Gyan Riley won his first guitar in a raffle at age 12, and he never put it down. After landing a scholarship at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, his classical guitar journey led him to composition. In addition to eight original, NYT-acclaimed albums, he’s since written music for the Kronos Quartet, New Music USA, the Carnegie Hall Corporation, and more.
Outside the studio, he’s shared the stage with artists like Lou Reed, Julian Lage, Sonic Youth’s Lee Ranaldo, and Glenn Kotche of Wilco. At Saturday Night Live’s 50th Anniversary show, Riley played alongside Sabrina Carpenter and Paul Simon, who he joined on Simon’s 2025 US Tour: A Quiet Celebration.
