Hi, my name is Matthew and this is my bio. I'm told they usually hire some highly trained professional to write the most amazing biography of an artist's life. One that makes the artist seem like the most fascinating person in recent history, and then send you racing to the record store to pick up your very own copy of…history. Well, I may be making a mistake, but I'd rather just tell you a little bit about myself, myself. I hope you don't mind. So, here goes.
It all started with a boy and a dream. Just kidding. Well, actually it did start with a dream but it wasn't a dream about music. I'm talking baseball. I grew up in a suburb of Chicago, and I was sure that I was the future 1st basemen for the Chicago Cubs! Well, I never did get the call to the big leagues, and found myself in search of a new dream. That's precisely where the music took over. My dad bought me a guitar after graduating from high school and I had decided to study music in college, mostly because they told me I wouldn't have to take any real math classes. Anyway, I bought a poster at Wal-Mart that taught me how to play different chords and I hung it up on my dorm room door. I remember learning my first 4 chords and writing my first song in that same day. I wouldn't say it was a good song…but it was a song nonetheless, and my heart was finding a way to speak.
I could feel my life beginning to change. I know that may sound cheesy, but as soon as I started learning to play the guitar I knew what I was supposed to do with my life. I was motivated to write songs, and from the beginning I always felt in a hurry to get better at what I was doing. I just couldn't wait to be out there playing the songs that I hadn't written yet for the people that hadn't heard of me yet! I had always soaked up all kinds of music and I began to find my own style.
By the time I graduated from college, (yes I did graduate) I had developed a following on campus and started exploring ways to travel to other campuses. I didn't feel ready to do the whole "knocking on doors of record labels" thing. I really wanted to get out there—just me and an audience—and find out who I was as an artist. So, the past three years have taken me across the country with about 200 college shows along the way. It was an awesome experience! In a lot of ways, it has helped shape my artistry, my communication, and my perspective of why I am doing what I do.
So, the fine folks at my new record label (Universal South & Sparrow Records) have given me a chance to make a record, and that's exactly what I've done. The record is called Happy. And for the most part, I am. But you're living in the same world I'm in, and we all know the world has trouble. Happy isn't about some fake expression of emotion. It's not about smiling when you'd rather cry. It's about being real; real with the joy in life, and real with the struggles. It's about finding peace in the middle of the chaos. Happy is about realizing that we are not the ones in control of our destiny. It's about taking a deep breath and remembering that the One who created this world is the same One who knows what our tomorrow looks like. I'm best friends with the One who runs this place. And that's a thought that makes me happy.
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