Rick DePiro
Encyclopedia
Rick DePiro, who is known by his stage name
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...

 Ricky Dee, is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 singer-songwriter, notable and award winning jazz pianist, and popular/ jazz organist, and a music producer who has recorded and produced over twenty-five albums. DePiro is also the co-founder of JaRic Records and Entertainment, a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 based independent record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...

 and multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...

 company that is located, as well, in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

.

DePiro is the son of a steel executive (and hall of fame softball pitcher) father, Louis, and Jazz vocalist mother, Joan, (whose uncle, Vincent Nola, founded and owned Nola Studios in New York City and recorded such luminaries as Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...

, Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...

, Jack Jones
Jack Jones (singer)
John Allan "Jack" Jones is an American jazz and pop singer. He was one of the most popular vocalists of the 1960s.-Overview:...

 and Sammy Davis Jr), and sibling to two younger sisters Deanna, a computer sales executive and Jacki, a well known Jazz vocalist. He is currently a partner at JaRic Records and Entertainment. Throughout his career, DePiro has distinguished himself in a variety of positions in the music industry as an award winning National Artist for Matsushita/MCA-Universal with Technics
Technics (brand)
1960s:*SX-601 Electronic Organ — an origin of Technics SX keyboard series, the result of cooperative works of National Electronic Organ Company and Ace Tone...

 Musical Instruments, Roland Corporation
Roland Corporation
is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, with ¥33 million in capital. In 2005 Roland's headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. Today it has factories in Japan,...

 as a National Artist and Product Specialist, president of RADCO Music and Music Publishing, participating artist and contributor of the I-AM workshop, VP of KnoC Management- Hollywood, and founder/co-owner and current president and CEO of JaRic Records and Entertainment. DePiro turned down a scholarship at Eastman College of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...

 to attend Daemen College
Daemen College
Daemen College is a liberal arts college located on Main Street in Amherst, New York.-History:Daemen was founded in 1947 as Rosary Hill College for women by the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity, headed by Mother Magdalene Daemen...

 and Akron University as a music theory, synthesis and music business Major. In 1982 with a qualifying IQ of 165 on an officially monitored exam, DePiro was made a member of Mensa
Mensa International
Mensa is the largest and oldest high-IQ society in the world. It is a non-profit organization open to people who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a standardised, supervised IQ or other approved intelligence test...


Early Life 1967 - 1985 and career start

DePiro was born on May 30, 1967 in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...

. During this time, his father was finishing an Engineering degree at Fenn College of Engineering. DePiro grew up in the Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York
Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area
The Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area is a metropolitan area, designated by the United States Census Bureau, encompassing two counties – Erie and Niagara – in Western New York, with a population, as of the 2010 census, of 1,135,509 inhabitants...

 area and started playing Jazz Organ at the age of 10. He started playing Piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 by age 12.

DePiro was born Richard Anthony DePerro, later changing his legal name to Richard A. DePero and his stage name for works and appearances in Jazz and popular music to Rick DePiro in 1990 via career advice from his attorney Peter Ross and co-managers Brendan Cahill and Jon Hichborn. His stage name in Country music, Ricky Dee, was added in 2000 via earlier advice from Country music mentor Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...

 at the Universal Amphitheater just prior to Cash's concert on September 21, 1990. Throughout his extensive performance career DePiro has ,often in large part, credited his teachers and mentors with his keyboard proficiency and masterful skills. Some of these professional educators and performers rank amongst the most well respected and prominent pianists, organists, keyboardists and orchestrators in modern music history. DePiro's list of personal teachers and music mentors includes Michael O'Boyle, Carlo Annibale, Don Costa
Don Costa
Don Costa was an American pop music arranger and record producer, best known for his work with Frank Sinatra.-Career:...

, Pat Pace, Dr. Roland Paolucci, Frank Leone, Jimmy Wozniak, Dr. Michael Boddicker
Michael Boddicker
Michael J. Boddicker , is an American film composer and session musician, specializing in electronic music. Three times N.A.R.A.S. Most Valuable Player "Synthesizer" and MVP Emeritus, he was awarded a Grammy as a songwriter for Imagination from Flashdance in 1984...

