Who Is Matt Roy? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

This week our spotlight shines on an artist, whose debut EP, Wildflower, made us stop in our tracks! Matt Roy,  a Nashville-transplant, is a true artist and singer-songwriter that deserves all the support in the industry.

Growing up in New Jersey, Roy picked up the guitar at an early age. Drawing inspiration from artists in different genres, such as Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen, the singer knew the importance of a song. “I was playing gigs at a pretty young age,” shared the entertainer, as he reflected on his upbringing.

At the age of twelve, Roy began to perform in New Jersey, New York, and the tristate area, even learning to craft a song. Just a few years later, the singer was taking trips to Nashville to hone his talent even more. “When I was about 16-17, I took a couple of trips to Nashville and I figured out you could write songs for other people, you could release records,” shared Roy, adding later, “At that time, writing songs became sort of a more serious life and career decision [for me].”

Roy continued to play shows in the tristate area anywhere he could, including at bars and at local events, until he could head off to college. “I had my sights set on moving to Nashville and playing music,” shared the singer, when asked about his decision to attend Belmont University. “It was a pretty easy decision for me.”

The Turning Point:

With his dreams in tow, Roy headed to Nashville to attend Belmont University to work on his craft and learn more about the music business. Roy’s desire was to focus on songwriting and grow his skills. “It was a total dream come true for me to be in Nashville,” shared the singer.

Just before graduating, Roy inked a publishing deal with BMG Music. The singer-songwriter earned cuts from artists like Kane Brown, Chris Young, and Adam Doleac. Roy even earned his first multi-week number one single with Chris Janson’s song “Done.”

“I wrote that song about two years into my publishing deal,” shared Roy. “It gave me a lot of legitimacy and proved to myself and others that I could do this. It was a huge milestone in my career and something I’m ultra, ultra proud of.”

Roy spent time cultivating songs for other artists, until he finally decided to put out his first-ever artist project.

Today:

Just last month, Roy released his debut EP, Wildflower. The record features five high-caliber songs, all co-written by the singer-songwriter. “This EP is sort of the foundation of hopefully a long career doing this, and I’m going to take it step by step, and build this thing from the ground up,” shared the artist.

Each of the songs were carefully chosen by Roy to record. He wanted the record to showcase emotion, his artistry, and true-blue country songwriting. The record started off with the title track, “Wildflower,” which Roy thought was too good of a song to not release.

“I had the first four to five lines of that song written down and we just started writing that song line by line, and let the song guide us where we wanted to go,” shared the singer. This process is unique, as artists typically head into a write with an idea or a name ready, instead of lyrics.

One of our favorites on the record, “When You Lose Someone,” was inspired by a loss Roy suffered. Despite that notion, the song is relatable for anyone who has ever experienced a loss, a break-up or heartbreak in general. Roy shared that he will be continuing to push this song, as well as, “Wildflower,” and “Morning In New Orleans,” as the year progresses.

Fans can anticipate Roy to let the record breathe a little over the next few months before the singer puts out more new music. “I’m itching to play these songs on the road for people and get some reactions.” Roy is the real deal and fans should definitely keep him on their radar! We are already huge fans.

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