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Mat Kearney Artist Profile | Biography And Discography | NewReleaseToday



Discography



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    Music Videos
  • "Air I Breathe (Bonus Track)" from Just Kids
    Views 1961 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "All I Have" from City Of Black & White
    Views 2467 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "All I Have (acoustic) [iTunes bonus video]" from City Of Black & White
    Views 1298 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Better Than I Used To Be" from CRAZYTALK
    Views 967 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Breathe In Breathe Out" from Nothing Left To Lose
    Views 1460 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Can't Look Back" from January Flower
    Views 327 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Closer to Love" from City Of Black & White
    Views 3647 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Coming Home (Oregon) (Bonus Track)" from Just Kids
    Views 1178 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Face To Face" from CRAZYTALK
    Views 1067 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Grand Canyon" from January Flower
    Views 323 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Heartbeat" from Just Kids
    Views 2871 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Hey Mama" from Young Love
    Views 2661 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Kings & Queens" from CRAZYTALK
    Views 950 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Memorized" from CRAZYTALK
    Views 661 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Nothing Left to Lose" from Nothing Left To Lose
    Views 2910 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "One Black Sheep" from Just Kids
    Views 1283 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "One Heart" from Just Kids
    Views 2233 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Pontiac" from January Flower
    Views 349 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Powerless" from January Flower
    Views 447 Views | Comments 0 Comments
  • "Ships In The Night" from Young Love
    Views 3893 Views | Comments 1 Comments
  • "Undeniable" from Nothing Left To Lose
    Views 2639 Views | Comments 0 Comments



    Latest News
    Mat Kearney Announces Upcoming Album
    (Thursday, February 04, 2021)
    Mat Kearney and Wife Announce Second Child On the Way
    (Tuesday, December 03, 2019)
    Mat Kearney Drops New Single
    (Wednesday, November 22, 2017)
    NEEDTOBREATHE Return With "H A R D L O V E" Available July 15th
    (Wednesday, April 06, 2016)
    Adam Cappa Gets Married
    (Tuesday, September 15, 2015)
    Dara Maclean Releases Video for "Blameless"
    (Monday, March 16, 2015)
    Finding Favour Wraps Recording New Album
    (Thursday, March 05, 2015)
    Mat Kearney's Just Kids Debuts in Top 20 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart
    (Thursday, March 05, 2015)
    Ellie Holcomb Expecting Second Child
    (Friday, February 27, 2015)
    Jamie Grace Breaks Out the Banjo for Roadshow Prep
    (Friday, January 09, 2015)
    Mat Kearney Announces 'Just Kids' Album and Nationwide Tour
    (Wednesday, January 07, 2015)
    Prayers Needed for Rapper Canon Following Accident
    (Tuesday, January 06, 2015)
    MercyMe Faces Off In Western Wear
    (Thursday, November 20, 2014)
    Mat Kearney's New Song is for the Ducks
    (Friday, September 05, 2014)
    ARTIST PROFILE
    Mat Kearney
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    Years before he toured the world as a platinum selling, boundary-breaking artist, Mat Kearney grew up in Eugene, Oregon. It was during those teenage years that he developed his love for classic songwriting — the kind that transcends generations and genres. He’d strum chords on a friend’s acoustic guitar, paving the way for a career that would eventually take him far away from Eugene.

    Much has changed since those days in the Pacific Northwest. Even so, Kearney hasn’t forgotten his musical roots. On his fifth album, CRAZYTALK, he mixes his most timeless songwriting to date with a wide, genre-bending set of interests. There are organic instruments, electronic samples, chill house grooves, tropical sounds, and collaborations with DJs like AFSHeeN, filous, and RAC all glued together by an emphasis on ageless hooks and thought-provoking lyrics. The result is one of the most adventurous, nuanced albums of his acclaimed career, filled with EDM drops one minute and acoustic guitars the next.

    It’s a sound that nods to Kearney’s history as a melody-driven songwriter, even as it pushes him into new territory.

    “Back in Oregon, I was a punk skater kid w ho fell in love with Lauryn Hill, Tribe Called Quest, and Bel Biv Devoe,” he says. “At the same time, I also loved playing my buddy’s guitar. In a way, I’ll always be that kid, drawing from the influences I grew up with.”

    Combing classic songs with modern, beat-heavy production, CRAZYTALK offers up a sound that’s both cerebral and visceral. It’s music for the head and the heart, but it’s also music for the dance floor.

    “At my core, I’m a songwriter,” adds Kearney, who produced half of the album in his home studio in Nashville. “I wanted to explore new production ideas with this album, though, to see how I could frame these songs in a different way. CRAZYTALK has some deep house influences, some African samples, some tropical sounds, and a lot of electronics — things that wouldn’t normally be found in a singer/songwriter record — juxtaposed with some classic songs. It’s a sound that really occupies its own lane.”

