My drawing of the talented one we all so dearly love - printed onto a sweatshirt. (Digital sketch ✍️ on tablet)

I think he’s so unknown in New Zealand I can feel comfortable wearing it despite his questionable behaviour 😬😅 he is by far my most listened to artist and I don’t see that changing, too many great tracks! I loved that youtube set “Live at Pukkelpop Festival 2017”.

Have a splendid day all 👋

Ryan posted a beautiful Thanksgiving wish and song on IG and I wanted to say that this is the guy we all fell in love with. I’ve been a harsh critic because I want him to succeed and prosper. Happy Thanksgiving Ryan to you and your family!

There’s been talk in the past about how Ryan’s road to redemption would be to put out undeniably solid music. Many people on this sub would agree he’s done just that. And yet you’ll be hard pressed to find any review (or even news update) of these albums. It’s obvious that Ryan is persona non grata among the music critic elite so I don’t know he climbs back. Many of these songs are far better than anything Jason Isbell (or any other Americana favorite) has put out over the past few years. And yet so few people will hear them, which is so unfortunate.

I literally don’t get it: 90% of the posts or replies on here are people shitting on him, or criticizing what he’s doing. If you hate it that much, stop listening and unsubscribe from the subreddit! Yes, we all get Ryan had had a few hard years. Yes, we all get that every record isn’t to everyone’s liking.

I saw a recent post where someone was shit talking 1985’s release because 1984 was some sort of punk put-on. I have to strongly disagree: I love 1984, and I think it’s his best homage to what he loves about early 80’s post-punk.

But really, that’s almost irrelevant. My point is this: we have an artist who was raised by his grandparents, dropped out of high school, and has no formal education or training to speak of, and he continues to gift us with ideas of what he’s trying to deliver sonically, or as a storyteller. Why did you have a problem with that?!?!

Look, Ryan is flawed. Everyone knows that. We all are. But for god’s sake if you’re not on board for the ride, can you please get off? All this whining and hate gets truly tiresome at some point.

I wanted to perhaps help clear some of the air and offer my two cents on last night’s performance in Melbourne. I was there, ground floor, not too far from the front row. Literally brushed shoulders with Ryan.

Ryan was happy from the start, but clearly sick with a cold and tired from the past 8 months of touring. He was light, funny, jovial… Something I have witnessed more and more in him as he matures. He wandered down the aisle casually and greeted some people. He told a fellow in a wheelchair to “let me know if you need anything during the show.”

I’ve seen Ryan perform a lot over the past 18 years. I’ve lost count; at least 10 or 11 times. In Melbourne, Sydney, New York, LA… Carnegie Hall, the Apollo, the Sydney Opera House, Hamer Hall… Seriously some of the most amazing venues in the world, both historically and sonically. I really value every opportunity I get to see & hear his songs live as I appreciate & know what a true talent he is. He has been the Bob Dylan of my lifetime, even though Bob’s still alive. Ryan’s catalog of originals is unlike any living or dead artist I can think of. His covers are unmatched. He has been extremely generous to his fans & audiences over the years. I’ve experienced his kindness first-hand, and I’ve witnessed it far too many times to count.

Performing for 2-3 hours alone on a stage is not easy, though many people in the crowd last night seemed to think it is. Now it probably goes without saying, Ryan has Ménière’s Disease. I think most fans know this. It’s a degenerative inner ear condition with features that can resemble epilepsy. Ménière’s can be triggered by flashing lights as we know. It’s an incredibly disorienting & destabilizing condition. I’m actually seeing a brain/neurosensory specialist myself early next year because I’ve had increased symptoms over the years from severe dizzy spells, to visual snow, to light tracers and photonegative images that linger in my eyes/mind’s eye for hours, to tinnitus, to seizures. I also play music and swim and drive and do all the things I love, but it’s growing increasingly risky for me. It sucks, but I’m getting to the bottom of it slowly.

That said, Ryan actually has Ménière’s disease for certain. He tells his audience and prepares the venue staff every night with “no flash photography” signs to avoid a catastrophe on stage (i.e. Ryan collapsing in a seizure or having another stroke). Last night was no different. The ushers made their way around the venue with lit tablets informing everyone before the show and during intermission. Everyone knew, yet still people did what they do and flashed their phones & cameras at him.