, Dr. Ralph Turek and Oscar Peterson
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career...

.

DePiro started performing by "sitting in" with Jazz and Rock bands throughout NY by invitation at age twelve. His first "steady paid gig" was as weekly Church pianist at St Matthew's Church in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

 at age twelve. By age sixteen he recorded two albums and was signed to Mark Records by owner and producer Vincent Morette (NY) . He performed his first solo piano-organ concert at age fourteen and began teaching privately holding twenty-five weekly private students by the age of seventeen. Before he was eighteen, he had roughly thirty-five television appearances, local and national, airplay on over fifty radio stations nationwide, had written thirty songs and had composed and performed the ongoing theme song for the weekly New York TV talk show Talk Of The Town. Within that same time-frame, DePiro studied with his Orchestra "idol" Don Costa
Don Costa
Don Costa was an American pop music arranger and record producer, best known for his work with Frank Sinatra.-Career:...

 as a protégée in Beverly Hills, performed at the Emmy Awards, was the opening act
Opening act
An opening act or warm-up act is an entertainer or entertainment act that performs at a concert before the featured entertainer...

 for seven different artists/bands and along with his band and vocalist - singing phenomenon , (then seven years old) sister Jacki DePiro, won a Tri-State contest, after competing with two-hundred and ninety-seven professional acts, for a center stage concert at New York indoor Amphitheatre, Melody Fair.

Adulthood (18-30)

DePiro became the music director for the USWA
United Steelworkers
The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union is the largest industrial labor union in North America, with 705,000 members. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, U.S., the United Steelworkers represents workers in the United...

/AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...

 Constitutional Convention
Constitutional convention (political meeting)
A constitutional convention is now a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. A general constitutional convention is called to create the first constitution of a political unit or to entirely replace an existing constitution...

s at age eighteen when he was contracted by Richard Davis, International EVP of the USWA. He then performed at eight USWA bi-annual international conventions until the age of thirty-two, often including his sister Jacki in concerts and events. His song America My Home was the first song in the convention's history to be performed and included as official business. DePiro performed the song on the convention floor during the 1994 convention in Las Vegas, requested by Davis and introduced by International USWA President Lynn R. Williams
Lynn R. Williams
Lynn Russell Williams, OC is a former American labour leader that became a U.S.W.A. member in 1947 while employed by John Inglis Co. Local 2900 in Toronto Ontario and rose through the ranks to become International President of the United Steelworkers from 1983 to 1994...

. DePiro produced a Christmas album in 1984 for vocalist Raine Austen and got his first national jingle contract writing and performing jingles with Ms. Austen for a (then) new chain of the Muffler Man Supply Company, Rainbow Muffler, contracted through company president/founder Jim Christensen Sr.

In 1984 DePiro was signed to a second record contract this time with Cosmic Records in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...

. He stayed with Cosmic Records until after the death of friend and mentor Romeo Salerno (Cosmic Records owner and founder) in December 1991. Continuing after the death of Salerno, DePiro recorded new projects and released them under the Cosmic Records banner (through an agreement and promise made to Salerno), with the assistance of Salerno's son John Salerno, until starting his own label, JaRic Records, in 1997.

He is a BMI
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...

 writer and publisher and voting member of NARAS, the recording academy

In the 1980s DePiro became a music director of Rock Show-Band "Sir Bentley". He toured the United States with the band for over a year. After an additional year performing six days a week as leader of a "house band" at the Bond Court, a downtown luxury Hotel in Cleveland Ohio, playing for local TV shows, concerts in the Park, conventions and special political events, DePiro won a tri-state audition to become the stadium organist for the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

 and played the Organ at all home games at Cleveland Stadium
Cleveland Stadium
Cleveland Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, located in Cleveland, Ohio. In its final years, the stadium seated 74,438, for baseball and 81,000, for football. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and football...

 for two seasons. With the Indians, DePiro garnered featured press, both for his musical talent and "baseball song sarcasm
If I Only Had A Brain
"If I Only Had a Brain" is a song by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg . The song is sung in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz by the characters that meet Dorothy...

