Chris Ayer

Hear it Now
Maybe it's from growing up in in McLean Virginia, or maybe he's just a cool guy, but solo guitarist Chris Ayer has a low key vibe that also comes through to his music. For Ayers, growing up outside of D.C. meant having the best of both worlds, the music and culture of the city, combined with the charms of the country, "There was a good amount of open space," he said about his childhood home, "and it felt kind of like we were out the country -- plenty of creeks to get muddy in, and trees to climb."

By the time Ayers was a teenager, he'd been playing music for years. However, the musician took up the guitar relatively recently, at 18-years-old. "I took a month and made it a project to learn guitar and try to write some songs," said Ayer. "Pretty quickly I was writing a lot, and playing open mics and coffeehouses." Yet, it wasn't until until a few years afterward that he decided to make music his career. "I felt like I owed it to myself to work hard at something I was passionate about, so I just went for it. I haven't really looked back, and definitely have never questioned that choice. The more I do it, the more glad I am that I took the plunge."

In between writing music and mastering the guitair, Ayers studied music and philosophy at the presigious Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. At Stanford he sang in an a cappella group called the Mendicants, Stanford's oldest, all-male a cappella group. After graduating, he began his career, releasing a few EPs on his own and in 2006, his full-length album, This is the Place. In 2006, Ayer also won the John Lennon Song Writing contest for his song, "Evaporate."

This year Ayer released his most recent album, Don't Go Back to Sleep with the label, Another Record Company. He's currently on tour and plans to spend some time in New York, where he now resides. "I've been on tour all year, so I'm going to take December to spend some time at home in New York, write a lot, soak in the holiday vibe around here, and maybe record an EP of covers, songs by other artists that I like to play." Ayers said in an email. "Then, starting in January, I'm gonna head out and tour around the states some more and head to the UK for some shows in the early spring."

To learn more about Chris Ayer, watch the exclusive interview below.
—Christa Fletcher

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