It has just been a week since Ryan Ross Hernandez' second studio album as a soloist, Dark Secret Love, and since the record reached the top five in every region including reaching the top spot in Hernandez' biggest market the United States. Hernandez didn't waste much time in announcing its follow-up or better said follow-ups.

The singer/songwriter/guitarist/producer/actor has announced that Dark Secret Love is the first of a trilogy of records. The trilogy will be titled Dark Secret... and will consist of what he has called the "3 L's in life," the first one being 'Love', to be followed by 'Life' and 'Laughter', respectively. Although the first of the trilogy Love, was received with mixed reviews by most critics, fans have been praising the record. The album marked Hernandez' transaction from a rock/pop superstar into a blues-rock musician which is a very uncommon change in genres, to say the least.

If Dark Secret Love marked a transaction for Hernandez, as a songwriter, then the sequel is shaping up to be Ryan Ross Hernandez' turn back in the spotlight.

Hernandez' debut record Matters of the Heart, was produced solely by Regan Futrell while receiving additional treatment by Hernandez himself. On his latest effort, Ryan kept it in the family by having two of his five PANIC! bandmates produce it (Ashley Perry and Gabriel Hunter) and once again Hernandez added his own touch when they were finished. On the upcoming records it is unknown what Hernandez will do producing wise, although in interviews after completing sessions for Dark Secret Love, Hernandez mentioned that he has a tough time deciding who he works with because he is a self-admitted perfectionist.

In an interview on On Air with Ryan Seacrest, Los Angeles based radio station Monday morning, Hernandez explained the concept behind the forthcoming Dark Secret Life.

"[The album] is gonna be a lot different than people expect," Hernandez told host Seacret. "The overall basis of this record, I went back to songs that are more emotionally driven. I've gone back to writing songs with a acoustic guitar in hand. The last record I made, I think I was concentrating more on 'How could I incorporate my musical roots with blues'. 'Love' was a learning experience for me. On this album, I feel like there's still room to grow, but I want to take personal records into a whole new level. If 'Love' was about my love life, then 'Life' is gonna be about my life and my views of different situations in my life. I mean the public knows about my past problems with depression and sleeping pills but I've never written about those two until now. Honestly, I think its taken two years to do so 'cause of my fear of that dark time in life resurfacing. On this album, if you thought 'Love' was deep you haven't heard nothing yet. I want to take songs with those [feelings] to them to a whole new level. It won't be your typical number one record. Especially lyrically, I'm gonna be real honest with myself. I think too many artist now a days are forgetting that lyrics are still an important part in music. Can't just be a catchy beat."

During the recording of Dark Secret Love, Ryan Ross Hernandez admitted he suffered from writer's block at times, and to return to form, he revisited his earlier style of writing that helped him earn his fame with PANIC!. "I'll make the most of all this heartache/You'll be a bitch because you can/You try to hit me just to hurt me/So you leave me feeling dirty/Because you can't understand." he sang on "Dancing to a Slow Song Separately, Together."

"I had to get it all out of my system," Hernandez said of the lyrical love urgency behind Dark Secret Love. "When I wrote those, I was still trying to pull through bad experiences, heartbreaks, and crappy breakups from ex-girlfriends. But on every record I'm going to write songs about women 'cause 90% of everything I write is about women."

Once the Tennessee-native broke free from his struggles with the pen, he went on to record three albums' worth of material. He and his camp decided to whittle the songs down to three projects. Although Hernandez has said that aside from the records that made it on Dark Secret Love, no additional songs were recorded.

The focus on polishing the second album of the trilogy, though, will take time to create. Hernandez has taken most of December off to rest and will return in early-January to tour with fellow bandmate Ashley Perry, to promote their respective solo careers. The tour will last until May, if Hernandez completes writing the record on the road, in May at the earliest is when we might see Ryan back in studio. Depending on how long it takes to record, which Hernandez has a history to take a while to perfect his music, in the fall/winter of 2010 is when we might hear the follow up to Dark Secret Love. That being said it puts the final of the trilogy in a uncertain zone due to PANIC! believed to return with a new record in 2011, with recording sessions starting late 2010. Which Hernandez has said when PANIC! returns full time, he will retire his solo career to focus completely on PANIC!. Dark Secret Life isn't even a sure thing if more acting roles come up for the PANIC! guitarist.

Although in his call-in interview with Ryan Seacrest, Hernandez was asked if he could give any details about songs that could be featured on it, Hernandez said; "No songs have been recorded but from what I've written, lately, theirs some I really want to fit in to the second record. But nothing is set in stone at the moment. All I know is I want to create a different record with a different feel to it. I really want to do some collaborations, which are rare for me to let another artist on my work. Aside from Ashley on the latest record, I haven't worked with another artist. But I don't consider that a collaboration because when don't I work with Ashley?"