Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrian Lyles.
Hi Adrian, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started playing piano when I was three years old. Music has always been a comfort to me, even before I even decided that this was something I wanted to do professionally. When I turned 13, I began playing gigs all around Texas, Colorado and Atlanta. I played at venues like The Rustic, The House of Blues, the Women’s National Football Conference inaugural super-bowl halftime show, Lava Cantina, festivals and more.
I was gigging about three to four times a week. The experience of all that live gigging built my confidence and comfort in the music that I create and perform. After a while, I began auditioning for movies and shows, doing self-tapes and such. I was gigging and self-taping while going to Booker T. Washington High School of Performing and Visual Arts, and I could feel it all piling up. I was about to quit acting and go back to only focusing on music and was convinced by my agency to do one more audition and that audition was High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. With such an iconic music-focused show, I was happy that I did that last audition. Now, after having the incredible opportunity of being casted on HSMTMTS and filming Season 3 and 4, I am diving deep into music. I’ve been working on original music, doing studio sessions with some incredible people and now have the chance to do what I’ve always wanted to do.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I feel a journey like this will never be completely smooth sailing. It’s such a high-risk, low-reward lifestyle at first. Low reward meaning receiving appreciation for your art from others. The love for music is always what keeps me going. There is joy and freedom that the craft brings me, and it allows me to share how I feel through the song story. Getting others to listen and actually want to follow and support is the number one hardship I feel that most artists have to deal with. That was definitely the hardest part for me, which I’m very grateful to the HSMTMTS show for helping me build my platform for my music.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a singer-songwriter/ actor. I am most known for my role as “Jet” in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. I was nominated for a Hollywood Music Media Award in 2022 along with the songwriters William Behlendorf, Jason Mater and Brandon C. Rogers for the HSMTMTS song “Right Place.” I hope to soon be known for my own original music that I’ve been working on. I like to believe that the way I like to tell stories in my writings and the way I sing is very different. I strive to create music I’ve never heard before and create art no one has ever seen before.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I’ve always been a city person. I love walking and people-watching, so having everything within walking distance is absolutely perfect for me. I really don’t have any negatives about living here. I love it. When I lived in Dallas my family and I volunteered with homeless shelters. In elementary school, I made Christmas cards for the homeless because the organization said I was too small to do anything else, and I remember making a mess with all the glitter I used to make the cards. Like a lot of other cities nationwide, the homeless situation is heartbreaking and a reminder for everyone to think of how we can be a part of the solution even if it’s in the smallest way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://alylesofficial.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adrianlyles_/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ALylesOfficial/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/itsadrianlyles
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@adrian.lyles
Image Credits
Cathryn Farnsworth Photography
