Meet Catch Me If You Can: The MIC Mag's April 2026 Musician of the Month!
- Stefani M.C. Janelli
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Meet Catch Me If You Can:
Catch Me If You Can is the acoustic solo project of Ryan Hanratty, a storyteller at heart whose music has been a fixture of the Long Island, NYC, and New Jersey music scenes since 2012. Drawing inspiration from Frank Turner, Against Me!, and Third Eye Blind, Ryan crafts narrative-driven songs with an earnest, melodic edge rooted in a deep love of film and heartfelt songwriting. Over the years, CMIYC has graced the stages of celebrated venues including Wonder Bar, Debonair Music Hall, The Court Tavern, The Founders' Room at The Paramount, and beyond.
Now, Ryan continues to build on that legacy with his latest single, "Me Vs. The Lack of Context," released just last month.
This month, The MIC Mag is celebrating Catch Me If You Can as our Musician of the Month!
Genre: Alternative / Acoustic Punk
Fun Facts:
"- I love seeking out venues to play, even if it's just for an open mic.
- I walk everywhere, no idea why. I have walked most of Manhattan in one day.
- I have a very weird but entertaining dog named Teddy.
- I very much want to make CMIYC a full band experience.
- A lot of my songwriting ideas come from potential screenplay ideas I either wrote or scrapped.
- I try to leave a footprint in as many music scenes as I can because that's how you find new great music, and is the best way to network even today."
What makes Catch Me If You Can stand out?
"I try to focus on the storytelling aspect of my but also place a lot of effort into my singing ability. I think that's the part of my act that is the most memorable, at least in a live performance context."
What is Catch Me If You Can most known for?
"Probably my vocals, and occasionally my songwriting. Would like for it to be both simultaneously. Lol!"
What has Catch Me If You Can been working on?
"I am promoting CMIYC's first new release since 2022, and it is called, "Me Vs. The Lack of Context." The inspiration behind the song is inspired by the endless list of struggles millennials and gen-z deal with in their late 20s - early 30s.
I know for many that can induce a bit of an eye roll, but nowadays, especially, the world has provided us with a weird mix of feelings.
"Young" adults in today's society have had every possibility and expectation thrown at us, and I'm sure there are more to come.
Not necessarily all of that being bad, but it has forced a focus away from the future to solely the moments directly in front of us.
This next paycheck, this next bill, this next work day. The ideas of retirement, or extended vacations, owning a home, they're almost laughable.
So we cherish the right now, even if that means taking whole days to do absolutely nothing and get lost in nostalgia. Dopamine hits have become the most valuable currency.
All that said, I didn't want the song to be a bummer. I have so many angry, sad, and outright political songs already, and I wanted to try to
find a sound that portrayed the aforementioned ideas but also captured that "live in the moment" mood. It seems in that attempt, I... almost, accidentally, created a ska song.
The song was produced, mixed, and mastered in 2025 by my friend, John Baldassano.
He also provided bass and some backing vocals on the track.
I was fortunate to work with Nico Lembo, who plays drums on the recording, as well as Mike Snow, who provided horns and brass.
"It's a terrible idea but if you love it, you love it and nothing is going to stop you from playing. You can try, but you'll always find your way back to it in some way. " - Ryan Hanratty
Do you have any advice for other aspiring independent musicians?:
"'Mess around. Get creative. People want genuine creations today because everything feels so fake or curated.
It took me a long time to wrap my head around this. Why wouldn't you want perfect?
Well, perfect is kind of boring, it turns out. Do things well, but make it yours.
Your fingerprint is unique; make sure people know it. "