Matt Collabos

For the second time, during his radio interview with Andrew Cook, Matt mentioned the same handful of artists that he'd be interested in working with. Being the Nosy Nelly that I am, I poked around the internet to find some info on these people.

So, Gavin. Well, Matt has a well-documented history of mentioning his desire to have a musical style and career similar to Gavin. Which I think is great. Their musical sensibilities reallly dovetail perfectly, and I think that's a realistic type of career goal for Matt, definitely. That's well-covered territory.

I actually enjoy Musiq Soulchild myself, and I was ecstatic when Matt said his name. I was getting nervous that Matt was leaning quite heavily into the "rock" side of music, and starting to abandon the "soul" part of it that makes Matt so entrancing to me. But then he said Musiq, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Anyway, Musiq has a cool soulful vibe, but kind of funky, and even passionate and sensitive at times. So Matt.

And then there's this James Morrison guy. I didn't have the slightest clue who that was, so I had to truly investigate him. Oh boy, he's a gooder. Oddly enough, I heard one of his songs in Hollywood Video, of all places, a couple of months ago, and it stopped me in my tracks. I was pissed because I didn't catch the name of the song or the guy singing it, but loved the Yamin-style voice and soulful pop sound. As fate would have it, when I YouTubed James Morrison, that very song popped up. I'll link it, because it's seriously beautiful. Right in Matt's wheelhouse. I could really envision Matt singing something like it.

Anybody have any feelings about these artists? Do they represent pretty accurately what y'all envision Matt heading towards musically? For me, they absolutely do, although I've learned in a very short period of time to never doubt Giraud's musical instincts. I'll link some videos so peeps who may not be familiar with these guys can check it out. Ta-ta for now!

The James Morrison song of which I spoke:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWdC-ELzfYE

And the Overstock.com commercial song!:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNprlUpq69w

Musiq Soulchild's funky side:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFwTdrhPUr8

And his tender side:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsVIPcqZzpk

Gavin killing TOMT:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUyDZa3uSYc&feature=PlayList&p=1AB9CF63ADC567BA&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=72

And just a personal favorite of mine:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AN_grtx8rPw

Oooh I am lovin these comparisons much more than Fray or 1R. I agree with you Ovenmitt, that I was actually starting to get a bit worried because Matt was talking alot about doing Rock/pop type music and I first fell in love with him because of his Soulful/bluesy tone, I really didn't want him to abandon that.

I LOVED that first James Morrison song. I have never heard of him before, and was curious because just recently Matt had begun to bring up his name more and more. While listening to him (Morrison) I was actually evisioning Matt coming back to Idol next year and singing this as his single. It totally fits what I hope for him to do musically.

I have always been a huge fan of Musiq soulchild, but when Matt brought up his name I was like, really? I never pictured their styles being that alike. But I must say that after listening to some Musiq tracks I agree, AGAIN, that Matt would totally kill at this style. I love Musiq because his music means so much to him, and he has a way of singing music that makes you feel every lyric.

All in all, I am more confident now in Matt's ability to get himself right into the music scene. Before I was just hoping that he makes a nice little niche, But I truely believe now that he can go really big. Only a few special musicians can pull off real Soul/blues with passion and verve and Make it mean something to a diverse group of people. Matt has this gift. I only wish that he were able to sing more on tour so that he can show off more of this side of his music. We'll just have to wait til his solo stuff after tour...

Waiting patiently to hear more about this "Weight of the World"

Yes, Lana!

I'm so glad you are feeling that James Morrison song. I thought the same thing, "This sounds like it could be a Giraud single".

And I completely agree about Matt being able to take his sound mainstream. When you compare all those musicians, it gives a really clear picture of what Matt's sound might be like. And he can interpret these kinds of songs so perfectly! Eeep! Okay, calm down Leah, it's just name-dropping......

Also, another thing about this Morrison guy. In my researching, I found out that he has worked with Ryan Tedder. This Tedder guy really gets around! And, apparently, is a hit-making machine (for TWO Idols currently on the charts, no less). Coincidentally, ANOTHER kind of soulful musician tweeted Matt recently about maybe working together, named Josh Hoge. Never heard of him either, but he's worked with Ne-Yo (not my thing) and, you guessed it, Tedder. I feel like there's too many connections happening here for Matt not to be making some serious plans. Colbie and Morrison are both Universal artists, which is another connection (not to mention Kara wrote for Colbie's new album!). THEN, Matt mentioned "pulling a Castro" on his radio interview with Adam Cook today. WTF? Castro and Musiq are with Atlantic, and we all know Kara is A&R for Warner, their parent company. Even Bad Boy is a Warner label! I think that's why Matt got invited to that Diddy party.

Okay, so, Warner-Atlantic-Kara-Castro-Diddy-Musiq.

Universal-Colbie-Kara-Tedder-LiLo-Morrison.

Those are my two hunches. That maybe those two companies are sniffing out Matt. I'm not even gonna say that it's "going out on a limb" to assume this, either. Maybe it's just the conspiracy theorist in me, but I think that Matt will honestly sign major. I think it's simply a matter of when and with whom.

