We were lucky to catch up with Matt Grigsby recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Matt, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I like to say I came out the womb singing, as disturbing an image as that is, and I was involved in every music project I could be as a small child, be it at elementary school or at church. But the real moment I learned how powerful music could be wasn’t from a performance or a teacher, it was actually from an infomercial. I remember being up past my bedtime when an advertisement for a Paul McCartney and the Wings album came on the TV. They were singing all these old Beatles songs and the camera pans over the crowd of mostly middle aged and older people. At first they’re all smiles enjoying the music and then I watched as some of the audience slowly begin to break down into tears. The songs were able to transport them back to the simple, shiny days of their youth. Being able to send people back in time, to be able to affect people on an emotional level they may not understand, that’s power. And at that moment I knew I wanted that power as well. I wouldn’t actually start to learn an instrument or write songs until much later when I went to college and met other musicians, but that’s the moment that always stands out in my mind. Never underestimate the efficiency of an infomercial!

Matt, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a full time musician and songwriter that performs regularly throughout the DFW and beyond, both as a solo artist and with a band, the Matt Grigsby Fiasco. I’m also the president and co founder of the Denton Songwriters Guild, an organization committed to facilitate the Dentonite pursuit in the art of songwriting through education and interactions with other songwriters. Through my role with the DSG I’ve also become the director of the Denton Folk Festival. Beyond performing my own material I’ve also worked with others, either as a lyricist putting words to someone else’s music, or vice versa, putting music to a lyricist’s words. I’ve done studio work as a professional vocalist and am also an advanced player of the Native American Flute. I’ve been able to do music full time for about 6 years. I have a few different recording projects in the works right now. I’m working on a 30 song acoustic anthology that will cover everything from some of my very first songs all the way to modern day. The anthology will not include any of the songs that will be featured on my upcoming record, which I hope to release in late Summer. The first single from that record is called “Burning Through Your Town” which I hope to release in late May.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson I had to unlearn is the myth of being discovered. Many musicians get into the industry thinking they’ll be playing a club where some big wig will be in the audience waiting to offer them a million dollar recording contract. There may have been a time when that was possible but it just doesn’t happen in the modern industry. Today musicians need to be and act like their own business. Good music labels exist but you don’t need them to have a successful career. Bad music labels also exist so you need to be careful out there. I wasted a lot of time thinking I only needed to concentrate on the creative aspect of the industry but that will get you nowhere, no matter how good you get. The modern musician is not only a performer, they’re a booking agent, a promoter, a graphic designer, agent, manager, etc.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

In this age where we have all the best music, art, television, and movies a mouse click away, it’s easy to ignore all the amazing local creatives doing great work. Here in the DFW you can find some sort of event most every night of the week, whether it’s live music, visual art, or poetry, and the artists could use your support. I know we all have busy lives but try to pick at least one night a week where you go out and support local artists. Beyond that there are plenty of other ways. How many local musicians do you have on your Spotify/Apple Tunes lists? Do you subscribe to them on YouTube? Have you bought their merch? Do you have any local art hanging in your home? Does your favorite artist have a Patreon? Tell your friends about them. Talk them up on social media. Every famous artist was once a struggling local artist and they didn’t make it without support. Even sending an artist an encouraging message will help more than you know. It gets tough out there.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mattgrigsbymusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattgrigsbymusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mattgrigsbymusic

Image Credits
TradeMarek Photography (Timothy Marek) Tiny Couch Productions (Bob Ralph)