Indie Pop Star Phoebe Ryan on How to Rock Low-Maintenance Mermaid Hair on Tour
Singer-songwriter Phoebe Ryan, who just signed with Columbia Records. (Photo: Jeaneen Lund)
“I’m a grown ass woman. I like to sing about things I talk about,” 24-year-old pop singer-songwriter Phoebe Ryan tells Yahoo Beauty. She’s going on tour with twin sister duo Say Lou Lou this autumn, and it’s shaping up to be a formidable show of girl power. Ryan, with her mermaid green hair and smoky eye makeup, went viral in March 2015 for her cover-slash-mash-up of R. Kelly’s “Ignition (Remix)” and Miguel’s “Do You…” — an ambitious R&B cocktail that intoxicated the Internet and music industry, getting her signed to Columbia Records in June 2015. Her EP, “Mine,” came out that same month, and she is currently working on her full-length debut album. Ryan graduated from New York University’s Clive Institute of Recorded Music with a BFA in 2013, but even before she received her formal degree, she was gearing up for center stage with big makeup and a bigger voice.
Singer-songwriter Phoebe Ryan started coloring her hair about two years ago. (Photo: Jeaneen Lund)
“I had always been fascinated with makeup because my mom had these amazing products that smelled so good. I remember watching her apply her makeup in the mirror and she always looked so glamorous.” Ryan says. “Sometimes, she’d let me go through her stuff and put makeup on. You know, you go through phases at 16 when you look like a clown, and then when I’m onstage, with my background in theater, I was taught to fake eyelashes and draw on cleavage!” The New Jersey native attended a performance arts high school where she focused on Shakespeare and drama, but once she arrived at NYU, she started performing during weekends as a member of various bands, including a rock ‘n’ roll band and a folk band. “I played guitar, omnichord, and bass. I also sang and wrote songs. I was a multi-dimentionalist at everything.”
Singer-songwriter Phoebe Ryan uses Goldwell Elumen to color her ombré hair. (Photo: Jeaneen Lund)
“I consider myself to be a pop artist but I walk the line between pop and indie,” she says. “I think Dolly Parton is one of the most badass women ever existed. I love pop stars like Britney [Spears] and J.Lo. Also, Loretta Lynne and Tammy Wynette.” Ryan’s already performed with one of her female musician idols: in March 2015, she opened for Tove Lo at the Highline Ballroom in New York City.
With her unconventional hair and makeup, Ryan knew that she couldn’t get a corporate job after college graduation. “I’m a middle child, so I’m always trying to seek approval,” she says. “I just needed something that was weird, and this is the weirdest job I could think of.” Two years ago as a student, she walked into New York’s Mudhoney Hair Salon on Sullivan Street and asked to bleach her hair. “I was rocking lime green sea monster hair, which was rough for a while,” she says. Now, she’s veered towards an ombré Goldwell Elumen green dye job with the help of her stylist at the Vanity Vault in Los Angeles. “It spares me from having to fix it, especially on the road, I didn’t want to worry about my roots showing,” says Ryan. The Elumen formula doesn’t require a bleach job and adheres to her dark brown hair, making it even easier to maintain. “I’m super messy and I wish I had a Tide To Go Pen for everything,” she admits. “I’m a little all over the place right now — and that’s exactly where I want to be.”
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