Ricky Rebel Revisited

Once again I was blessed with the opportunity to have a conversation with the handsome, talented and enchanting recording artist, songwriter and dancer Ricky Rebel. Discovered by Michael Jackson, signed to Madonna’s record label and having toured with Britney Spears, Ricky’s career originated as the lead singer in the group “No Authority.”

Having emerged from the boy band era, Ricky has gone on to release several solo albums, including “The Blue Album” from which the single “Stars” is about to be remixed by world renowned DJ Hector Fonseca.

Still a humble, positive and captivating soul, Ricky as always “rebels the darkness and shines the light.”

A lot is happening for you right now. Tell us about what’s going on.
It’s so incredible. A good friend of mine named Leo Leaux approached me and said, “I really wanna help you put a nice single package out and introduce you to my friend Hector Fonseca.” He ended up sharing “Star,” an a cappella of “Star,” to Hector, and he apparently loved it. He was like, “I wanna work with you, I wanna work with Ricky.” He also heard another a cappella song and wants to release at least two singles on his label called “Audio 4 Play.” So, there you go. He’s right now working on it. He’s gonna do two versions of my song. One kind of like a circuit party club mix and the other a club mix, more for radio.

Congratulations! How amazing.
I can feel it, right. He’s a worl-renowned DJ who’s done shows in London to Spain to South America. He has DJs around the world that follow him and respect what he does. In a few weeks he’ll be putting out the song featuring the new recording artist Ricky Rebel. Then we’re going to be focusing on doing club dates.

Who is your favorite band?
My favorite band, OMG, that’s such a good question. Always the same thing. I’m very committed to my core band, Depeche Mode. I’ll always love Depeche Mode. It’s my favorite band of all time. I’m very loyal. I’m a big Nine Inch Nails fan as well. I went to their concert recently, and they blew my mind. The show itself was spectacular: all their lights, very complex. I definitely want to incorporate that in my show. Those two are pretty much my favorite bands.

I know that you have a very specific type of music that you gravitate to.
True, that’s very true.

So are you writing anything new, any new music?
Yes, there is. I am currently working on a new record. It’s very hush hush.

Can I print what you’re telling me?
Yes. I’m constantly writing, and I’m working with some new producers, and I plan on collaborating with some of these new DJs I’ve been working with. They tend to like my style of writing. It’s a throw back to awesomeness of the ‘80s. It’s a throwback to new wave. I’m a big fan of new wave. We’re kind of taking the new wave sound and making it more modern, having the low voice of the male singer. That’s what I do, that’s what I like. I’m into redefining what the new man is, the new “alpha.” The new alpha is a man who is a balanced man. He’s not overly masculine, and he’s not overly feminine. He’s a combination of all of them. He confidently walks down the street wearing a dress but is still completely masculine at the same time.

I want one of those.
Consequently, I’ve written a song about it. What the name of the title is, I’m not really sure. It’s just creating the possibility of a man who is truly successful and who doesn’t really live by the same boundaries that we try to put people in. It’s really breaking down the boundaries.

Photo by Lisa Reilly