Not Just a Musician, Ryan Leslie Does It All

He doesn't have a high school diploma, he has lived in at least a dozen cities and he creates songs on the piano without ever having had a lesson.

A. Ryan Leslie '98 defines "Renaissance man" in the music industry, and he does it without any formal music training. He just has a deep passion for the music he creates.

His demo tape says it all: "written, arranged, produced, performed and engineered by A. Ryan Leslie."

Not only does he write his own music, create the arrangements on a keyboard and perform them himself, Leslie also produces the music of several different singers and groups.

The "North House" resident admits that though he is a government concentrator, his focus as an undergraduate has been on his music, not his classes.

"I miss my classes when I come in here," he says, pointing to the grand piano in the center of the Holmes Common Room in Pforzheimer House and joking that once he sits down at the piano, he won't leave.

Leslie's Harvard music career began when he joined Kuumba as a first-year at age 16. He smiles as he remembers his Harvard debut with the group, when he sang "You Bring Out the Best in Me" for 700 people.

"I can't really describe the experience of feeling the love from the audience," he says.

The summer after his first year, Leslie went on a world tour with the Krokodiloes. He says the experience was incredible because he was able to perform with the Kroks during the day and sing at clubs at night.

Leslie now spends at least 30 hours a week in Quad Sounds, the recording studio in Pforzheimer. He also performs in local clubs and at student events.

But even when he leaves the studio, Leslie continues to listen to music, create new songsin his head and sing whenever he has the chance.

"He sings everywhere," says Mark A. Price '98,Leslie's roommate since sophomore year. "I don'tthink a day goes by without [him] singing tohimself."

Price calls Leslie a "performer," noting thathis roommate can be counted on to entertain undervirtually any circumstance.

Price recalls a recent trip he and Leslie madeto Newbury Street in which they were approached bytwo teenage girls who asked Leslie if he was asinger. When he said he was, the girls asked himto sing. Leslie obliged them on the spot.

"He's definitely not one of those people who'sembarrassed to perform," Price says.

Leslie does not deny his love of performing,saying simply that he loves the feeling itengenders.

"Being in front of an audience just gives me arush," he says.

Leslie adds that music touches people in waysthat mere words never could.

"Music is an experience," he says. "There's noway that you can describe a performance and makesomeone feel the same way as if they wereexperiencing it."

Leslie, who has written between 60 and 100songs, describes his music as a mix of hip-hop andrhythm and blues, but admits to having severalinfluences on his music--namely the music he sangin church when he was growing up and performerslike Stevie Wonder.

"[W]hat I really want to do with my music [is]to be able to touch people, to be able to impactthem, to maybe soothe their souls the way mine wassoothed when I wrote [my first real] song," hesays.

Listen to the Rhythm

As he stands next to his keyboard, Leslieexplains how he creates arrangements for hissongs. He says the arrangements often come fromthe music he hears in his head, or byincorporating the music he hears in other songs.

Choosing the first song he finds on a nearbyCD, Leslie's fingers deftly move across thekeyboard to demonstrate how to replicate thesound.

"You start with the bass line," he explains,fiddling with the keyboard until he finds theexact match.

Within a matter of minutes, Leslie hasreplicated the every note of the song's music andbegins to sing along to the newly createdarrangement.

Leslie's ear for music developed at a young ageand has grown over the years.

Clement A. Leslie says his son has been amusician and performer who sought out rhythm inanything and everything from childhood.

"[When he was about four], I noticed my son goto a Coke machine," he says. "He put his earagainst the box and he listened very intently, andthen he started to snap his fingers and bop hishead to the rhythm of the Coke box."

Ryan Leslie says his musical talent iscompletely self-acquired. He taught himself toplay the piano when he was in the eighth grade andsays he composes his songs by "trial and error."

His father says he and is wife were constantlyamazed at their son's ability to teach himself newthings.

"One evening I heard this kid playing a Chopinpiece he had taught himself," Clement Leslie says."He sort of heard his mother play it from time totime...and he taught himself to do it."

Ryan Leslie attributes this talent to hardwork.

"When you really find your passion, the best isdemanded of you because your heart is pushing youto do it," he says. "Being self-taught has forcedme to really be free in terms of my expression."

But Leslie says one of the biggest hurdles hehad to overcome in devoting himself to music wasnot his lack of formal training, but his father.

Leslie says his father was "disappointed" thatLeslie began to pursue music at Harvard, ratherthan a more traditional career.

Clement Leslie, himself a musician in his freetime, says that when his son told him he wanted tobe a musician, he did not support the decision.

"I basically said the boy's crazy. We neverencouraged it," he says. "To this day we stillhave our doubts about it."

Ryan Leslie says his father took away hiskeyboard when he was a first-year to force him tofocus on his studies on not his music, but Lesliejust took it in stride and kept up with his music.

"[It] forced me to do better on piano," hesays.

But Clement Leslie says that while he and hiswife still have reservations about the careertheir son has chosen, they understand his passion.

"Then again, you have to allow a person tofollow his dreams. And [Ryan] has spent countlesshours, countless hours, instead of studyinggovernment, doing music and making CDs," he says."Tell him you talked to his parents and they'reproud of him."

Ryan Leslie says that his Harvard education hascontributed a great deal to his music and made himwork harder.

"A community of people who are so bright andchallenging and inquisitive about life has made mefeel the same way and has been an inspiration forme in music," he says.

The Music Man

In addition to working on his own music, Lesliehas devoted a great deal of his time to producingthe music of other performers. He helps themcreate demo tapes, often will write songs for themand helps them land gigs and contracts.

"I really like working with others who have asense of who they are as artists," he says.

As a producer, Leslie says he often feels asthough he is helping performers achieve alife-long goal.

