George Ryan Ross III (b. August 30, 1986, Summerlin, Nevada) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter most known for his work as the lead guitarist, lyricist, and backup vocalist for Panic! at the Disco, before his departure from the band in 2009. Ross and former Panic bassist Jon Walker are the founding members of the band The Young Veins.
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Panic! at the Disco (known as Panic at the Disco between 2008 and 2009) is a Grammy-nominated rock band formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2004. The band currently comprises vocalist and guitarist Brendon Urie and drummer Spencer Smith. In July 2009, guitarist Ryan Ross and bassist Jon Walker left the band, citing creative differences as the reason for their depature.
Panic! at the Disco's debut album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, reached number 13 on the United States Billboard 200 and has sold over 2.2 million copies worldwide since its September 2005 release.
The band's second album, Pretty. Odd., was released on March 25, 2008 and debuted at number 2 in the US.
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A Fever You Can't Sweat Out is the debut album by rock band Panic! at the Disco, released on September 27, 2005 by Fueled by Ramen. It is the only album to feature Brent Wilson on bass.
The album primarily deals with social issues that the band points on through various songs.
Topics such as sanctity of marriage, adultery, alcoholism, prostitution, and religions are woven throughout the album. Guitarist Ryan Ross also relates two of the songs to living with an alcoholic father. The album has sold over 1.6 million copies in the US and 2.2 million worldwide.
25,000 collector's editions of the album were released November 14, 2006 containing photographs, lyric cards, a DVD of a concert, and many items reminiscent of vaudevillian shows.
The collection shipped in a faux velvet-lined box with a purposefully aged appearance. Because of the limited release, second-hand versions are selling for much higher than retail.
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I Write Sins Not Tragedies,
by Ryan Ross, is the second single from Panic! at the Disco's A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. It was released on April 27, 2006 on both compact disc and 7-inch vinyl. The song reached #7 on the United States Billboard Hot 100. It has been the band's only top-40 hit in America.
Many U.S. radio stations, in response to the language found in the song, wanted an edited version. The lyrics "The poor groom's bride is a whore" and "Haven't you people ever heard of closing the goddamn door?" were changed by replacing "whore" with a "shhh" sound and removing "god" in "goddamn". Some stations -- generally modern rock stations -- still play the original version.
The title of the song refers to Douglas Coupland's novel Shampoo Planet, wherein the main character, Tyler Johnson, says: "I am writing a list of tragic character flaws on my dollar bills with a felt pen. I am thinking of the people in my universe and distilling for each of these people the one flaw in their character that will be their downfall--the flaw that will be their undoing. What I write are not sins; I write tragedies."
It can also be noted that the song does not feature any lyrical content related to the title of the song though the title can be applied to the music video.
I Write Sins Not Tragedies is Panic! at the Disco's first single to have a music video (The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage was the first single, but no video was filmed) The video for the song takes place at a strange, circus-themed wedding played by "Lucent Dossier Vaudeville Cirque."
The video starts as the bride, played by Jessie Preston, and groom, Daniel Isaac, are about to be married. Her family dress and behave formally. His family are lower-class entertainers and carnival folk, and interrupt the wedding. The ringmaster, played by Brendon Urie, acts as narrator and disrupts the events. After an argument between the two families, the bride runs out and is followed by one of her guests. The ringmaster leads the groom outside, where his fiancée and the guest who pursued her are kissing. The groom undoes his tie, looking shocked, and Urie and the groom bow to the camera. The ringmaster is revealed to be the groom's alter ego.
The music video by director Shane Drake won Video of the Year during the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.
According to vocalist Brendon Urie, he and guitarist Ryan Ross suffered from the flu while filming the video clip.