    Inspired in part by the birth of his first child in January 2017, Kearney found himself writing CRAZYTALK‘s lyrics with a new, mature perspective. He’d been a traveling songwriter for more than a decade, releasing three Top 20 albums along the way. The sound he helped introduce with his major-label debut, 2006’s Nothing Left to Lose — a record that combined the bright sounds of pop music the with darker, harder-hitting influence of hip-hop — had since become one of the most common genres of the 21st century, with chart-topping artists like Ed Sheeran and Twenty One Pilots all following in his footsteps. His legacy already established, Kearney felt comfortable broadening his songwriting, filling CRAZYTALK with songs that embraced an older, wiser point of view.

    “I realized I didn’t need to make every song a ‘young love story,'” he says. “I’m comfortable writing music from a perspective of having been around the block a few times, because that’s how I am in real life. The result is some beautiful, wise songs that sound like they’ve been well-traveled.”

    The album’s opening track, “Better Than I Used to Be,” takes a look at those early days in Kearney’s backseat. It’s a song about growing tall without forgetting your roots, laced with vocal effects, programmed percussion, and the familiar croon of Kearney’s voice. That voice takes center stage on slower tracks like the modern, minimalist “Memorized” and a nuanced cover of Sade’s “By Your Side,” with both songs proving that CRAZYTALK doesn’t need lush, layered production to pack a punch.

    On album highlights like “Kings & Queens,” though, Kearney makes room for an arsenal of instruments. He played many of them himself, beefing up the mix with digital samples and electronic flourishes. The album’s songs were written in a similar way, with Kearney taking inspiration from organic instruments as well as synthesized loops.

    “I’m a 50/50 guy,” he explains of his songwriting process. “I’ll sit down with my acoustic guitar and write a song, but I’ll also start with a beat, and then expand it into a song, like it was a hip-hop track. Those worlds can be opposites, but I’ve always played with both. I wrote the song ‘Face to Face’ on a ukulele, then added some percussion that sounded like 90s R&B. I wrote ‘Sleeping at the Wheel with country songwriting legend Ross Copperman, then took it back to my studio and added an African sample with from a Bela Fleck record.”

    Released May 4th, CRAZYTALK also marks Kearney’s first project as an independent artist. A major-label veteran whose previous albums were issued by Columbia and Republic, Kearney felt the need to create his fifth album with complete freedom.

    “I’m now footing every bill and paying for every flight,” he says, “but it’s beyond worth it. At this season of my life, putting out my fifth record, I really needed to take control creatively. I needed to take my own chances and combine these sounds that’ve been running through my head since I was a kid. I knew that some of it would sound like crazy talk to others, but that just gave me more fuel for the fire… as well as a name for the album.”

    Entry last edited by NRTeamAdmin on 02.02.21
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    NRTeam Artist Comments (39)
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    Solar | Posted May 17, 2024
    I'm grateful for the insights provided in this blog post. Thank you! Solar

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    =) | Posted October 26, 2013
    God bless you!

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    Not bad at all | Posted September 30, 2013
    Matt Kearney adds an interesting sound to the radio mix. His songs have good messages and he sings very well

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    music | Posted September 10, 2013
    One of my favorite artist! First heard of him when he came out with the song "Nothing Left to Lose" some years ago. I also love recent songs from him such as "Closer to Love", "Down" and "Ships in the Night". Such a cool artist with a unique music style and awesome voice!

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    super stuff | Posted May 20, 2013
    I've yet to hear anything from him that I don't like. Keep it up!

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    kmac0378

    Lostage93 (50)
    Rhythym | Posted February 02, 2013
    He has the rhythm of Michael Buble with great fused pop and Hip-Hop. I like his style.

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    Ships In The Night | Posted August 08, 2012
    I wasnt a big fan of his before. But since hearing Ships In The Night, I'm hooked :)

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    kmac0378

    acox_ (4)
    New fan! | Posted July 14, 2012
    I never really listened to Mat Keaarney until I heard his song Ships in the Night on Air1. I knew of him beforehand, but never really listened to his music. I'm happy that said song caught my attention because I love his music! I like how his newest album is more personal than the others he has made; it makes him seem so much more relatable.

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    kmac0378

    Nicole7 (4)
    ♥♥♥♥♥ | Posted July 09, 2012
    I seriously can't get enough of Mat Kearney's music. I have an addiction to it. I haven't heard any of his songs that I don't like yet.

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
    Kearney! | Posted June 28, 2012
    I first heard of Mat Kearney from a friend, who told me that I HAD to listen to him. I'm glad I did! Fantastic music!

    Comments(0)  |  Add Comment
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