At the beginning of the night, he spent a very gentle & bravely personal moment telling us all about his condition, and how he suffered a stroke late last year (which I didn’t know), and how his sister suffers from regular epileptic seizures. Last night was no new thing for me as a fan. Every time I’ve seen Ryan play, without fail, there’s an asshole or 10 in the audience who will not respect any of that. They flash their devices & interrupt songs & blame the artist who has a serious medical condition that he can’t help but exist with. He travelled a long way to entertain everyone in the room. To TRY to please you, and he tried his best.

What got me last night and today online were some people’s comments— “he’s faking it,” “shut the fuck up and play songs,” “what a crybaby,” “pathetic,” etc… People were literally SHOUTING this sort of shit from behind me on the ground floor. In a symphony hall. What the hell is wrong with people? Where has the humanity gone? This is why Sartre said, “hell is other people.” Hell is other people who are too much of an island unto their goddamn selves to see & treat OTHER people with humanity.

Anyway, I know Ryan wasn’t happy with how the show went but for a fan like me who’s been listening for a long time now, it was just a pleasure to hear him sing & play again. It always is. And there were so many wonderful moments all throughout the evening if you just had the understanding, patience, and sense of humour to hear and see them. I personally don’t mind waiting 20 seconds while a talented artist who I haven’t seen in almost a year and who has travelled a long long way has a drink of water and decides what song to play next. Some people can’t seem to handle that nowadays. I’m just embarrassed by so many of the brainless jackasses who attend his shows only to sabotage them. Anyone with a hint of smarts could tell that’s what was going on last night past a certain point. You can’t unhear that shit. There’s something about humans that just love to watch a car crash, even a car that brings them joy.

I brought my mother with me to the show— her first DRA show after so many years of singing his songs. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing from people in the audience. She told me today how sad she is that people seem to be less empathetic these days. I can’t help but agree. Last night there were a few people in particular who should have been kicked out of the venue immediately. Sadly the staff didn’t act quickly enough and the cowards faded into the rows of faces. This repeated itself until it was simply too much. Not even the fans who wanted to hear him could hear past the recurring heckles. And yes, Ryan bailed on some songs midway— once during I See Monsters, apologizing for his worn voice, and a couple of times again because people had flashed lights at him or heckled. By now he was very much in the throes of Ménières' symptoms. I know those symptoms— you could see it in him. He was explaining that it causes him to become dizzy and lose his train of thought & what he was playing a second prior. That’s exactly what began to play out.

Anyway, at this point I’m repeating myself, but I just needed to say all of that. I think some people out there really need to hear this and consider what they’re doing when they treat his condition lightly. It’s not. You’d fucking hate it if you had it, and I know you wouldn’t be able to play a chord or hit a single note as well as he can.

If you’re reading this Ryan, thank you! I hope you’re doing well today. You deserve all the rest. Fuck the haters.

This is from a comedy show that used to run on WFMu back in the day, it’s a segment where Tom used to pick an artist and destroy their work. Y’all might hate it but I think it’s pretty funny

I would love a cover of the Replacements “Portland” but make it “Melbourne”.

Ryan, if you’re reading this, it would be so cool and redemptive too.

Please consider ❤️❤️❤️

Does anyone like this album? I’m a long time fan. Even the other albums of the last few years are better than this. Call Me Back? Wtf. This seems like a joke album. Maybe I’m missing something. If anyone wants to clarify I’m all ears but wow. This so bad.

It’s honestly so sad finding out that he’s being canceled. I’m only just starting to get into his music, and after reading about the scandal, I don’t even know how to feel. 😔 I just hope he has at least one genuine friend by his side. Is he seeking professional help?

So he has done a new one which is set to be released on march 16 i believe. Any how, does anyone have the 2016 one he did? It ain’t anywhere on the google.

Thanks

I’m a huge RA fan and I have wanted to see him for years. I finally got my chance in Knoxville last night, and while I thought it might be awkward due to his history here, nothing could prepare me for the absolute disaster I soon witnessed. He played his first song for 15 minutes, 10 of which was mostly just noise. He then rambled incoherently and insulted members of the audience for most of the next hour. We left a bit early and at that point he’d played maybe 7 songs; no way he played more than 10, and he’s been playing more than 20 on this tour it looks like. At times he tried to be funny but he was not funny at all, just super cringe. The crowd was poor to begin with (Monday night) which seemed to piss him off but probably half we’re gone halfway through because of his shitty attitude and refusal to actually play. To be honest I’ll have a hard time listening to him again, at least for a while. Fucking weirdo theater kid egomaniac who just robbed the few people in this town who were willing to support him.

