581: Bryan Ruby – Breaking the molds of Baseball and Country Music - a podcast by Rick Clemons - Bold Move Expert & Coming Out Coach
from 2023-07-26T03:30
Baseball and a love for country music. That's about as heteronormative as... Wait that would be generalizing and putting someone in a box, which is not we want in the LGBTQ+ community. So why would you think a major league baseball player, and country singer doesn't really fit the gay box. Because that is making an assumption of what it means to be gay.
Breaking the molds is professional baseball player and rising country music artist Bryan Ruby who has a message about assumptions and boxes you get put in as a gay man, and who aspires to inspire others to be themselves, regardless of the box people try to put you in.
About Bryan
Bryan Ruby is a trailblazing professional baseball player and rising country music artist based in Nashville, Tennessee. In September of 2021 he became the only active professional baseball player to come out as gay, and his story was featured in USA Today as well as 100+ media outlets around the world including CBS, Yahoo, Bleacher Report and Teen Vogue.
As a songwriter, Bryan has penned songs that have appeared on the Texas Country Top 50 chart and the iTunes Country Top 25 (#16), and songs he has written have been featured on both Huffington Post and People Magazine. As an artist, he won season 7 of the talent-search competition Nashville Rising Song, and is preparing for the release of his debut EP in 2023.
Also in 2023, Bryan will be the subject of a feature-length documentary directed by award winning filmmaker Clay Westervelt (Life In The Doghouse, Miss You Can Do It), which will focus on his underdog path through the traditionalist worlds of baseball and country music. It will also chronicle the founding of his first-of-its kind charity, Proud To Be In Baseball, which supports and encourages LGBTQ youth in the sport.
A native of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Bryan grew up “country,” splitting his time between the baseball field, his family’s barbecue restaurant and the local country radio station (92.5 WXTU), where he worked as an intern. He then took his two loves to Vassar College where he studied on a vocal music scholarship and captained the baseball team to First Team All-Conference honors.
In college, Ruby won a $5,000 songwriting prize and caught the attention of NYC-based producer and sound engineer Chris Connors (John Legend, Kanye West, NEED2BREATHE). The two collaborated on several projects including commercial music for the New England Sports Network.
Bryan relocated to Nashville in 2019, and in-between baseball seasons, has developed an impressive network of co-writers and collaborators. To date he has 12+ professional cuts and has performed the National Anthem at several major events, including for the LA Dodgers. He has worked with several major influencers in support of the Sports Equality Foundation and is becoming a respected voice in the baseball, country music, and LGBTQ+ communities.
More than anything, Bryan hopes to write music that “speaks to kids who feel like he did at 14,” when his love for baseball and country music seemed at odds with the secrets he kept hidden away. “Baseball and country music are woven into the fabric of America; I just want to make sure that anyone who loves them like I do feels safe and welcome there.”
Connect With Bryan
Website
Further episodes of Life (UN)Closeted: LGBTQ+ Coming Out Stories & Advice for living out and proud!
Further podcasts by Rick Clemons - Bold Move Expert & Coming Out Coach
Website of Rick Clemons - Bold Move Expert & Coming Out Coach