", in local and National media including ESPN, CNN and the Cleveland Plain Dealer, amongst others. In later years, DePiro has also played stadium organ as a special guest for the Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...

, LA Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...

 and Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...

.

DePiro moved to the Los Angeles area to further pursue his career in music in 1986 while still playing Organ for the Indians. He transferred his AFM membership to the LA/Hollywood chapter, Local 47, In LA, he was initially managed by David Parrish (George Benson
George Benson
George Benson is a ten Grammy Award winning American musician, whose production career began at the age of twenty-one as a jazz guitarist....

) who introduced him to music producer Chuck Sabatino (Michael McDonald Band
Michael McDonald (singer)
Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan...

). In his first two years in LA, with Sabatino, DePiro met and recorded several projects with Michael McDonald's band. He also took on a job as music director for Broadway and film actor Sy Kramer, and through Kramer worked with actors including Betty White
Betty White
Betty White Ludden , better known as Betty White, is an American actress, comedienne, singer, author, and former game show personality. With a career spanning seven decades since 1939, she is best known to modern audiences for her television roles as Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and...

, Gretchen Wilder, Barbara Luna
Barbara Luna
BarBara Ann Luna is an American actress with an extensive list of roles in film, television, and shows. Notable roles included Five Weeks in a Balloon and Lt. Marlena Moreau in the classic Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror"...

, Dom DeLuise
Dom DeLuise
Dominick "Dom" DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, film director, television producer, chef, and author. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur from 1965 until his death and the father of: actor, director, pianist, and writer Peter DeLuise; actor David DeLuise; and actor Michael DeLuise...

, Estelle Getty
Estelle Getty
Estelle Scher-Gettleman , better known by her stage name Estelle Getty, was an American actress, who appeared in film, television, and theatre...

 and others. He also worked with actor/friend John O'Hurley
John O'Hurley
John George O'Hurley is an American actor, voice actor, and television personality. He is known for the role of J. Peterman on the NBC sitcom Seinfeld and was the host of the game show Family Feud from 2006 to 2010.-Early life:...

 and his (then) wife actress Eva LaRue
Eva LaRue
Eva Maria LaRue is an American model and actress. She is best known as Doctor Maria Santos on All My Children, and is now a cast regular on CSI: Miami, portraying Detective Natalia Boa Vista of the Miami-Dade Police Department.-Early life:LaRue was born Eva Maria LaRuy in Long Beach, California to...

 (CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation....

), took acting lessons in Hollywood, and co-owned a recording studio in Lake Arrowhead, CA. He was later managed by Jon Hichborn and Brendan Cahill (Universal Studios Film Music VP) who handled his career for the next three years where he recorded with several producers including Steve Shiff and Joe Julian (Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....

, Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...

), performed at the Greek Theater, got airplay on numerous LA Rock stations and became a National Concert Artist for Matsushita/MCA – at Technics Musical Instruments. He won National Keyboard Artist of the Year in 1992 and 1993. His involvement with MCA/Universal lead him to bring in sister Jacki as a performer at special events, and additionally as Manager of the MCA/Universal Company store where they befriended legendary Chairman Lew Wasserman
Lew Wasserman
Lewis Robert "Lew" Wasserman was an American talent agent and studio executive, sometimes credited with creating and later taking apart the studio system in a career spanning more than six decades...

. Wasserman helped the DePiro's garner performances at Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....

 for PAC
PAC
- People :* Ben Satterly , a British professional wrestler* Pac , a noble family of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania* Sean Waltman , an American professional wrestler* Tupac Shakur, an American hip-hop artist- Political :...

and EIF
EIF
EIF stands for:* Echogenic intracardiac focus, a term related to an ultrasound exam* Eclaireurs israélites de France, a French Scouting organization* Edinburgh International Festival, a festival of performing arts...

functions and Special Studio Events and was a personal reference for their second performance at The White House for and by invitation of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

 and First Lady Hillary Clinton  in December 2000. DePiro was among the invited guests at Wasserman's 60th anniversary private gala at Universal Studios stage 28 in December 1996 along with many of Hollywood's most elite community.