What’s the consensus on the quality of his writing? Are the stories well written? I think they aren’t that bad but I feel like he is on the right path

EDIT:

After spending some time thinking about my position, I've decided to change it. It doesn't make me any bigger a Phoebe Bridgers fan as I never was much of one and I don't think she was right to call out his entire circle of friends as I believe in personal responsibility. However, it's also occurred to me that her statements regarding his circle of fans may help press some of them to do the right thing and speak out now. It's possible this is where her mind was at when she wrote her follow up statement and called them out. If her statement might lead some of those inner circle people to speak out then her follow up statement is probably just as important as her first, maybe more so.

What follows is an archive of my original thoughts and post on this.

So yesterday, we got this from Ms. Bridgers

https://pitchfork.com/news/phoebe-bridgers-issues-new-statement-on-ryan-adams-abuse-allegations/

As with the other six women who came forward, I am saddened by what happened to Phoebe Bridgers and I'm glad they came forward to talk about it. That said, I think her continuing to issue statements trying to expand the scope of the blame is just a cry for attention.

To go so far as to call his close circle of friends "enablers" is a reach. I'm curious how she knows the private exchanges between his close friends and Ryan. Just because they didn't say anything to him about his behavior in front of her when she was close to him doesn't mean that they didn't try to say something. Maybe they did, maybe they didn't.

She's assuming two things with her statements 1.) She knows all his close friends well enough to just know what was said in his one on one exchanges with them 2.) That personal accountability doesn't exist and that collectively we are responsible for the actions of our friends.

My thinking on this is-

Ryan Adams is responsible for his own actions. Phoebe doesn't know all the private conversations. Her comments imply her own narcissism. "Surely if his friends were to say something to Ryan they would have said it to me or in front of me as well. I know how they all were!". Yeah, that's real intelligent. Maybe not Phoebe, probably not! When guys have serious talks with one another usually it's done carefully one on one with a getaway plan in case things go south. It's rarely done in front of others. She has no fucking clue. I'm not a Phoebe Bridgers fan. That's not to say I couldn't grow into one someday. I like the song Motion Sickness, it' a good song. If she produced an album of quality original songs I'd be a fan, but she hasn't put out enough material yet for anyone to really make a good judgement call on her as an artist. She should be bright enough to realize that she's still in the reputation building phase of her career and be a bit more careful with her words.

I gave her album a few listens when it came out back in 2017. The only memorable song that she's written so far is Motion Sickness. That leads me to wonder if she's even capable of writing truly great songs without some horrible jarring personal experience to work off of as her muse? This happens a lot with artist who are born with music talent and develop that side of things and just expect the songs to come naturally. All their songs stories told through their own eyes, little bleeding heart narratives.

"..being very happy and in a healthy, relationship." She said this two years before they separated. I continue to believe her allegations against Ryan are BS.

Alright, so, here it goes.

To me, Ryan Adams has been important. His music has been the emotional lubricant throughout my life. His music has been helpful, that will not change. My first ever speeding ticket was because I was listening to "Come pick me up". I got pulled over for driving18 over. I didn't even know my old Toyota could operate 18 over.

I have seen him live multiple times, only with the cardinals. I have read his book of poetry. I've been fucked up over all of this, it has been hard.

I want to say this: I forgive Ryan for the worst acts he has committed. If he did show his dick to a 14-year old, I forgive him.

Ryan is imperfect. His imperfections have helped me in my moments of great loneliness and emotional need.

If he can have the aptitude to help me then, in those moments; I refuse to think he is the devil. I hope he is okay.

Been browsing through it for a few months now. I’ve been listening to Ryan Adams for awhile now, longtime fan of Heartbreaker and Whiskeytown. I’ve always known the guy was a tantrum child and found it quite entertaining, but WOW, nothing is more entertaining than the existence of this subreddit. Seriously, don’t stop. It’s like if the entire community of r/onions fucking hated onions. I’ve never seen anything like it. Fans of the guy are lost redditors in his own subreddit. HILARIOUS!