Lee Ryan was born June 17, 1983 in Chatham, Kent. Ryan is a successful singer-songwriter, actor, and former member of the British boy band Blue, who now works as a solo artist. Ryan attended performing arts schools growing up, and released his first album with Blue in 2001.
Blue went on to release two more popular studio albums and a Best Of compilation album. The group collaborated with Elton John on their single “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word.” They had become one of the best selling acts in the UK and around the world by this point, having won awards including Best Newcomer at the BRIT Awards in 2002, Best UK Band and Best Live Act at the Smash Hits Awards in 2002, and Best Single, Best Newcomer and Best Pop Act at the Capital FM Awards. Blue was also intensely popular in Asia, where MTV Japan voted their “One Love” video Best Pop Video abd MTV Asia awarded them the title Best International Group. The band sold over 5 million albums and 3 million singles across the world before splitting up in 2005 to pursue solo careers.
Lee released his first solo single, “Army of Lovers, in July of 2005, and his debut self-titled solo album in August of that year. The album went to #6 on the UK charts and spent 5 weeks in the top ten.
Ryan has since seen his world open up to a variety of projects. He has modeled for Dolce and Gabbana and finished a film director's course at the Tisch School of the Arts in New York. Ryan now has his own production company. He has also made appearances on the UK shows Hell’s Kitchen and Come Dine With Me. One of his songs was also featured in the animated film Ice Age 2: The Meltdown.