In 1999 and 2000 DePiro contracted with and wrote music software for Technote America and Style Station Inc. and recorded his 14th – 21st CDs with seven CDs of instrumental cover music under contract with an independent label based in Los Angeles. In October 2000 he was signed as a National Product Specialist and Concert Artist with Roland Corporation
Roland Corporation
is a Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, electronic equipment and software. It was founded by Ikutaro Kakehashi in Osaka on April 18, 1972, with ¥33 million in capital. In 2005 Roland's headquarters relocated to Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. Today it has factories in Japan,...

 through friend and colleague Dennis Houlihan, Roland company president-CEO and current Chairman, and is still a contracted staff artist with Roland. DePiro is one of less than 100 professional music artists to be endorsed officially by the Roland Corporation and the first "staff artist" to ever be endorsed. In November 2000 he married his long time (eight years) girlfriend and fiancée, Yvette Leon , a musical theater and Shakespeare performer, in Laguna Niguel, California. In December 2000, he and sister Jacki were again invited and performed at The White House, in this instance for five-hundred invited guests at a governors and military reception, and additionally performed a private concert for the president and were honored with a thirty minute private audience with the president. Soon after the attacks of 9-11
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...

, in December 2001, DePiro was invited to perform his song America My Home for New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani at the Mayor's "Man of the Year" celebration in New York City.

Throughout 2001 and 2002, after the attacks of 9/11, DePiro's "America My Home" was played on more than 400 radio stations nationwide (partly due to assistance from John and Lew Dickey, co-owners and co-founders of Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media, Inc. is the second largest Owner and Operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States, behind Clear Channel Communications, operating 570 stations in 150 markets as of September 16, 2011. The company also owns Cumulus Media Networks...

) to help reinforce and celebrate the national pride and belief in America, and is still played and performed at patriotic and special events throughout the U.S.A annually. To date DePiro has performed over 2500 Concerts worldwide in more than 450 cities and has a documented repertoire of memorized songs in excess of 20,000 which is still ranked as one of the highest numbered instrumental repertoires among existing instrumentalists as reported in the Guiness Book of Records.

In 1993 DePiro along with sister Jacki recorded their first Holiday themed CD entitled Christmastime which still airs annually on radio stations across the US during the Holiday Season.

From 2001 to present day

DePiro launched JaRic Records and Entertainment with sister Jacki in 1997 to coincide with the release of their "All About Time" CD. In 1998 DePiro had over US$450,000 stolen from him by his former accountant and former attorney and business partner. His accountant forged a GPA
Power of attorney
A power of attorney or letter of attorney is a written authorization to represent or act on another's behalf in private affairs, business, or some other legal matter...

 in DePiro's name and left him nearly bankrupt. A federal lawsuit was filed by DePiro and for the next six years was assembled and fought in U.S. Federal Court, finally concluding with a full judgment in DePiro's favor on October 3, 2004. The six year period stalled the advancement of JaRic Records however during these six years, DePiro still performed in over 700 events including two performances at the White House. Longtime friend and colleague Freddie Ravel joined on with JaRic Records in 2005 as an Artist-Partner. Ricky Dee, Jacki DePiro, Freddie Ravel, Lindsay Jordan, Joe Walla, Emily Davison and others have been signed to JaRic Records. The label has plans to sign several new artists currently and by the end of 2011. DePiro and his team led by JaRic Records VP Will Urban (former VP at mp3.com
MP3.com
MP3.com is a web site operated by CNET Networks providing information about digital music and artists, songs, services, community, and technologies. It is probably better known for its original incarnation, as a legal, free music-sharing service, popular with independent musicians for promoting...

