Yachtley Crew is a seven-piece SoCal band that burst onto the club scene in 2017, selling out countless local venues before starting a nationwide Yacht Rock craze and being noticed by the legendary Jimmy Buffett, who signed them to his own Mailboat label prior to their deal with Earache/Universal Records.
The nautical-suited and captain’s-hat-clad Yachtley Crew (also known as “The Titans of Soft Rock”), include drummer Rob Jones (Sailor Hawkins), bassist Chaz Ruiz (Baba Buoy), guitarist Thomas Gardner Jr. (Tommy Buoy), backing vocalist Curt Clendenin (Stoney Shores), saxophone/flutist Paul Pate (Pauly Shores), keyboardist Matt Grossman (Matthew McDonald) and NEW lead vocalist Ian Ward (Captain Ian). Ward joins The Titans Of Soft Rock with an impressive and wide-ranging resume that spans theatre, television and international performance. He has appeared on Broadway and starred in productions including Rock Of Ages, RENT, American Idiot, Footloose, and the iconic Jesus Christ Superstar at The Hollywood Bowl alongside Cynthia Erivo and Adam Lambert. Ward is bringing lead man vocals and commanding stage presence to stages around the world. He is also a Golden Ticket Winner and contestant on American Idol, and has collaborated and performed with Sir Tim Rice, Idina Menzel, Pat Benatar, and Cyndi Lauper.
For the uninitiated, Yacht Rock encapsulates the revival of soft rock and Top 40 hits from the late ’70s to the early ‘80s — and it has become an undisputed nationwide phenomenon, inspiring fans to dress the part and sing along. The band’s first EP Seas The Day was released in 2023 and featured fan favorites such as Boz Scaggs’ “Lido Shuffle,” Ace’s “How Long,” Robbie Dupree’s “Steal Away,” the Bee Gees’ “How Deep Is Your Love,” Christopher Cross’ “Ride Like the Wind” and the band’s first original song “Sex On The Beach,” which was accompanied by a video with a guest appearance by Access Hollywood and iHeart Radio host, Mario Lopez. The video was directed by Myles Erfurth (Dead Sara, Ice Nine Kills, Twiztid).
Yachtley Crew closed 2024 with their first holiday EP Seas and Greetings on Earache Records, which featured the single “It’s Christmastime” that went Top 40 on the Billboard AC charts and Top 30 on the Billboard holiday charts, ending a sold-out year of touring and recording.
In 2025, the band released their album, Seas The Night, which featured their single “Pain Of Losing You,” an original song written for the band by the iconic and multi-award-winning songwriter Diane Warren. Warren has penned nine #1 and thirty-three top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and is tied for having written the most #1 songs as a sole writer in Billboard history. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001 and received the prestigious Johnny Mercer Award from the organization in June 2024. Warren has received 16 Academy Award nominations, is a GRAMMY winner with 15 nominations, an EMMY winner, and is a two-time Golden Globe winner whose songs have been featured in more than 150 films. She is an Honorary Oscar recipient.
“Pain Of Losing You” was Top 15 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Charts and produced by Chris Lord-Alge (Stevie Nicks, Steven Tyler, Keith Urban, Bruce Springsteen, Green Day) and mastered by Ted Jensen (Eagles, Norah Jones, Evanescence, Alice in Chains, James Taylor) at Lord-Alge’s studios in Los Angeles. The videos for both “Pain Of Losing You,” and “Lowdown,” were both accompanied by a video directed by Myles Erfurth (Dead Sara, Ice Nine Kills, Twiztid).
Yachtley Crew have appeared on HBO’s Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary, Andy Cohen’s Watch What Happens Live, helped ring in the New Year on KLAS and KTLA’s “Las Vegas Countdown to 2023” (the exclusive, Emmy-winning special syndicated program that reached more than 16.5 million U.S. TV households), performed on countless morning television and radio shows throughout the country, been featured on Fox News nationally, and performed on SiriusXM’s Yacht Rock Radio “Yacht Rock 311” show as the first ever Yacht Rock band to perform live at the satellite radio studio. The band held a four-year residency at The Palms in Las Vegas and performed at a cadre of charity and special events throughout the years, including the Mario Lopez Golf Classic Tournament in support of the Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center.
The group is managed by longtime industry icon Andy Gould (Rob Zombie, Pantera, Lionel Richie, Guns N’ Roses) and is represented by Jim Lenz at TKO.
Yachtley Crew are proud to fly the flag of Yacht Rock for each and every generation that loves good fun and good-time music, and they very much look forward to sharing new and classic Yacht Rock tunes and are set to help one and all navigate the as-yet-uncharted waters of 2026 and beyond.