Ryder's breakthrough came after he represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with "Space Man". He became the highest scoring UK entrant with 466 points, won the jury vote and came in second place in the contest.[3][4] He became the first British act to win a Marcel Bezençon Award, and scored the UK its best result since 1998 and its first top three result since 2002. It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the highest-charting UK Eurovision entry since 1996. His participation has been credited for helping to change how the British public and press view the contest.[5] It was followed by the release of his debut album There's Nothing but Space, Man! (2022), which debuted atop of the UK Albums Chart.
Ryder was inspired to pursue a career in music after seeing the Canadian rock band Sum 41 in concert when he was 11.[17] Ryder is a "big fan" of Eurovision and cites Finnish rock band Lordi as being the inspiration for him learning how to play guitar, after the rock band won the Eurovision Song Contest 2006.[18][19][20]
Career
2006–2019: Beginnings
Ryder made his debut as a singer and guitarist at age 16 when he co-founded the band The Morning After,[21] with whom he released two studio albums; You Can't Hurt Steel (2009) and Legacy (2011).[22][23] Both albums were released under independent label Rising Records. During the "Legacy" era, manager Josh Keating (aka JK Mizu) challenged Rising Records founder Mark Daghorn over the band's lack of royalty payments. Shortly after, Daghorn abrubtly closed Rising Records and fled to Barbados leaving The Morning After and many other bands in the dark.[24][25]
Following The Morning After split he joined as a guitarist and new lead vocalist for the Canadian Rock band Blessed by a Broken Heart and contributed to their album Feel the Power. He parted ways with the band in 2013, and auditioned to become the new lead vocalist for the American Rock band Close Your Eyes, and contributed to their album Line in the Sand and left in 2014.[26][27][28]
After his departure from Close Your Eyes, Ryder returned to Britain and spent time working in construction with his father, including helping to build the Wembley Stadium.[29] In 2016, Ryder recorded an album with producer Bryan Wilson in Nashville, Tennessee, although it was never released.[30] He later opened up a vegan café with his partner in Coggeshall, England, before its closure in 2019.[29][31] He was a wedding singer in the south-east of England until the COVID-19 pandemic.[32]
2020–2023: TikTok, Eurovision and There's Nothing but Space, Man!
Ryder rose to prominence through TikTok where, starting with the first lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, he began posting his music covers. He caught the attention of musicians such as Elton John, Sia, Justin Bieber and Alicia Keys. By the end of the same year, he was named the most- followed UK artist on the platform.[33] He later signed a record contract with Parlophone. In 2021, he released his debut EP, The Sun's Gonna Rise, which has accumulated over 100 million global streams. It was followed up with a sold-out tour.[34]
Ryder wrote "Space Man" during the pandemic, and in January 2022, the song was sent to TaP Music and the BBC. In the same month, he accepted their offer to represent the country in the contest. On 10 March 2022, he was announced as the UK representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with "Space Man".[35][36] Ryder toured Europe between March and May 2022 to promote his entry.[37] In an interview for Sky News, he spoke about the injury he had sustained in Madrid during his tour after crashing into a metal bar.[38]
On 12 May 2022, the BBC aired a documentary on BBC iPlayer and YouTube which detailed Ryder's journey to Eurovision.[39] At the Eurovision final in Turin, Italy, he finished in second place with 466 points, becoming the highest-scoring UK Eurovision entrant. He won the jury vote and scored the UK its best result since 1998 and its first top three since 2002.[40][41] Ryder also won a Marcel Bezençon Press Award, becoming the first UK act to win a Bezençon Award.[42] After the contest, "Space Man" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the highest-charting UK Eurovision entry since Gina G's "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit" in 1996.[43]
Between October and November 2022, Ryder embarked on his first European tour which spanned 19 dates, beginning in Cologne, Germany on 12 October and concluding in London, United Kingdom on 24 November.[52] He is scheduled to embark on his UK and Ireland tour spanning 14 dates, beginning 17 March 2023 in Belfast and concluding on 5 April 2023 in Brighton. On 13 October 2022, Ryder opened the National Television Awards.[53] "All the Way Over" was released on 4 November 2022, as the next single from his forthcoming debut album.[54]
On 9 December, his debut studio album There's Nothing but Space, Man! was released.[55] The album debuted atop of the UK Albums Chart, making Ryder the first British male solo artist to debut at number one with their first record in over three years, and the first solo artist to debut at number one with their first full-length release since Olivia Rodrigo's Sour (2021).[56] In the same month, Ryder also performed at the Royal Variety Show.[57] On 22 November, Ryder announced a special New Year's Eve show, which aired on BBC One and iPlayer, titled Sam Ryder Rocks New Year's Eve, on 31 December 2022 and 1 January 2023.[58] He was joined by guest musicians, including Melanie C, Sigrid and Justin Hawkins.
In January 2023, Ryder was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2023 Brit Awards, becoming the first Eurovision act to be nominated in this category.[59] In the same month he voiced the character of Brian in Messy Goes to OKIDO, a British television series aired on CBeebies.[60] In February 2023, Ryder performed a cover version of "I'm Good (Blue)" alongside Guetta at the Brit Awards 2023.[61] In March 2023, he released a cover version of "You Got the Love" in partnership with Matalan for its spring brand campaign.[35] In the same month, Ryder's jumpsuit that he wore during his Eurovision performance in 2022 was displayed in Liverpool, ahead of the city hosting the 2023 contest in May.[62] He was also nominated for the Rising Star award at the 2023 Global Awards.[63] In April, Ryder in his first brand collaboration on a TV advert was featured in a TV and social campaign with Vodafone. He was announced as the company's new ambassador.[64]
On 12 May 2023, Ryder released his new single "Mountain" for a global brand campaign with Ottobock, and performed it at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 with some of their disabled performers who joined him on stage.[65][66] It peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart. On 24 May 2023, he released a collaboration with Brian May, called "Fought & Lost" for the drama series Ted Lasso.[67][68] He performed the song with Hannah Waddingham (who was also one of the presenters of the 2023 Eurovision contest) at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles.[69] In July, was nominated for his first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics.
In August, Ryder was announced as a nominee for the MTV Video Music Awards. His song 'All the Way Over' was nominated for Push Performance of the Year category.[70] In September, he had parted ways with his record label of 3 years, Parlophone, following the completion of his one-album deal.[71] In November, Ryder won a Hollywood Music in Media Award for his song "Fought & Lost."[72] That same month he released a brand new single called "You're Christmas to Me" for the Your Christmas or Mine 2 soundtrack and it peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart.[73]
2024–present: Second studio album and independent artist
In January 2024, Ryder announced that he had begun work on his upcoming second studio album. He also released a new single in collaboration with Korean actor and singer Kim Min-seok called "Back in Love". The song topped the Korean chart, Melon Music.[74][75] In January 2025, Ryder was nominated for his second consecutive Brit Award for his song "You're Christmas to Me".[76]
Personal life
Ryder started making music at age 13 and has spent most of his adult life touring, writing, and performing for other bands and once resided in Hawaii. In 2018, he was involved in a surfing accident, which pushed him to put more effort into his music career.[77] He is a vegan and once owned a vegan café in Coggeshall, England.[78] He likes to surf the coast of Great Britain in his free time, meditate, travel, snowboard, drive around race tracks and skate.[79][80]
Ryder is in a long-term relationship with his partner Lois Gaskin-Barber.[32] He cites David Bowie, Elton John, Freddie Mercury, and Queen among his music influences.[16][81] Ryder believes in aliens, and once wanted to pursue a career as an astronaut and claims to have seen a UFO while in Hawaii as a child.[82]
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