When Everything Breaks Open
What is it that separates Matt Morris from so many other recording artists? When you peel back all the layers – the diverse moods, styles and topics he sings about – there is one common denominator: They reflect Matt’s dedication to living and writing about a meaningful life.
In an increasingly rushed and rude world, in which politicians and talk
radio hosts hurl epithets and insults, where honest disagreements are
shouted down by dishonest rhetoric, Matt Morris gives voice to our best
instincts. “We’re looking for a way to make it better/Looking for a way
to change the weather,” he sings in “Live Forever” from his new album
When Everything Breaks Open on Tennman Records. On the album, Matt
embraces the personal and political, the romantic and the spiritual, in
a way that recalls Stevie Wonder’s 1970s streak of masterworks.
He can build epic emotional epiphanies such as “Forgiveness” and “Eternity,” and switch gears with the rhythmic “Money.” He is bold and fearless with sarcasm on “The Un-American,” where Morris holds up a mirror to the demagogues of divisiveness and asks: “What if you’re the un-American?” The dynamic singer is also at home with the ambitious “Don’t You Dare”, on memorable love songs like “Just Before the Morning,” and shows his compassion with his message in “In This House.”
When Everything Breaks Open was produced in Austin, Texas, and in Los
Angeles by Charlie Sexton and Tennman label founder Justin Timberlake –
two names you wouldn’t intuitively expect to team up in the studio.
“Charlie and Justin can be seen as representative of different sides of
my music,” Morris says. “There is an earthy, rooted, sometimes
melancholy side to some of my writing that is in line with Charlie’s
personality and approach. There is a playful, high-energy, soulful side
that speaks to who Justin is, as a person and producer. The two people
are very different from one another, but they both have impeccable
instincts.”
Morris has known Timberlake since the early 1990s, when the two were child co-stars of that era’s edition of “The All New Mickey Mouse Club.” Morris was on the show for four seasons, from 1991-1995. Even before what was popularly known as MMC, Morris was a stage savvy performer. His father is country artist Gary Morris, former Broadway actor and once one of country’s biggest stars. His parents divorced when he was young; he lived with his mother in Denver, but on summer vacations, he would often join his father not just on the road, but on stage.
In addition to Timberlake, Morris’ friends and contemporaries from the show included luminaries such as Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Keri Russell, Ryan Gosling, and JC Chasez. While many of his cohorts leveraged their Disney Channel exposure to successful pop and acting careers, Morris craved teenage normality, and the family headed back to Denver. “At 15, all I really wanted to do was hang out, get my learner’s permit, and not work” Morris says. “I didn’t want to be a celebrity; I wanted to be a kid."
During the summer between his Junior and Senior years in high school, Matt worked as a volunteer health activist for the non-profit organization, Amigos de las Americas. He worked in a remote village in Paraguay, South America, teaching hygiene to locals and assisting with sanitation. Matt’s experience with Amigos was a precursor to the work he would do as a partner artist with the Flobot’s non-profit, FightWithTools.org, an organization committed to providing support on many levels to communities in need.
Morris reunited as a collaborator for some of his fellow Mouseketeers as they pursued their music careers. Morris and Aguilera co-wrote five songs on her Stripped album, including the hit “Can’t Hold Us Down”; they also wrote Kelly Clarkson’s hit, “Miss Independent.” Morris teamed up with Timberlake to craft “The Only Promise That Remains” – a duet performed by Timberlake and Reba McEntire for the Reba Duets album. The pair also wrote “All Over Again (Another Song)” produced by mega-producer Rick Rubin, for Justin’s 2008 FutureSex/LoveSounds.
“To write for another person is to channel that person’s artistic vision,” Morris says. “I work to become aligned with their intentions, and allow my words to speak as close to their perspectives as possible. I think that’s why it is so easy for me to write with Justin, and why my time with Christina yielded so many songs. I know them; we have a shared context.”
Morris’ own music occupies a time and space entirely different from the songs he has collaborated on. In 2003, Matt released the DIY album, UnSpoken, and over the last couple of years has toured with Grammy award winners The Indigo Girls and Joan Osborne. In 2008, he performed at the Bonnaroo Music Festival, which spawned a five song EP – Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances.
All these years of work paved the way for When Everything Breaks Open, which was conceived in a Middle Eastern restaurant in New York City. “Justin had just performed on “Saturday Night Live” for the first time, and I was there to support him and watch the show. At dinner after the show, he told me he was going to start a label of his own, and that he wanted to sign me as his artist. He said he was going to help me share my music with the world, and I believed him.”
On When Everything Breaks Open, Matt Morris has grown from an award-winning songwriter to a multi-talented recording artist with the first ambitious release of 2010.
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Matt Morris at NYC Borders on Thursday, 7/15
Matt will be performing & signing copies of his debut album, When Everything Breaks Open, at the Borders at 461 Park Avenue in New York City this Thursday 7/15 at 1pm. We hope to see you there!