) launched the JaRic website in 2005. DePiro recorded his first solo country music CD in 2006 titled Give Me A Chance under the JaRic label. The CD received excellent reviews, and is/has been distributed by iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

, QVC, CDBaby, CD Universe and over 30 additional distribution outlets/channels worldwide. DePiro wrote title cut and 11 additional songs, is credited for all arrangements on this CD and performed on piano, Organ, keyboards and all lead vocals. He also is credited for producing the CD. The CD included tracks from Michael MacDonald's Band and songs written and produced by DePiro and co-produced by Nashville producer, Dave Dunston who is also DePiro's live performance Music Director.

DePiro along with drummer Dave Beyer and bassist Hussain Jiffry performed as DePiro's jazz trio on Jacki DePiro's first solo jazz CD in 2006 under JaRic Records, titled Where I Hang My Hat Is Home Rick DePiro wrote title cut and two additional songs, is credited for all arrangements on this CD and performed on piano and vocals. He also was credited for producing the CD. All credits appear in liner notes, on artist website, label website and on websites selling and reviewing this CD, where DePiro is a credited composer (3 songs), arranger (all songs) and producer (all songs). DePiro appeared in and performed on NBC's Las Vegas
Las Vegas (TV series)
Las Vegas was an American television series broadcast by NBC from September 22, 2003 to February 15, 2008. The show focuses on a team of people working at the ficticional Montecito Resort & Casino dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and...

in 2007 -- under the direction of friend and colleague Peter Weller
Peter Weller
Peter Frederick Weller is an American film and stage actor, director and lecturer.He is best known for his roles as the title character in the first two RoboCop films and Buckaroo Banzai in the cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension...

, and has also recently performed on and appeared in the motion picture Once Fallen
Once Fallen
Once Fallen is a 2010 crime film starring Brian Presley, Taraji P. Henson, and Ed Harris. Filming took place in Los Angeles, California.-Plot:...

with Weller, Michael Madsen, Brian Presley and Ed Harris
Ed Harris
Edward Allen "Ed" Harris is an American actor, writer, and director, known for his performances in Appaloosa, Radio, The Rock, The Abyss, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, A History of Violence, and The Truman Show. Harris has also narrated commercials for The Home Depot and other companies...

. He appeared in and/or performed on The Price is Right
The Price Is Right
The Price Is Right is a television game show franchise originally produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman, and created by Bob Stewart, and is currently produced and owned by FremantleMedia. The franchise centers on television game shows, but also includes merchandise such as video games, printed...

, Breaking Bonaduce, Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show)
Wheel of Fortune is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin, which premiered in 1975. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes determined by spinning a large wheel. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that...

, the Tony Danza Show
Tony Danza
Tony Danza is an American actor best known for starring on the TV series Taxi and Who's the Boss?, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and four Golden Globe Awards...

, CNN, Inside Edition
Inside Edition
Inside Edition is a thirty-minute American television syndicated news program, first aired on CBS on October 9, 1988. It was originally similar to the programs Hard Copy and A Current Affair, but now more closely resembles a condensed version of breakfast television, exclusively with pre-recorded...

, ESPN, many conventions including the Democratic National Convention
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...

, and The Emmys amongst others. He and his label were given the first exclusive distribution deal for a record label in QVC
QVC
QVC is a multinational corporation specializing in televised home shopping. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, United States, QVC broadcasts in five countries as QVC US, QVC UK, QVC Germany, QVC Japan and – QVC Italy to 200 million households...

 history in 2006 and DePiro's first appearances on QVC included a 15 minute solo performance spot and as a Prime Time guest performer in August 2006. He currently also performs with Peter Weller and a Jazz quintet at the Grand Havana Room, an exclusive private club in Beverly Hills CA, several times per year. His artistic versatility has enabled DePiro to perform with notable artists of many genres including, amongst many, arguably the world's best jazz accordionist, Cory Pesaturo
Cory Pesaturo
Cory Pesaturo is an American musician from Rhode Island. Pesaturo is an accordion player, who also plays the piano, clarinet, and saxophone. He began playing at the age of nine, and in 2002, became the youngest person to win the National Accordion Championship...

 at the winter NAMM Show in Anaheim California.

