Joe Rian grew up in Rock Falls, Illinois — raised by a Tool & Die man and a school bus driver, a steady helping of Kenny Rogers and Hee Haw, and a blue collar upbringing that never quit.
Both parents were gone before he turned twenty-five. He bounced around the country, but ended up back in Chicago in 2006 — on a motorcycle with a bag full of clothes.
Formed The Additives in 2006, met his wife, and released two records — Back In Bridgeport and Should It End. Toured the country behind those records, and when the recession hit, scraped by on odd jobs and gigs.
After a 2009 tour he spent the next few years working on vintage motorcycles, recorded Switchyard Sessions, sold everything in the garage to put it out, and released the record in 2019 to multiple Best of 2019 lists.
He found funding through NFTs in 2021 and 2022 to bankroll the Midwest Boy double EP — which charted at #2 Alternative Country for seven weeks and was named one of the Top 20 Alt Country Records of 2023 by Roots Music Report.
Think Yer In Luv is his new full-length — ten songs about love, road trips, lemonade stands, Friday nights, and the quiet beauty of ordinary life. Out October 2, 2026.