OvenMitt!!! Have I ever told you that I absolutely love your thoughts? I can totally see Matt doing a sick combination of these types of music. But honestly, since Matt has so many people he's thinking of collaborating w/ in such different genres of music, I think it'll make him even more in demand...kinda like a Ryan Leslie/Ne-Yo/Ryan Tedder type who can write & produce hits for other artists first, & build up anticipation for his album. I actually sent him a tweet yesterday of a song by Ryan Leslie called "Gibberish" then like an hour later, he tweeted this:

Quote :

I have too much music music in my head to worry about lyrics.. -Matt Giraud

Btw, the concept of the song "gibberish" is really kinda cool. There are no lyrics to it, it's just the melody for lyrics to a song he would later write. It's actually just demonstrating the song-writing process. I'm not saying that his tweet was a response to mine, but it does kinda make sense.

I think Matt's response is actually saying that he's been writing instrumental music and not necessarily lyrics. I think he's probably been having "gibberish" moments as he's been writing, but just hasn't come up w/ lyrics to all his songs yet. Maybe that's where his collaborations will meet. I think Matt's got some tricks up his sleeve & we'll be seeing him collaborating w/ a lot of his celebrity friends.

Here's the link to the Ryan Leslie's "Gibberish". It's kinda long cause it shows him making the song. But watch it all the way through. It's pretty cool.

Loved your post OvenMitt. Very thoughtful and insightful as always.

I also got a very positive vibe from Matt during this interview.
It seems to me that there is interest in him out there for sure, but it will take time maybe just as long as Jason Castro. But I wouldn't mind waiting that long if he gets a great deal with a major label just like Jason. Awwww. I can't wait for that day.

I love that he mentions Gavin de Graw and James Morrison. Those are perfect examples of careers that Matt could have in the future. JMHO.
Especially Gavin! I love him and it would be a dream come true if both Matt and Gavin work together. Maybe Matt could open for him !

Gavin's new album "Free" is great. Listen to these songs. I think Matt could sing this type of music too.

Dancing Shoes


Stay:



Gavin's latest album is not as commercial as his previous records but he is already an established artist so he can do that.

Matt will have to come with a record true to him but at the same time mainstream. I think he can do that without any problem. His voice and sound is just perfect for radio.
I was also thinking that he could form a band like The Fray or 1R and he could be the lead singer at the piano. That could also work...

But it will all depend on the label offers. I wouldn't mind either way because I love both styles on Matt. The soul pop rock or the bluesy pop sound both are great for me.
I think Matt has tons of potential and with the right songs and producers he could have a big career! That's why I want him to get signed so much! With all those resources he is destined to become a very successful artist. JMHO.

Yay! I love waking up to find new juicy posts.

I'm so glad y'all are excited about discussing this stuff. I know, for me, it's good to get all these thoughts out and at least speculate, even if it may be off the mark. Too many Matt thoughts and my brain ceases to function properly.

Sgr, I loved that Ben Folds song you posted. It made me imagine how incredible it would be for Matt to have an orchestra backing him one day. Woah. Also, I am intrigued by the Yobi studio time thing. I never put too much stock into the Yobi thing beyond that it was helping Matt keep his name out there, but what you said makes total sense. It's a dual benefit for him, and if that's what he arranged, then I give Matt props for being cunning! Crys also mentioned upthread that perhaps it was a good introduction for Matt to the world of producing, which she and I both think would be another awesome avenue for him to persue. Again, the thought of Matt producing other peoples' music never occurred to me, but now that the seed has been planted, it seems like a no-brainer with all that talent he's got oozing out of him.

Hey Mattyg93, I'm glad to see that you are hopeful about Matt's career. I know you've been pretty nervous in the past, as I think we all have been at various points, but I too feel more calm knowing that Matt will be able to take his time and cultivate a meaningful career rather than it being a rushed and passionless affair. BTW, the bridge of that Dancing Shoes song gave me chills. Gavin really has adapted his musical style over the years, in a very good way. He's really getting into the crux of his musical identity, which I agree is something you've got to kind of wait until you're more established to do. I think it was you that mentioned doing something a bit more commercial on the first album to pull in the fanbase, which got me thinking.....

I believe it was Lana that talked about that James Morrison song being a good single for Matt. At first I was thought, "yeah, something like that, but not THAT SONG specifically. It's already someone else's song!". But then it hit me: lots of artists record their own songs to little fanfare, but then give it to another artist who makes it a hit. Prince did that with "Nothing Compares 2 U", which Sinead O'Conner then recorded and had much success with. And, curiously, Matt himself mentioned another song like that, "We're All Alone" by Boz Scaggs. That guy has a unique voice, to say the least, but Rita Coolidge did a version of the song that was much more palatable and popular. So, if other artists can do this, then why not Matt? Not that James Morrison's version of "You Give Me Something" is substandard by ANY means, but he's a more popular artist in Brittain, and isn't so well-known here. Matt could totally re-record that song and have a hit with it. As if he's gonna take my advice, right? Hehe. But it's a good thought, anyway. Who knows, maybe he'll actually get a chance to work with James Morrison himself, and they can write an brand new song that's just as awesome. You never know......


To demonstrate my point, here's Boz Scaggs' version of "We're All Alone":