Maroon 5's Ex

Background:

Ryan Dusick is known as the former and original drummer of the Grammy Award winning pop rock band Maroon 5. He left the band in September 2006 due to exhaustion and injuries got during concert tour and was replaced by drummer Matt Flynn. Dusick and three other original members Adam Levine, Jesse Carmichael and Mickey Madden first performed under the name Kara's Flowers in 1995. The band produced an unsuccessful album in 1997 under Reprise Records before going on hiatus. The foursome reunited in 2001, and with the addition of guitarist James Valentine, they became Maroon 5. The band rocketed to fame with their first record, “Songs About Jane” (2002), which has been certified multi platinum in sales in several countries. The album spawned four hit singles with “Harder to Breathe,” “This Love,” “She Will Be Loved” and “Sunday Morning.”

Brentwood School

Childhood and Family:

Ryan Michael Dusick was born on September 19, 1977, in Los Angeles, California. He attended Brentwood School in Los Angeles, where he met and made friends with future bandmates Adam Levine, Jesse Carmichael and Mickey Madden.

Kara's Flowers

Career:

In 1994, Ryan Dusick (drummer) joined forces with friends Adam Levine (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Jesse Carmichael (keyboards, rhythm guitar, backing vocals) and Mickey Madden (bass guitar) to form a garage/grunge band called “Kara's Flowers.” The foursome played their first gig at Whisky a Go Go on September 16, 1995 before eventually scoring a record contact with Reprise Records. Their first studio album, “The Fourth World,” was released on August 19, 1997. However, the band had little success with the album and parted with the record label two years later. The band then went on hiatus and everyone went his separate way.

In 2001, Dusick reunited with Levine, Madden and Carmichael and was joined with guitarist James Valentine (from the L.A. band Square). The band changed their name to Maroon 5. The band scored a new deal with Octone Records and launched “Songs About Jane” on June 25, 2002, ahich became a breakthrough success for the band. The album peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 and became a chart topper in the UK, Australia, France, Ireland and New Zealand. It was certified 4x platinum by the RIAA. The lead single “Harder to Breathe” (2002) peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart, and went gold in both the US and Australia. The follow up “This Love” (2004) made it into the Top 10 in both the Billboard Hot 100 (#5) and the UK Singles Chart (#3) and went platinum in the US. The song later won a 2006 Grammy for Best Pop Performance by A Duo or Group With Vocal. The third single “She Will Be Loved” (2004) reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart, and became the band's platinum single. It reached No. 1 in Australia and remained at the top for five non consecutive weeks. The song was nominated for a 2005 Grammy for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal. The fourth single “Sunday Morning” peaked at No. 31 and No. 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles chart, respectively, and was certified gold by the RIAA. The fifth and final single “Must Get Out” (2005) peaked at No. 39 in the UK.

Maroon 5 was handed a Grammy for Best New Artist in 2005.

Over the years of touring with the band, Dusick had been suffering from the touring life. The stresses of non stop touring provoked an old sports injury. Following several absences from the tour with Ryland Steen and Josh Day taking his place, Dusick officially left Maroon 5 in September 2006. He was replaced by Matt Flynn, the former drummer of Gavin DeGraw and The B-52's.

Awards:

• Grammy: Best Pop Performance by A Duo or Group With Vocal, “This Love,” 2006

• Grammy: Best New Artist, 2005