Bay Bryan

Bay Bryan is a Manchester-based singer/songwriter and multidisciplinary artist who originally hails from the Rocky Mountains of Colorado (USA). His/their exquisite songwriting and stunning vocals remind of artists like Jackson C Frank, Anaïs Mitchell and Nick Drake. You may have heard Bay’s track ‘Meadow’ on BBC Radio 2’s The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe. In performance, Bay captivates their audience, drawing from skills as an actor and storyteller.

The Meadow (rel. April 7th 2023), Bay’s debut album, is an alternative/folk-fusion concept album ultimately about the bitter-sweet process of accepting the call to adventure. On April 6th Bay’s band put on a sold out album launch gig at Deaf Institute’s new space The Lodge, with local DJ icon James Holroyd delivering an opening set. It is fair to say that two days before the launch a buzz was created when James Holroyd and Luke Una shared their enthusiasm about Bay’s album. Within just 24hrs of them singing praises Bay’s gig went from 50 tickets sold to sold out. The vinyl subsequently became a staff-pick at Piccadilly Records with a full-window display, is now stocked at Mr. Bongo Shop in Brighton and Bay has since played full band or stripped back sets at The Jazz Café in London, Festival Square at MIF 2023, Night & Day Café in Manchester for Beyond The Music (Oct 2023), Mill Hill Chapel for Live at Leeds (Oct 2023) and HOMOBLOC coming up in November 2023.

Previous to this Bay’s singles from the album received high praise from Indie Top 39, naming “Sticky Shadows” the song of 2021. Folk Radio UK praised Bay’s most recent release “Sweet Joan” writing of it’s “…meticulous and intricate twists that draw the listener back for repeat listens.” You may have also heard Sweet Joan on BBC Radio 3’s “Inside Music” back in October 2022.

“The Not So Ugly Sisters,” a theatre show that Bay co-composed songs for was named in The Guardian as one of the Top 25 shows to book for Christmas 2021. The short film “Egg Party,” with music scored by Bay, won the audience choice awards at both the Coven and Cinequest Film Festivals (2021). Bay’s drag alter-ego Queen Bayard, releases music of her own, returned for the second time to the main stage at Manchester Pride (2023), and is arguable competing for a career of her own; she recently debuted her original cabaret ‘An Evening With Queen Bayard’ at the Edge Theatre in Manchester before taking it down to the iconic venue Crazy Coqs in London.

photo credit: Jay Fisher