Meet Kyle Matthew | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kyle Matthew and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kyle, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
All of life is risk. Even the so-called “safe” paths we’ve been told are “less risky” are, in fact, riddled with risk. So much so, that oftentimes such safe paths are inherently more risky.

Everyone risks. To be alive is to risk. Thus it’s not whether or not one risks, but more so a matter of what exactly they’re risking. Safety? Comfort? Dreams? Their true self?

The impulse to mitigate risk is a design feature, not a bug. As is the impulse to take the risk anyway. It seems to me that many people are so driven by fear (of failure, of getting hurt, of looking silly, etc) that the system simply overloads and they default to doing nothing – which arguably is the biggest risk of all!

Being naturally more risk–prone (or perhaps less driven by fear), I’ve taken many risks in my life and career – some which ended in failure, some which ended in success, and some which are yet to be determined. But c’est la vie. I learn what I can from the failures, celebrate the hell out of the successes, and parlay the experience and energy from both into the next.

At the end of the day, I believe life is meant to be lived. So, get your ass off the bench, get in the game, and make a play.

Risky? for sure.

Worth it? only one way to find out…

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Thanks to my stint in corporate America, I’m very business minded. And can appreciate the business of music that surrounds me in Nashville. However, so much of the industry has become less about art and more about entertainment. Less about a life that’s been lived and more about what will sell. Less about authenticity, more about gimmicks. Less human, more machine. And while there’s certainly a lot of money to be made with that approach, it just doesn’t interest me.

For me, music is sacred. A language that transcends all barriers. When it comes to my music specifically, I simply write about things I’ve lived or have seen others live. I’m less concerned with trying to write #1 hits and more interested in writing songs I love and believe in and would die for. Why? Because they’re part of me, the imprinting of my humanity upon the world.

Even more so, I often don’t feel like I even “try” to write songs. It’s almost as if they’re given to me. And the only work I have to do is to draw it out, unearth it, and give it to the world. Something more akin to the task of an archeologist than a team of “professional” songwriters. And many times what I think the song initially is or wants to be ends up being quite different when all is said and done: ie “Hey, this is looking like a woolly mammoth” vs “Well, would you look at that – I guess it’s a T-Rex after all!”

One reason I believe my music continues to be so well received by such a broad audience is that the person singing is the same person with the scars. Know matter how good of an actor you are, you simply cannot fake the energy that emanates from my music. And I think people feel that – especially live. And I think, amidst the fake and photoshopped culture we find ourselves in, they’re hungrier for it now more than ever.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Nashville has so much to offer for sure. Though given how dialed-in and focused I’ve been on my mission, I haven’t spent a lot of time exploring all the options. That said, here are a few of my favorite things:

1. Leiper’s Fork, TN

This hidden gem in the middle of nowhere about 45 min southwest of downtown Nash is where I first cut my teeth when I moved to town. Feels like home to me. Picture a country vibe that leans upscale with down-to-earth people. It’s also where a lot of well-known artists live and hang. Grab breakfast at The Country Boy. Check out the open mic on Thursday evening at Fox & Locke. Enjoy a bottle of wine and cigar down by the creek at Wines in the Fork. And for the bourbon lovers out there, tour the historic Leiper’s Fork Distillery. Thank me later.

2. Printer’s Alley

When the locals go downtown Nash, this is where they go. A few blocks of alleyway lined with bars, clubs, eateries, karaoke, etc. And, of course, live music. My favorite spot here is Bourbon Street Blues. Absolutely killer lives blues music, hence the name. Wash it down with some authentic New York pie from Sicilian Pizza.

3. Cigar Lounges

I’m unapologetically a big cigar guy. And Nash has a lot of great lounges to offer. The thing I love about cigar culture is that you can walk into any lounge anywhere, meet a perfect stranger, disagree on everything from sports to politics to religion, and 90 min later, walk out with a new friend. In a society that seems to grow increasingly polarized, nothing beats the unity and community you find in a cigar lounge. Here are a few to check out:

– Downtown Nash: Bar Cigar Especial, The Ariston, Red Phone Booth
– Franklin: Poppa P’s, Franklin Cigar, Crown Cigars & Ales
– Spring Hill: The Mission

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Yes and amen. So many others – intentionally and unintentionally – have contributed to my success. I think of all of the people who’ve encouraged me to keep going over the years, as well as the ones who told me to quit. The people who’ve loved my music, as well as the ones who thought it sucked. The people who believed I could make it, and the ones who didn’t think I had a chance.

Perhaps one that stands out from the rest is my late grandmother, Mary Ann. Though not an ounce of musical ability in her body, she loved music and always delighted in my performances. But even more than that, throughout the years, she would always ask “Are you happy?” No matter who you were, where you were, or what you were doing at any given point in life, what she hoped the most for you above all else is that you were happy.

As the dementia set in and stole her mind, she would come to forget many things. But you know what she never forgot? To ask you – with those sparkling eyes and a whispering smile… “Are you happy?”

That question came to haunt me in the years after her death, wherein I found myself not all that happy in life. For too long, I had let too many people hold too much real estate in my head – “Kyle, you’re great at music. But you can’t make a living doing that. You should go do something else with your life.” And so I did. And I was miserable.

It all came to head one day when I woke up, realizing I had been spending my life building everyone else’s dream except mine. Was I happy? No. And how could I be when I was robbing the world of the gift I was given to give it?

And that was the tipping point for me. The plot twist, if you will. I left the life I knew, and set out to become who I was born to be.

Amazing how three simple words have the power to change your life if you let them. And so I ask you, “Are you happy?”

Answer at your own risk…

Website: https://hyperfollow.com/kylematthew

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/i.am.kylematthew/

Image Credits
Tyler Shoemaker (pics with cigar, not the piano pics)