Ryan Shuck

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Ryan Shuck is an American musician and entrepreneur who co-founded the electronic rock bands Orgy and Julien-K. He also played guitar and sang backing vocals for Dead by Sunrise, Chester Bennington’s side project, and he led Adema as their lead singer from 2019 until 2024.

Shuck grew up in Taft, California, and was drawn to art as a child, selling paintings at local shows. He discovered the guitar at 16 and soon began mixing guitars with keyboards and electronic sounds, inspired by artists from Depeche Mode to Metallica. At 18, he moved to Bakersfield to study cosmetology and met Jonathan Davis, with whom he started the band Sexart. Sexart included Davis and, after some changes, Shuck. Davis left in 1993 to join Korn, and Shuck soon formed Orgy with Jay Gordon and Amir Derakh.

Orgy became famous for blending glam, goth, and synth-rock, earning big MTV exposure, platinum records, and spots on several movie soundtracks. But Shuck and Derakh wanted a more experimental electronic direction, so they started Julien-K. The project delivered two albums, Death To Analog (2009) and We’re Here With You (2012). Julien-K produced tracks for video games like Sonic Heroes and Shadow the Hedgehog, contributed to movie soundtracks such as Transformers, and worked with Chester Bennington on the Dead by Sunrise project. The band also toured the United States and Europe with major acts.

In addition to Orgy and Julien-K, Shuck joined Dead by Sunrise and later became the lead singer of Adema in 2019. Adema announced in February 2024 that they would continue as a four-piece after Shuck’s departure.

Shuck has several endorsements and a distinctive look: he has a signature 7-string guitar model with Yamaha and, with Julien-K, is endorsed by Orange Amps and König & Meyer stands. He is known for his strong emphasis on visuals, fashion, and stage design as part of Julien-K’s identity.

Beyond music, Shuck is an entrepreneur who runs four restaurants in Orange County—The Gypsy Den in Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, and Anaheim, and Lola Gaspar in Santa Ana—and operates a recording studio in Long Beach. He has also pursued fashion and other business ventures, blending his love of music with design and entrepreneurship.