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"Live Forever" Video
Check out the new video for "Live Forever"
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Matt Morris opening for The Indigo Girls
Matt Morris opening for The Indigo Girls
05.08.09 - Edmonds Center for the Arts - Edmonds, WA
http://www.edmondscenterforthearts.org
8:00 p.m. Ticket Prices - $45.00 / $50.00 / $55.00
05.09.09 - Edmonds Center for the Arts - Edmonds, WA
http://www.edmondscenterforthearts.org
8:00 p.m. Ticket Prices - $45.00 / $50.00 / $55.00
05.10.09 - McDonald Theatre - Eugene, OR
http://www.mcdonaldtheatre.com
7:00 p.m. - Doors Open / 8:00 p.m. Show
Tickets $32.00 Advance / Day of Show 5:30 p.m. Box Office - $35.00
05.12.09 - Crest Theater - Sacramento, CA
http://www.thecrest.com
7:00 p.m. - Doors Open / 8:00 p.m. Show Tickets $35.00 / $45.00
05.13.09 - Zellerbach Auditorium - Berkeley, CA
http://www.ticketmaster.com
8:00 p.m. Show Tickets $38.50
05.14.09 - El Rey Theater - Los Angeles, CA
http://www.theelrey.com
7:00 p.m. Doors Open 8:00 p.m. Show
05.16.09 - House of Blues - Anaheim, CA
http://www.houseofblues.com
8:00 p.m. Doors Open 9:00 p.m. Show Tickets $32.50 / $35.00
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Matt Morris
For Immediate Release
September 11, 2008
Matt Morris To Release “Backstage at Bonnaroo” EP on September 23rd
On Tour With Joan Osborne For 22 Dates This Fall
On September 23rd, Matt Morris will release Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances, a five-song EP released by Tennman Records. The EP provides audiences a first look at an incredible artist who is unafraid to speak his mind. That same week, Matt will embark on a 22-date US tour supporting Grammy-award winner Joan Osborne on her Little Wild One tour.
Matt Morris brought down the house when he kicked off this year’s Bonnaroo Music Festival. The concert generated a substantial media buzz including an “up-and-comer” nod from Rolling Stone Magazine. Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances features songs from an impromptu backstage performance recorded during the festival. Matt was accompanied by guitarist Charlie Sexton, who is also co-producing Matt’s upcoming album. “We'd never played these songs together that way - acoustically,” says Matt, “and we didn't even bother to talk about the arrangement of the songs beforehand. I remember having this sense that we were capturing something really special here.”
Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances is our first glimpse of Matt Morris, who will release an album next year. Blessed with an incredible voice, Matt Morris often draws comparisons to Freddy Mercury and Jeff Buckley. Tennman Records Chairman and CEO Justin Timberlake says, “He’s kind of like Ray La Montagne meets Elton John meets Stevie Wonder meets Rufus Wainwright. It’s time for the birth of the hybrid artist.”
Matt is well known for writing songs for Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, and Justin Timberlake. However, the songs on Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances have a much different feel. His latest songwriting is filled with an urgency and depth that speak of the struggles and challenges people face. The stripped down performances on the EP draws in the listener to focus on Matt’s soulful lyrics. On "Money”, Matt calls on listeners to examine what money means to us as individuals, and as members of a global community. “We expect a lot from our money. We want it to stretch, and multiply, and make us happy. Money motivates us to work, to kill, to betray - and yet, I'm not convinced that money is inherently evil. Money feeds, houses, clothes, educates... when we allow it to,” says Morris. “We're an affluent nation; a generous people. But, we're also obsessed with our money, and what we can get for it.”
Backstage at Bonnaroo and other Acoustic Performances is a powerful introduction to Matt Morris. The five-song EP will be available during Matt’s tour as well as on iTunes, Amazon and other online stores starting September 23rd.
Matt Morris Tour Dates (* opening for Joan Osborne)
9/20 - Walnut Room – Denver, CO (solo headline show)
9/25 - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Brooklyn, NY *
9/26 - Calvin Theater & PAC - Northampton, MA *
9/27 - The Ridgefield Playhouse - Ridgefield, CT *
9/29 - Ram's Head Tavern - Annapolis, MD *
9/30 - Toad's Place - Richmond, VA *
10/1 - Bomhard Theatre - Louisville, KY *
10/3 - Belcourt Theater - Nashville, TN *
10/4 - The Orange Peel - Asheville, NC *
10/5 - Variety Playhouse - Atlanta, GA *
10/9 - Belly Up Tavern - Solana Beach, CA *
10/10 - The El Rey Theatre - Los Angeles, CA *
10/11 - Great American Music Hall - San Francisco, CA *
10/13 - The Triple Door - Seattle, WA *
10/14 - Aladdin Theatre - Portland, OR *
10/17 - Aggie Theatre - Ft. Collins, CO *
10/18 - Whiskey Roadhouse - Council Bluffs, IA *
10/20 - Varsity Theatre - Minneapolis, MN *
10/21 - Park West Theatre, Chicago, IL *
10/23 - Mr. Smalls - Millvale, PA *
10/24 - Somerville Theatre - Somerville, MA *
10/25 - Highline Ballroom - New York, NY *
10/26 - World Cafe Live - Philadelphia, PA *
For more information on Matt Morris, please visit www.musicallies.com/resources/mattmorris
Or contact Crissa Requate (crissa@musicallies.com) at Music Allies, 828-252-6300
For more information on Tennman Records, please visit www.tennmanrecords.com
Or contact Sonia Muckle (sonia@m2mconstruction.com) at M2M Construction
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