We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Matthew Payne. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Matthew below.
Matthew, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
When I was a senior in college, my capstone project was a personal branding project for myself as a music artist. The result was not only useful, but incredibly meaningful. I set out to make my brand image based around my personality, this way I can create a community of likeminded people, and stay true to the things I love. I created a variety of content that builds up a bigger picture beyond my music. The process to create this was rooted in reflection. Reflecting on my past work, experiences, taste, and above all, my personality. Who am I, and how do I represent that to people? It was an insightful and vulnerable experience, finding all of the little details that I didn’t even realize make up who I am, and putting those literally on display. The project built so much confidence and clarity within myself, it was an enlightening experience.
Matthew, 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?
My name is Matt Payne and I’ve been DJing and composing electronic music for about a decade. House music is the core of my personal work, I’ve consistently released originals and remixes for nearly as long as I started. As a DJ, I have a Saturday night residency at a club, and have opened for artists such as Slow Magic, Nitti Gritti, and G-Space. Along side my personal projects, I’ve had experience working on professional projects for SONY, HBO, and Peacock, with Emmy winning composer Malcolm Francis. I love to dip my toes into anything audio related.
My love for electronic music started when I was about 11 years old and a friend showed me Skrillex. I absolutely loved the raunchy energy and focus on synth leads that dubstep had. This discovery led me down a rabbit hole of electronic music that hasn’t stopped. I instantly had an urge to want to create it, but I didn’t even have a concept of an idea as to how it was made. When I was about 14 I found on the internet that you could make music on a program called FL Studio. I messed around a bit on the demo, until I saw a youtube video of how Martin Garrix made his hit song “Animals” on FL Studio. It absolutely blew me away, I had no idea you could create professional sounding music on it. My entire life I had always been involved in playing instruments, but this felt so different and hooked me instantly.
I’m really proud of the way I represent myself with my art. Even beyond the music, I strive to bring my personality to everything I create. I love to bring my unserious humor to my social media and DJ visuals. Not only does it further connect with people, but it’s both fulfilling and freeing for myself.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Whenever I’m creating music, I always have the idea of nostalgia in mind. Personally, music serves as a time stamp in my life. I love listening to songs that I haven’t heard in years, and having memories of that time come flooding back. The idea that my music could serve that purpose for somebody else really motivates me.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
The best opportunities I have ever gotten came from times I got out my comfort zone. Go out into your local scene and make honest new connections. I get anxious about being social sometimes, but pushing my limits and meeting new people in the my local scene has brought me so much.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mattpaynesounds.weebly.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattpayne.music/?hl=en
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/matt_payne
- Other: Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/1gP4sgKTZIGJyrMwQlenor?si=RIAkF60eR8SxP94iRV6aFA
Image Credits
Thomas Payne @tpayne_96
Hayden Stegman @hayden_stegman