Oliver WG in concert in New York City at the Mercury Lounge. Photo: Beck Kendig
By Laurel Busby
News & Information Editor
A Canyon childhood inspired Oliver Grynberg’s music.
Grynberg, whose stage name is Oliver WG, spent his early years on East Channel Road before the family moved to another Canyon home a few minutes away. He played at Rustic Canyon Park, practiced his violin, enjoyed tennis, and developed deep connections with other Canyon residents while relishing his surroundings.
“I’m a Canyon boy through and through,” Grynberg, 23, said. “It’s such a beautiful place. In high school during Covid, there was a lot of time to read and write and be surrounded by the beautiful parts of the Canyon. The Canyon is responsible for lotsof my creative output in some type of indirect way.”
Grynberg, who sings, writes songs, and plays guitar and piano, will share his alternative pop music with other Canyonites at Canyon Square Friday night. Guitarist Henry Harary and bassist Brice Dickerson, two fellow graduates of Brown University, will join him for the performance, which will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 6.
The three normally perform in New York City, where Grynberg, who earned his degree in comparative literature and philosophy last year, moved after graduation. Now a Brooklyn resident, Grynberg works for a start-up part-time to pay the rent and does session work at the Queens studio GB’s Juke Joint, which offers him practice space and recording time.
He recently released his first single, “Oliver,” a fun, spirited song about aspects of his New York life, and plans to finish his first album in the coming months.
“I was super excited to start with the release of that song,” Grynberg said. “It’s telling the story of this romantic escapade in New York. It’s very honest to what I was experiencing in my first winter in the city. Here I am. Here is the life I’ve been living. Honest and playful—like a snapshot.”
For the past year, his bandmates have been working on their sound, writing music together, and “getting super tight as a band,” Grynberg said. The band has begun cultivating a fan base while playing clubs in Manhattan, upstate New York, and New England.
From left to right, bandmates Brice Dickerson, Oliver Grynberg, and Henry Harary, enjoy an evening out in New York City.
In addition, Grynberg has been evolving as he connects more and more to life in New York City. In particular, the city’s youthful energy has influenced his songwriting and style. While folk music was an early inspiration and classical violin was the first style of music that he learned to play, alternative and experimental rock and pop have become an integral part of his current sound.
In particular, he enjoys the songwriting of Phoebe Bridgers and the high energy, funky pop of Dominic Fike, which is more similar to his band’s style.
“The pair together represent what I’m working toward and doing,” said Grynberg, noting that he also has so many other musical influences. “I love all music…. Everything I like becomes a reference in some way.”
Luckily, his twin sister, Stella, is also making her life in New York City, so he has that strong family connection nearby. When possible, he flies back to Los Angeles to visit his friends and his parents, psychologist Susan Winfield and writer/director Stephen Grynberg, whose last names are their son’s middle and last name. Those initials are also the WG of his stage name.
One Canyon friend, Sarah Slavkin, was actually the reason for this recent journey home. Slavkin organized a house party with live music and invited Grynberg to play. The Canyon Square event came together afterwards as a way to share his music with the broader Canyon community.
“Canyon Square has been a huge part of my upbringing and life in the Canyon,” said Grynberg, who graduated from Windward School in 2021. “It just feels super lovely to come back and play at a place that is really an extension of my home.”
