Clay Drinko
Clay Drinko was born on Double D Ranch, a cattle ranch and family crop farm on the foothills of the Ohio Appalachian mountains.
Cut to Clay leaving Ohio for greener pastures...so to speak. Clay started auditioning for theater, film, and television projects immediately after his plane landed. He booked early jobs on cable channels, such as VJ for a Day on MTV and numerous promo spots on Spike TV, VH1, and MTV2.
Not being one to limit his own potential Clay was discovered dancing in a bar he worked at at the time. Ever since, he's been in at least one modern dance company at any given time. Splitting his time between Christopher Williams and Richard Decker's choreography.
Not satisfied with exclusively playing and dancing to others' music Clay turned a drunken joke of a song into his first single "Pizza Slice," which has since gone on to become a crowd favorite. Clay created his first album "Message to the Streets" within the first week of buying his home audio studio.
Next came the "Pizza Slice" music video, which is a fan favorite (directed by Nick Hanson)
Clay's second album "Famous Name" was a more time consuming affair than M2S. He collaborated with Jessica Palmer for the hook on "Pussies Hos and Beer" and was aided by mixer and sound engineer Hillary Johnson. The song "Lesbians" is the stand out single on the album. The video, directed by Laura Terruso, was a festival darling on 2007 and is now available on youtube.
Many of the songs from "Famous Name" were also used as the soundtrack for the Terruso/Opper directed lesbian short film "His Name is Cosmo," a festival favorite at Newfest and other film festivals around the country. Clay also recorded extra songs exclusively for the film in addition to starring in the film as Dorian, the gay friend.
Around the time of "Famous Name," Clay also appeared in the feature film "The Ski Trip" as the snotty European Salesman. This marked a change in Clay's acting career. He finally started getting more substantial and fulfilling work, especially in film. Clay starred in "One Third," a dramatic feature where he plays a homeless boy. "One Third" premiered at Cinema Village East in the fall of 2006. Clay also stars in the newest MOJAM production ("Dirty Laundry") opposite Veronica Webb. "Dirty Laundry" also stars Sommore, Loretta Devine, and Rockmond Dunbar.
In 2008 Clay released his third album "Suspicious Package." He filmed a video for the song "Terror Ass" (directed by Laura Terruso).
After "Suspicious Package" Clay has appeared in the Christiaan Falk/Robyn Video "Dream On."
Robyn Video "Dream On" from Clay Drinko on Vimeo.
In addition to playing the skinhead in Robyn's video, Clay also appeared in the second episode of Law and Order's 19th season as a mentally challenged man.Clay Drinko Acting Reel from Clay Drinko on Vimeo.
In 2009 Clay starred in a Comcast Sportsnet commercial and danced in two modern dance pieces (Christopher Williams' "Golden Legend" was chosen one of the top ten dance pieces of 2009 by the New Yorker).
"Knowledge is Power" Comcast Sportsnet Spot from Clay Drinko on Vimeo.
In 2010, Clay played an alien news anchor in Madeleine Olnek's film "Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same" and an autistic man in the Ben Samuels horror film "Asylum.