DePiro tours an average of 70 cities per year currently and earlier in his career, regularly performed over 200 shows/concerts annually covering over 125 cities. He has traveled in excess of 3.5 million air miles, logged over 1500 hotel nights and more than 500,000 highway/road miles, nearly all in performance of music or music-related projects. His music, songwriting, performances, and production projects including his recordings and online videos i.e.: have been hosted and/or broadcast in 13 countries, in 10 languages and have been listened to and /or viewed by of millions of people.

Beginning in 2002, DePiro was managed and mentored by musical instrument industry executive Nick Orlando and William Morris Agency former head agent Steve Konow (Frank Sinatra, Shirley Bassey, Toni Tenille etc.) until Orlando's death in 2005 where Konow continued until DePiro and his sister, along with the rest of the JaRic Records team, were signed by current manager David Baram (former President and COO The Firm
The Firm, Inc.
The Firm is an artist and talent management company in Beverly Hills, California in the United States.Founded in 1997 by Jeff Kwatinetz and partner Michael Green , The Firm had, at times, divisions devoted to TV and film production, brand management, apparel licensing, beverages, video games and...

, Beverly Hills and current partner with Rick Yorn at Bridge Entertainment, Century City – whose client list includes Criss Angel
Criss Angel
Christopher Nicholas Sarantakos , better known by the stage name Criss Angel, is an American illusionist, writer, director, musician, and actor...

, Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is an American actor and film producer. He has received many awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Aviator , and has been nominated by the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television...

, Cameron Diaz
Cameron Diaz
Cameron Michelle Diaz is an American actress and former model. She became famous during the 1990s with roles in the movies The Mask, My Best Friend's Wedding, and There's Something About Mary. Other high-profile credits include the two Charlie's Angels films, voicing the character Princess Fiona...

, etc.).

DePiro and his JaRic Records team signed a recent development deal with Baram and his management team for a new Reality Show about the problems in the music industry and how their team (and label) are beating the odds and succeeding. In 2009 after donating his performance for a July 4 Music Concert at Warner Center Park, California, headlining for more than 45,000 people, DePiro (Ricky Dee) was recognized formally with an award from the City Of Los Angeles and Councilman Dennis Zine for his selfless and numerous contributions to the City. He continues to travel more than 120 days per year worldwide, has a World Tour planned for the 2011-2012 Concert Season and recently signed on to the I-AM Workshop - Reno Nevada for donated Concert appearances, aiding in the fight against Artist substance abuse and addiction throughout the music industry. In March 2010, DePiro, along with his attorney and partner acquired 50% of the Carol Lynn Jewelry Design company (So You Think You Can Dance, American Idol etc.). In 2011 DePiro along with his partners launched RADCO Music Group, consisting of 3 companies, JaRic Records and Entertainment, RADCO Music Learning Centers (RMLC's),and Carol Lynn Designs.

DePiro lives in the Los Angeles area with his wife, Yvette, and son, Louis.

Discography

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Artist |Title |Year of ReleaseLabel
Rick DePiro Mellow Haze 1983 Mark Records # MC 20063
Rick DePiro It Had To be You 1990 Cosmic Records # CMR 45902-90
Rick DePiro Steals The Night 1990 Cosmic Records # CMR 45113-90
Rick DePiro Artist Series – Vol 1 1992 Cosmic Records # CMR 47353-92
Raine Austen My Christmas To You 1988 Cosmic Records # CMR 46243-88
Rick DePiro Cleveland Rocks Tribute 1987 Cleveland Indians Properties
Rick DePiro -Chuck Sabatino with Michael McDonald Band
Michael McDonald (singer)
Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan...

Old Habits – Romeo and Juliet (single) 1991 Cosmic Records # CMR 46435-91
Walter Haden - Rick DePiro Songs of Life 1997 JaRic Records # JR 13110
Rick DePiro-Joe Jullian & Steve Shiff Eternally 1993 Cosmic Records # CMR 44256-93
Rick DePiro and Jacki DePiro How High The Moon 1993 Cosmic Records # CMR 48656-93
Rick DePiro with the Billy May
Billy May
William E. "Billy" May was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music, for The Green Hornet , Batman , and Naked City and collaborated on films, such as Pennies from Heaven , and orchestrated Cocoon, and Cocoon: The Return among...

