Riley McDonough Biography

During his childhood, Riley McDonough, along with his brothers Connor and Toby, sang in the choir and put up shows in his neighborhood. By the time he was in the 5th grade, he discovered his passion for singing after he sang in a talent show. He subsequently focused on singing and later also began writing lyrics with his brothers. In 2007, his elder brother Connor had formed the band 'soulbinder39' with his friends Braidon Wood and Thomas Silvers, whom the brothers had first met through their church youth group. The band was later renamed 'Before You Exit', stylized as 'B4UXIT', at the suggestion of Braidon Wood's mother, but eventually dropped the stylized spelling and became known simply as 'Before You Exit', with focus on their motto, 'make a difference before you exit', which was developed later.

Riley formally joined the band as a vocalist in 2008 and worked on releasing its debut EP, 'A Short Story Long', on August 12, 2009. With the success of the EP, the band became a supporting act in the middle of All Time Low's 'My Small Package Tour' in October-November 2010. Since then, their popularity has only increased, prompting them to embark on their first headlining tour, 'The Next Big Thing Tour', in October 2011. After Riley's younger brother Toby joined the band in 2012, it became a trio spearheaded by the three brothers, while Braidon and Thomas performed for their concerts.

Riley McDonough began his music journey as part of the band 'Before You Exit' with their debut EP, 'A Short Story Long', in August 2009. It was followed by their second EP, 'Letting Go', which was released in March 2011. Since Riley's brother Toby joined the band in 2012, they have released two more EPs: 'I Like That', which was released from Sony Music Entertainment in February 4, 2013, and 'All the Lights', which was released from RCA records on April 8, 2016. Following their appearance on All Time Low's 'My Small Package Tour' in 2010, they provided supporting acts to pop rock bands such as Allstar Weekend, Action Item, and The Vamps; the girl group Fifth Harmony; and singer-songwriters like Olly Murs and Cody Simpson. They have also headlined five tours so far: 'The Next Big Thing Tour' in October 2011; 'The Dangerous Tour' in March-May 2014; the 'Europe Tour' in January-February 2015 and the 'All the Lights Tour' in May-June 2016 – both with Christina Grimmie; and the 'Asia Tour' in February-March 2017. They won the Macy’s iHeart Radio contest and performed at 'The 86th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade' in 2012. They were guests on the TV show 'Teens Wanna Know' in 2016.

Riley McDonough was born on August 31, 1995 in Orlando, Florida. He has Irish ancestry. He is the second of three sons of his parents and has an older brother named Connor and a younger brother named Toby. Along with his brothers, he used to sing in the church choir since he was a child. While he is the lead singer of the band, he can also play the bass guitar and the piano. He is a fan of American singer-songwriter and musician John Mayer and English singer, songwriter and guitarist Ed Sheeran. He cites John Mayer, Rascal Flatts and Maroon 5 as inspirations, and hopes to work with them in the future. He is often compared to the character of Ted from the movie 'The Lorax'. He can do a great impression of the famous Disney character Mickey Mouse.