Bay Area native Joel-Ryan Armamento was born in Castro Valley, CA and is of Filipino descent. As a student at James Logan High School in Union City, CA, he was involved in the Forensics Speech and Debate team, competing in Dramatic and Duo Interpretation across the country. In 2005, he and his partner took 1st place at the California State Championship in Duo Interpretation, and 2nd place at the National Forensics League Championship as Miles in "The Drawer Boy". He attended the University of San Francisco and earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing. Now residing in Southern California, he continues to follow his passion for performance while working as a Registered Nurse.