On this week's episode of Artist Friendly, Joel Madden is joined by Ryan Cabrera.

After graduating from high school, Cabrera played acoustic guitar in Rubix Groove, opening for Cheap Trick and Third Eye Blind. A solo career came calling, though, leading to early 2000s pop stardom, mall tours, and a platinum album. That eventually segued into guest appearances on The Hills and meeting WWE superstar Alexa Bliss at a SmackDown premiere in LA, whom he married in 2022.

Sitting down with Madden, the duo has a funny, vulnerable conversation about growing up in public, balancing family and touring, and what success means.

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Chapters

(0:00) Intro

(3:02) Married to a Wrestler

(8:32) On-Stage Persona

(11:59) Good Charlotte’s Christmas Performances

(15:00) Boy Bands & Emo Writing

(19:00) Mall Tours & The Early Years

(23:15) Keeping Integrity in the Music Industry

(27:05) Performing When You’re Not Okay

(28:00) Fatherhood Changes Everything

(32:38) Therapy & Fatherhood

(36:06) How Ryan Met Alexa Bliss

(40:30) The Stalker Experience

(43:07) The Dark Side of Fame

(45:50) Self-Esteem & Self-Acceptance

(48:00) Handling Conflict in Marriage

(49:00) What Success Really Takes

(54:28) Returning to Music After Fatherhood

(57:53) Ryan Key & Ryan Cabrera’s Friendship

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Listen to their Artist Friendly conversation on ⁠⁠Spotify.⁠

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Follow Artist Friendly!

IG: @artist.friendly

TikTok: @artist.friendly

YouTube: youtube.com/@artist.friendly

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Host: Joel Madden, @joelmadden

Executive Producers: Joel Madden, Benji Madden, Jillian King

Producers: Josh Madden, Joey Simmrin, Janice Leary

Visual Producer/Editor: Ryan Schaefer

Audio Producer/Composer: Nick Gray

Music/Theme Composer: Nick Gray

Cover Art/Design: Ryan Schaefer

Additional Contributors: Anna Zanes, Neville Hardman

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