"It was sort of like a dream and you made itcome true," he says.

Leslie says he has produced for a variety ofpeople, including an artist he first heard singingat the Harvard Square T-stop.

"Where you see talent you want to work withit," he says.

One of his performers recently took first placeat the Sony Showcase in Providence, Leslie sayswith pride.

Leslie adds, however, that while he enjoysbeing a producer and plans to continue that aftergraduation in New York, he ultimately hopes toswitch to performing full time.

"I love to perform, that's my number onething," he says.

Leslie says his goal is to be on top of theindustry and "to be the hardest working man inentertainment."

That way, he can bring out the best in both hismusic and himself.CrimsonMelissa K. CrockerRYAN LESLIE performs at Eleganza.

"He sings everywhere," says Mark A. Price '98,Leslie's roommate since sophomore year. "I don'tthink a day goes by without [him] singing tohimself."

Price calls Leslie a "performer," noting thathis roommate can be counted on to entertain undervirtually any circumstance.

Price recalls a recent trip he and Leslie madeto Newbury Street in which they were approached bytwo teenage girls who asked Leslie if he was asinger. When he said he was, the girls asked himto sing. Leslie obliged them on the spot.

"He's definitely not one of those people who'sembarrassed to perform," Price says.

Leslie does not deny his love of performing,saying simply that he loves the feeling itengenders.

"Being in front of an audience just gives me arush," he says.

Leslie adds that music touches people in waysthat mere words never could.

"Music is an experience," he says. "There's noway that you can describe a performance and makesomeone feel the same way as if they wereexperiencing it."

Leslie, who has written between 60 and 100songs, describes his music as a mix of hip-hop andrhythm and blues, but admits to having severalinfluences on his music--namely the music he sangin church when he was growing up and performerslike Stevie Wonder.

"[W]hat I really want to do with my music [is]to be able to touch people, to be able to impactthem, to maybe soothe their souls the way mine wassoothed when I wrote [my first real] song," hesays.

Listen to the Rhythm

As he stands next to his keyboard, Leslieexplains how he creates arrangements for hissongs. He says the arrangements often come fromthe music he hears in his head, or byincorporating the music he hears in other songs.

Choosing the first song he finds on a nearbyCD, Leslie's fingers deftly move across thekeyboard to demonstrate how to replicate thesound.

"You start with the bass line," he explains,fiddling with the keyboard until he finds theexact match.

Within a matter of minutes, Leslie hasreplicated the every note of the song's music andbegins to sing along to the newly createdarrangement.

Leslie's ear for music developed at a young ageand has grown over the years.

Clement A. Leslie says his son has been amusician and performer who sought out rhythm inanything and everything from childhood.

"[When he was about four], I noticed my son goto a Coke machine," he says. "He put his earagainst the box and he listened very intently, andthen he started to snap his fingers and bop hishead to the rhythm of the Coke box."

Ryan Leslie says his musical talent iscompletely self-acquired. He taught himself toplay the piano when he was in the eighth grade andsays he composes his songs by "trial and error."

His father says he and is wife were constantlyamazed at their son's ability to teach himself newthings.

"One evening I heard this kid playing a Chopinpiece he had taught himself," Clement Leslie says."He sort of heard his mother play it from time totime...and he taught himself to do it."

Ryan Leslie attributes this talent to hardwork.

"When you really find your passion, the best isdemanded of you because your heart is pushing youto do it," he says. "Being self-taught has forcedme to really be free in terms of my expression."

But Leslie says one of the biggest hurdles hehad to overcome in devoting himself to music wasnot his lack of formal training, but his father.

Leslie says his father was "disappointed" thatLeslie began to pursue music at Harvard, ratherthan a more traditional career.

Clement Leslie, himself a musician in his freetime, says that when his son told him he wanted tobe a musician, he did not support the decision.

"I basically said the boy's crazy. We neverencouraged it," he says. "To this day we stillhave our doubts about it."

Ryan Leslie says his father took away hiskeyboard when he was a first-year to force him tofocus on his studies on not his music, but Lesliejust took it in stride and kept up with his music.

"[It] forced me to do better on piano," hesays.

But Clement Leslie says that while he and hiswife still have reservations about the careertheir son has chosen, they understand his passion.

"Then again, you have to allow a person tofollow his dreams. And [Ryan] has spent countlesshours, countless hours, instead of studyinggovernment, doing music and making CDs," he says."Tell him you talked to his parents and they'reproud of him."

Ryan Leslie says that his Harvard education hascontributed a great deal to his music and made himwork harder.

"A community of people who are so bright andchallenging and inquisitive about life has made mefeel the same way and has been an inspiration forme in music," he says.

The Music Man

In addition to working on his own music, Lesliehas devoted a great deal of his time to producingthe music of other performers. He helps themcreate demo tapes, often will write songs for themand helps them land gigs and contracts.

"I really like working with others who have asense of who they are as artists," he says.

As a producer, Leslie says he often feels asthough he is helping performers achieve alife-long goal.

"It was sort of like a dream and you made itcome true," he says.

Leslie says he has produced for a variety ofpeople, including an artist he first heard singingat the Harvard Square T-stop.

"Where you see talent you want to work withit," he says.

One of his performers recently took first placeat the Sony Showcase in Providence, Leslie sayswith pride.

Leslie adds, however, that while he enjoysbeing a producer and plans to continue that aftergraduation in New York, he ultimately hopes toswitch to performing full time.

"I love to perform, that's my number onething," he says.

Leslie says his goal is to be on top of theindustry and "to be the hardest working man inentertainment."

That way, he can bring out the best in both hismusic and himself.CrimsonMelissa K. CrockerRYAN LESLIE performs at Eleganza.