located in Central Uganda on a peninsula in Africa’s largest lake, Lake Victoria, is a city with a population of about 70,000. This city, called Entebbe, is made up of many different rural communities and fishing islands, and has little industry. Even though the city is directly connected to a massive water source, means of filtering that water are scarce and clean water is hard to come by for many of Entebbe’s residents.

The water crisis isn’t going unnoticed, however. Hands 4 Others is working to fight it. H4O is a nonprofit organization that empowers and enables students around the world to address critical issues. One student involved with their Global Internship Program is Amelia Morrison, a senior geographic science major at JMU. Morrison works with H4O’s clean water program, which has provided over 220,000 people in 15 different countries, including Uganda, with clean water by building wells and implementing filtration systems.

“With something like drinking water, it’s just something that we can all support,” Morrison said. “The more that we can get people aware … of the other issues in society that stem from lacking that drinking water, the more that we can cultivate the service atmosphere that JMU kind of thinks of itself as having.”

Drinking unfiltered water can cause typhoid fever, cholera and other water-borne illnesses. Residents in countries like Uganda may have to travel great distances to get water that can still bring them diseases. Since those diseases require them to spend their income on medicine, the resulting lack of resources can lead to crime, starvation and an inability to send their kids to school.

“We’re decreasing the death rates in the areas, but what we’re also doing is creating an environment and a culture where people are able to pursue their dreams and thrive,” Zak Shellabarger, program director at H4O, said.

Shellabarger saw this process firsthand while on a trip to Entebbe. He was installing a water system and noticed how many of the problems their town faced weren’t a result of bad people, but poor circumstances.

“Uganda’s such a place that’s so rich in culture and love and there’s so many people that are just so giving of themselves and so hospitable,” Shellabarger said. “Crime is not large there because the people are bad — crime is large there because they have no other means to provide for themselves … and so when we go in and when we install a water system, slowly over time what starts to happen is that the community starts to find new and better ways to provide for themselves.”

Sixty-one percent of Ugandans lack access to safe water, and even more don’t have access to improved sanitation. That’s why Morrison is coordinating her own fundraiser for a clean water system in Entebbe.

“Nothing philanthropic happens without a strong community around it,” Morrison said. “So it’s really a powerful thing to create partnerships with people who care, even if they’re not focused on the same issue as you.”

Uganda is just one of many places struggling during the clean water crisis. Around the world, more than 840 million people don’t have safe drinking water. With such a far-reaching issue, Morrison said she’s had no problem finding people willing to help out with her efforts to aid Entebbe.

“A lot of people want to be involved with an issue like this just because it’s humanitarian,” Morrison said. “College campuses are a really good place to cultivate that energy because everyone does care, and has a little bit of time, not so much money, but time to devote to that.”

The Environmental Management Club is one student organization that’s decided to get involved with the cause. Laura Grajales, a senior kinesiology major and social chair of the club, said its members were eager to get involved.

“We definitely feel like it’s something that we take for granted here in the United States,” Grajales said. “It’s something that’s so vital to daily living that it feels like such a huge cause for us to be able to help out.”

Morrison has gotten more of the JMU community involved besides student organizations — from booking local music acts like Ryan Cam, Gryzzle and Venus Milo to perform at fundraising events, to having Mad4U help organize an upcoming concert.

“I definitely feel like JMU is a place where everyone’s kind of trying to do something to make the world a better place,” Grajales said.

Uniting with others to make a difference is something Morrison stressed. She said she’s glad she’s in the position to bring people together to help out.

“Using your privilege, that’s what I envision,” Morrison said. “Band together with whoever you can connect with, whatever organizations that you can connect with and individuals and try to do something good. And the feeling that comes when you achieve that is really, really a good feeling. It feels really good to help people.” - The Breeze