Today, we’d like to introduce you to Matthew Killough.
Hi Matthew, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I was raised in southwest Georgia, but my family is all from central and south Alabama. I was always a big music fan, but I didn’t pick up an instrument until high school. I started playing electric guitar with a friend of mine in 10th grade. We would set up in an abandoned diner outside this motel his dad ran on the edge of town.
It kept us from bothering the customers. He introduced me to Led Zeppelin and it changed my life. The irony of it all was that I was a bigger fan of the acoustic songs in open tunings than I was of the electric stuff. Hearing Jimmy Page play those British folk numbers was what made me pick up an acoustic guitar.
I played in college, but just as a pastime. I was at UGA and then Emory University in Atlanta for a couple of years. I remember hearing Nick Drake for the first time and being absolutely blown away. I was influenced in a big way by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings too, some of their albums are really important to me. I also remember loving all the soundtracks to the Wes Anderson movies, especially The Royal Tenenbaums and Rushmore. I was always drawn to British music.
I moved to Denver after I finished school and played in a local band there for a little while with a friend of mine from Austin. After the band broke up, I started attempting to write original songs. Mostly ballads and fingerstyle stuff. I was listening to a lot of Townes Van Zandt at that point.
I wrote for a few years and then started playing the occasional open mic, but I didn’t gig much in Denver. In 2017 a friend of mine started talking about moving to Nashville, and I told her I’d be up for going if she needed a roommate. I sold my electric guitar and my amp before we left town.
I moved to Nashville in 2018 after 12 years in Colorado. The first couple of years were spent adulting–I had to nail down a job and eventually find my own place. I did some writing in between, but I didn’t start playing in public until late 2019 or so. Right about the time I got started, Covid hit.
I was lucky, I got to play a few Pandemic gigs at Dee’s which helped me develop as a performer. I’ve been playing gigs around town periodically ever since. I recorded my first album in 2022, and it was actually a great experience, I was really happy with the finished record. I’m hoping to start recording a second album this year.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Overall, I’ve been very lucky. I’ve always managed to meet good people who fostered my interests, and the music community in Denver was very welcoming. I can’t say enough about the local scene in Nashville, though; folks here are on a different level in terms of musicianship and have been extremely gracious.
Writing is always a challenge, but it’s something that I don’t get tired of. There’s no better feeling to me than walking out of the house knowing that you just finished a song you’re happy with. That high sticks with me for days.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’ve been a physician assistant for 17 years, mostly in general practice and urgent care. It’s challenging work and I don’t always love it, but it allows me to help people and make a living at the same time. The friends I met in PA school were some of the closest I’ve ever had and I always loved Atlanta, I can’t see myself not taking that route if I had it to do over again.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the COVID-19 crisis?
I know it was a terrible time for a lot of people–it broke my heart to lose John Prine and Joe Diffie–but to be honest, I really miss it.
I did more fishing during that time than I had since high school! A lot of my neighbors would have mask parties in their yards or bonfires on different weekends, I’ve never met so many of the people I lived around. My best friend and I would always hang out on Friday nights in his backyard and listen to music.
On top of that, I was still considered essential to work in the medical field, so I was able to keep working but on a smaller schedule. Traffic was great, I slept better than I have in years, air quality was improved, etc. The one thing I didn’t do much of was write, and I think that gave me a much-needed break. I’d go back in a heartbeat.
Contact Info:
- Website: matthewkillough.bandcamp.com
- Instagram: @mattkillough
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthew.killough.39
