One of the most popular Irish country singer/songwriters to emerge in his homeland in the 2010s, the County Carlow-born Derek Ryan, is a former member of the mid-2000s boy band D-Side. His five years with that act -- as well as a near-obsession with the music of Bryan Adams -- meant that he added both a pop and a radio rock sensibility to a solo career that drew heavily from the traditional folk and country music on which he was raised. By the time of his 12th studio album, 2021's Soft Ground, Ryan had placed six inside the Irish Top Ten.

Born and raised in the village of Garryhill, in the South-East region of Ireland, Ryan received a toy drum kit at the age of four. In 1992, at nine years old, he won an all-Ireland title in bodhrán drumming, going on to win the same title in ceili drumming at the age of 15. Two years later, upon leaving school, he joined D-Side. The band enjoyed three Top Ten hits in both the U.K. and Ireland -- "Speechless" and "Invisible" in 2003, and the following year's "Real World" -- as well as a number one single in China, 2005's "Sacrifice." However, despite high-profile TV appearances and tours of Europe and Japan, this success with singles never translated into significant album sales and the band fizzled out in 2006.

At the time, Ryan was living in London, and he chose to start a course in accountancy and finance at UCL, while continuing to gig in pubs to make ends meet. While out to dinner on a visit back to Ireland, he witnessed part of a vibrant country concert in an adjoining function room. Inspired by the thought that he could make a success of this path, he sent out a demo of his composition "God's Plan" to numerous country music DJs in Ireland. After the track enjoyed noteworthy airplay, he signed a deal with the County Tyrone label Sharpe Music, which released his debut album, A Mother's Son, in 2010.

Made of Gold followed in 2011, as did Dreamers Believers in 2012, which included the early career highlight "Life Is a River." However, it was with 2013's Country Soul that he enjoyed his first Irish Top Ten album. That same year, Daniel O'Donnell covered "God's Plan" on his silver-selling A Picture of You album, helping to further raise Ryan's profile. Subsequently, 2014's The Simple Things and 2015's One Good Night, both reached number one. Following this success, Ryan traveled to Nashville to record This Is Me: The Nashville Songbook, with the help of the Don Henley collaborator and Grammy-nominated producer Jeff Balding. Over the next couple of years, Happy Man and The Fire both sold well, the latter featuring collaborations with Goitse and his brother, Adrian. Next, 2018's Ten and 2020's The Road to Christmas both hit the lower reaches of the chart, but 2021's Soft Ground brought a commercial resurgence with its Top Ten placing. ~ James Wilkinson, Rovi