 Orchestra
Crooner's night 1994 Cosmic Records # CMR 51093-96
Rick DePiro and Jacki DePiro Christmastime 1993 Cosmic Records # CMR 48678-93
Various Artists The Stars of Days Of Our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...

1990 Innovative
Rick DePiro Contemporary Hits (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Latin Moods(software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Mellow Standards (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro In Tribute to Frank
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...

  (software version)
2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Great Ballads (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Country Hits (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro The Duke at 100 (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Favorite Standards (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Classic Rock Hits (software version) 2000 Style Station Orem Utah, Technote America
Rick DePiro Contemporary Hits(CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403a
Rick DePiro Latin Moods(CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403b
Rick DePiro Mellow Standards (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403c
Rick DePiro In Tribute to Frank (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403d
Rick DePiro Great Ballads (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403e
Rick DePiro Country Hits (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403f
Rick DePiro The Duke at 100 (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403g
Rick DePiro Favorite Standards (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403h
Rick DePiro Classic Rock Hits (CD version) 2003 JaRic Records # 5410-403i
Rick DePiro Somebody New 2002 JaRic Records # 5410-403a
Ricky Dee Give Me A Chance 2006 JaRic Records # JR 01575-806
Jacki DePiro When Love Walks In 1997 JaRic Records # 4013-297
Rick DePiro and Jacki DePiro All About TIme 1997 JaRic Records # JR4022-997
Alan Sweet Project with Rick DePiro and Jacki DePiro Dig-It-Al 2001 ASP Records
Lindsay Jordan Down Home Heart 2008 JaRic Records # JR 01550-905
Jacki DePiro Jazz Standards 4 1996 Cosmic Records # CMR 51096-96
Jacki DePiro Where I Hang My Hat Is Home 2008 JaRic Records # JR 01525-406
Joe Walla She Showed Up 2009 JaRic Records # JR 01695-809]

Media appearances

  • QVC
    QVC
    QVC is a multinational corporation specializing in televised home shopping. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, United States, QVC broadcasts in five countries as QVC US, QVC UK, QVC Germany, QVC Japan and – QVC Italy to 200 million households...

     - August 2006 on - several appearances - as Country Artist Ricky Dee - selling CD "Give Me A Chance" - QVC item no. E01377
  • Inside Edition
    Inside Edition
    Inside Edition is a thirty-minute American television syndicated news program, first aired on CBS on October 9, 1988. It was originally similar to the programs Hard Copy and A Current Affair, but now more closely resembles a condensed version of breakfast television, exclusively with pre-recorded...

     - Lifestyle episode with Eva LaRue 1993 - filmed at LaRue's home Los Angeles - played piano - LaRue sang
  • ESPN
    ESPN
    Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

     - 1986 - Cleveland Indians Organist - interview and "talk" re: feature Article in Cleveland Plain Dealer "Thunder at the Ballpark" - about DePiro as youngest Organist in MLB* CNN
    CNN
    Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...

     - Cleveland Indians Organist 1985 - low attendance "boost" article re: Peter Bavasi as president of Cleveland Indians effort to boost attendance with controversial/sarcastic young Organist DePiro
  • Once Fallen
    Once Fallen
    Once Fallen is a 2010 crime film starring Brian Presley, Taraji P. Henson, and Ed Harris. Filming took place in Los Angeles, California.-Plot:...

     - 2010 release Movie - with Peter Weller, Michael Madsen, Ed Harris etc.—DePiro plays piano as part of Peter Weller's ("Eddie") trio - 2 scenes - with music and dialog
  • Las Vegas (episode guide)

DePiro is pianist in episode 11 season 5 of NBC's Las Vegas - "A Cannon Carol" - with music and dialog
  • Breaking Bonaduce
    Breaking Bonaduce
    Breaking Bonaduce is an American reality series on VH1 that starred former child actor Danny Bonaduce and his wife Gretchen. The series premiered in September 2005 and ended in December 2006.-Overview:...

