Never let it be said that Tim and Ryan O'Neill don't listen to their mother. Like many musicians, the Minnesota-based piano players began their musical careers by performing at family gatherings. But when Tim spent a year of college in Europe, his mother, Kathy O'Neill, encouraged him to record and make copies of his music so his friends and family could listen to it while he was away.
Good idea, Mom. When he returned, Tim was amazed at the number of recordings his mother had distributed, and he decided to plunge full-time into the business of writing, playing, recording and selling his music to a growing audience. “It all started because our Mom and Dad had enough confidence in our music, and in us, to give us the support we needed,” says Tim O'Neill, 28.
In 1996, Tim teamed with his brother Ryan, now 26, and launched their own independent record label. The company's name, Shamrock-n-Roll, also came as a suggestion from their mother. “They've come so far from the early days, when they were two little boys sharing a piano bench,” Kathy O'Neill says. “Their feet couldn't even touch the pedals when they started.”
Today, the O'Neill Brothers have turned a passion for music into a thriving business, selling more than 500,000 CDs nationwide.
Their enthusiastic fans have made successes of the O'Neill Brothers' 12 albums, including the holiday-themed “Coming Home,” “Spirit of the Season,” and “Spirit of the Season Volume II”; “The Meeting of the Waters,” a collection of traditional Irish instrumental songs; the classic and original love songs of “Look Within,” “Love Always,” “Hands of Time,” and “P.S., I Love You”; “Sweet Dreams,” a collection of lullabies; “One”; “A Notre Dame Experience”; and their newest album of all-original songs, “Inspiration.”
In cities across the country, shoppers bustling through JCPenney stores hear the O'Neill Brothers' relaxing piano music floating above the crowd. To be in several places at once, the brothers first used computer modules to convert in-store pianos into player pianos, then created high-tech audio kiosks to play entire selections from their albums.
“Now people walk into stores and hear our music, either coming from a kiosk or a real piano,” Ryan O'Neill says. “It turned out to be a close second to being there in person, and the customers love it.”
The thriving business has allowed Tim and Ryan to be able to do what they love most: write and play music. It's at the heart of what drives them forward and is what the growing number of fans continues to connect with.
And it's all thanks to a little piece of advice from their mom.
“I'm watching my sons finding success doing what they love,” Kathy O'Neill says. “What more could a mother ask for?”
The O'Neill Brothers' music is available at JCPenney stores, by calling toll-free 1-888-9-O'NEILL (1-888-966-3455) or through their Web site www.pianobrothers.com.
Courtesy of ARA Content, www.aracontent.com
