Bear Ryan + The Delta Snakes
Swamp N Roll. Clarksdale, Mississippi
Music.
BIO.
Bear Ryan, a Texan born and bred, draws her musical inspiration from the rich tapestry of Texas country and Delta blues that once filled her ears during her formative years. Today, she channels this influence into her distinctive brand of low-fence music as both a gifted singer and a compelling songwriter.
Her musical expression has been described as an unadulterated and immersive journey, evoking the raw, soulful essence of the swampy South. In a genre predominantly dominated by male voices, Bear Ryan stands as a unique and powerful female presence, challenging conventions and enriching the musical landscape.
Bear’s performances are captivating narratives, weaving stories through her lyrics and hypnotic riffs. With an engaging stage presence that draws audiences into her world, she leaves an indelible mark on every listener. Bear's music transcends boundaries, seamlessly blending elements of Folk, Country, Americana, Blues and Rock 'n' Roll, making her a magnet for a diverse range of music enthusiasts.
Join her on her musical voyage, where the roots of Delta music meet the frontier of modern storytelling, and let her hypnotize you into joining her in the weird and wild cosmic world that she calls home. Bear performs as a solo artist, duo, and with a full band.
DUO.
In 2023, Bear formed a duo with her partner, Ryan Robertson.
He’s a long, tall Texan. A guitar-maker and player. If Bear’s lyrics are the call, Robertson’s riffs are the response. Together they form a unique duo of distortion and grit, in service of the song.
Robertson came up in the south central Texas heat, raising plants and training horses and dogs. The cowboy hat keeps the sun off, it’s not just a silly prop.
He learned to play guitar at a young age, banging around the fret board and America’s highways as he and his buddies drifted from town to town. Drawn to the likes of Johnny Guitar Watson, Robertson developed a minimalist style that is all groove and no fluff.
When he is not performing on stage, Robertson is building custom instruments at his workshop in Clarskdale, Mississippi. He builds all of the guitars played by Bear Ryan and you can learn more at Delta Avenue Guitars .com
THE DELTA SNAKES.
In 2025, the duo of Bear Ryan + Ryan Robertson added two more band members to create a 4-piece band, The Delta Snakes.
Guitar Frenchie, hailing from Lyon, France and now living in Lyon, Mississippi weaves intricate leads into Bear’s drone-style rhythm guitar. Frenchie is a world-renowned guitarist who established himself in the L.A., Austin, and Nashville music scenes - playing with the likes of Shooter Jennings and Jack Ingram. Waylon Jennings, himself, wrote a letter on Frenchie’s behalf when applying for his US citizenship! He maintains a large following on social media and Youtube with his guitar videos. Frenchie settled just outside of Clarksdale, Ms in 2023 and now performs as a solo artist as well as being a member of The Delta Snakes.
A rotating cast of drummers keep the heartbeat for ‘the snakes.
The project is a swampy, kitchen-sink amalgamation of rock n roll, roots, country, and blues - each musician bringing their own, unique personality and stylistic brand. This ain’t your standard I, V, VI blues cover band. The Delta Snakes play originals ranging from high intensity, driving rock-n-rollers to slower, groove-heavy crawling-king-snake type tunes.
Video.
Official Music Video - “Irene” by Bear Ryan
Guitar Frenchie on Youtube. Lead guitarist for The Delta Snakes
Official Music Video - “Dead Man’s Shoes” by Bear Ryan
Live Rehearsal of The Delta Snakes @ Hambone Gallery Bar 2025 featuring Guitar Frenchie, BE on drums, and Ryan Robertson
Upcoming Shows
SEPT
Weds Sept 9, 2026 - Ooze Bar - Clarksdale, Ms - 8pm - SOLO
Sun Sept 13, 2026 - Hambone - Clarksdale, Ms - 1pm
OCT
Fri Oct 2 + Sat Oct 3, 2026 - Marathon Blues & Brews Festival @ The Gage Hotel - Marathon, Tx - TICKETS
** Tickets are included when booking a room. For General Admission or VIP Tickets without booking a room, please call the Gage Hotel at 432-386-4205
Sat Oct 17, 2026 - Tiny Barbershop Show - Clarksdale, Ms - TBA
Oct 30 - 31, 2026 - Hambone Fest - Clarksdale, Ms - TBA
Press.
January 2026 - Bear is awarded 2nd Place in the New Orleans International Cigar Box Guitar Video Play-Offs.
March 2026 - Bear’s album, “Low and Slow” gets a glowing review on PhillyCheezBlues. Read Here
July 2026 - Bear’s album, “Low and Slow” gets another great review in Living Blues Magazine. Read below.
Bear Ryan & The Delta Snakes
Low and Slow
(Hard No Records)
“When the preacher baptized me, he must’ve used muddy water,” Karen “Bear” Ryan sings in Snake Handler’s Daughter from her auspicious debut disc. That murky fluid might explain why the Texan turned Clarksdale transplant comes across like the pink-haired stepchild of Bobbie Gentry and John Lee Hooker on the eight original songs that comprise Low and Slow.
As the album title implies, things don’t happen fast in the world of Bear Ryan & the Delta Snakes. The songs simmer and ooze out of the speakers and reveal themselves in their own time. Oh, and they rock hard when they need to.
Ryan accompanies herself on cigar box guitars (built by her partner in life and musical crime, Ryan Robertson, himself a Delta Snake) and is backed by a coterie of North Mississippi badasses, including her Clarksdale neighbor Charlie Musselwhite, whose lowdown harp shines on two numbers here, and A.J. Haynes of the Seratones, who provides backing vocals on the opener, Woman.
But it’s in her songwriting and delivery that Ryan shines. Her voice, at times reminiscent of a wide swath of great singers (including the aforementioned Gentry, Jessie Mae Hemphill, or Patti Smith), carries plaintive, yet buoyant, melodies over deep hypnotic one-chord grooves, providing the perfect bed for her observational lyrics full of oddball characters and southern storytelling that bring both Sonny Boy Williamson and Flannery O’Connor to mind.
The protagonist of I Am the Weather is “as mean as she can be, drinking red wine, codeine, gonna bring the world to its knees.” The narrator of Mississippi Mornings lives “down in the buckle of the Bible Belt,” has a “chicken drunk dog” and “nothing to lose but a monkey on my back.” The Snake Handler’s Daughter’s sister bakes cakes, while the singer gets paid “for the way I shake.” Bear’s fictional Bad Old Man is revenge-fueled, knows where to hide the bodies, and “won’t need his gun, son, he’s gonna do it for fun,” all while Musselwhite’s reverb- and distortion-drenched harmonica blows bad juju tones in the background.
Recorded by Starlin Browning in Water Valley, Mississippi, at Drive-By Trucker Matt Patton’s Dial Back Sound, Low and Slow feels murky like a hot summer Delta dusk, but that effect never overtakes the music, which cuts through the humidity like a knife. The playing is top-notch across the board, and psychedelic production touches such as electric sitar on Snake Handler’s Daughter only serve to enhance the mysterious vibe of Low and Slow.
Despite its nods to Americana, rock ’n’ roll, and country, Low and Slow is steeped in the blues, marrying the Hill Country and Delta varieties into a cohesive sound that is very much its own thang.
And what a thang it is. Dig it deep.
—Tim Lee
Let’s Work Together
Contact Info
Bear Ryan
bearsongsmgmt@gmail.com