     - Reality show with Bonaduce - episode in 2008 - DePiro plays keyboard at Bonaduce home for gift to Bonaduce after return from rehab
  • Entertainment Tonight
    Entertainment Tonight
    Entertainment Tonight is a daily tabloid television entertainment television news show that is syndicated by CBS Television Distribution throughout the United States, Canada and in many countries around the world. Linda Bell Blue is currently the program's executive producer...

     - Mary Hart interview - 1997 - DePiro plays piano as upcoming Artist - Greek Theatre footage, recording studio footage, new CD release "All About Time"
  • Tony Danza Show
    The Tony Danza Show
    The Tony Danza Show was a daytime talk show hosted by Tony Danza, but was also a sitcom featuring the same actor ....

     - DePiro interviewed - plays piano for Danza - also December 14, 2004 Dr. Gadget shows Roland Piano to Danza, DePiro plays-season 2 episode 119
  • Wheel of Fortune
    Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show)
    Wheel of Fortune is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin, which premiered in 1975. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes determined by spinning a large wheel. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that...

     - DePiro performs for show - background music, on air performs on "give away" Piano, returns as winning contestant, performs music on opening and end credits 1990
  • Days of Our Lives
    Days of our Lives
    Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...

     - 3 episodes 1990, 1991—DePiro as Music Director for Greek Theater show "live". on air plays piano in 3 episodes - restaurant scene, house scene, night club scene
  • (more than 100 Local -Regional TV and Cable appearances) - 45 cities, 30 States - 1982-2010

local news, morning and evening talk shows, feature spots, etc. - primary multiple appearances NY, Ohio, CA
  • (several dozen internal Corporate and customer videos including videos with Roland Corporation US - continuing video, product videos, voice-over product inlays, national trade shows (NAMM) etc.
  • Matsushita/Panasonic - staff Artist - performances, music recordings, product demonstrations, corporate engagements 1989-1999 -- MCA/Universal - PAC
    Political action committee
    In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...

     events, EIF
    Entertainment Industry Foundation
    The Entertainment Industry Foundation , based in Los Angeles, is a 501 non-profit and the leading charitable organization of the entertainment industry...

    , Holiday Parties, Studio events, Concerts, private executive events, TV music, videos
  • ABC
    American Broadcasting Company
    The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...

     - Corporate private performances for ABC executives, local and regional ABC affiliate interviews, National coverage/appearances on shows airing on network- performance/concert coverage
  • NBC
    NBC
    The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

     - "Las Vegas" , NBC Universal
    NBC Universal
    NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...

     events, local and regional NBC affiliate interviews, performance coverage, National coverage/appearances on shows airing on network- performance/concert
  • USWA/AFL-CIO
    United Steelworkers
    The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union is the largest industrial labor union in North America, with 705,000 members. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, U.S., the United Steelworkers represents workers in the United...

    -CLC - Convention videos, music background for corporate videos, promo videos, convention videos
  • So You Think You Can Dance (U.S. TV series)
    So You Think You Can Dance (U.S. TV series)
    So You Think You Can Dance is an American dance competition and reality show that airs on Fox in the United States.The series first premiered on July 20, 2005, and was created by American Idol producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe and is produced by 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions...

     - Style page - Soyon An 7 videos - Show stylist - discusses and shows styles worn by contestants in episodes including Jewelry made by CarolLynn Designs, (DePiro is owner-partner in Jewelry company)
  • Kroger/Ralphs
    Kroger
    The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...

    , - corporate video - filmed as preferred customer, record executive and artist for KTV (Kroger internal TV network)
  • CBS
    CBS
    CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

     - The Price is Right
    The Price Is Right
    The Price Is Right is a television game show franchise originally produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman, and created by Bob Stewart, and is currently produced and owned by FremantleMedia. The franchise centers on television game shows, but also includes merchandise such as video games, printed...

    (2009)-music/piano performance, National coverage/appearances on shows airing on network- performance/concert local and regional CBS affiliate interviews, performance coverage
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