Life & Work with Matt Blagg

Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Blagg.

Hi Matt, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up on a farm in western Oklahoma. My dad was a guitar player and was always in bands. My dad’s music friends would always get together at people’s homes to have meals & play music, so this was a part of my childhood. I started off learning some basic guitar from my dad, then started piano lessons in 2nd grade, trumpet in 5th grade band, and carried that through high school and college. I majored in music, and trumpet paid for school. My next-door neighbor, Brent Evans, and I would sing and write songs together. We won the talent show at the Geary, OK fair two years in a row.

During college, I went on tour with a group called the Continental Singers. During this tour, I saw that God had given me a talent and had a plan for my life. To be a singer/songwriter! I started taking every opportunity to sing & play for people, and that snowballed into what I have done in my career. My songwriting started to become more a part of who I was and was central to all of my musical endeavors. My “gigs” started keeping me quite busy and made it a challenge to keep up with school. Many of these opportunities were at churches, singing for youth groups and college student events, and also a few gigs playing in country bands.

After college, and now married to my sweetheart Karrie, I dived headlong into a music career. Over the next 18 years, I released 6 CDs on my independent label, averaged 120 dates/year all across the United States, and also did a lot of studio work and played in bands to “fill in the gaps”. I devoted myself to songwriting and recording, all the while booking gigs and traveling. Along the way, Karrie & I have 3 amazing children, two of them being great musicians themselves! It was a wonderful time, and I am blown away that the bills always got paid, and we never went without.

God has truly blessed me to be able to support my family by doing what I love. Along the way, I have gotten to write with some major Nashville songwriters, have had a couple of cuts by other artists, and have gotten to play music with some amazing people. Some artists I’ve gotten to play trumpet for include The Temptations, The Drifters, The Four Tops, and Aretha Franklin. Over the years, I have sold somewhere upwards of 100, 000 CDs. As a farm boy from Western Oklahoma, I am very grateful for the opportunities. And, I’m not done yet!

In 2008, I felt like I was out of “vision” and it was time to “come up for air”. I went on staff at a church as a worship leader, which was a big change but a good change. At this time, I also fell into doing a lot of cover-tune gigs at weddings, private parties, corporate events, and country clubs. This was nice, because the gigs were already booked, close to home, and money showed up in my bank account. I was spoiled by this, but after 13 years of playing covers, it ran its course and I found myself missing doing my original music for people. Once someone has a taste of playing original music, no cover tunes can ever compare.

So just this last year, 2023, I leaped and said “no” to all the cover tune gigs so I could focus solely on songwriting, and playing original music for people, mainly at House Concerts, which are my absolute favorite thing to do! I hope that I can spend the rest of my life writing songs, performing them for people, mentoring young artists, and investing in people.

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?
Smooth? No! However, when one pursues their dreams, they put on their “dream glasses” and see the purpose or the vision, and the struggles are just white noise. Some struggles are:

Financial – it takes money to keep the wheels on, and often the money is not there.

Booking gigs – We get told “no” a lot. We are selling ourselves (something we should believe in). Staying booked is a constant concern. It’s marketing- which is just another hat we have to wear.

The business we call “show” – is just that- a business, and trying to mesh that with artistry can squelch the soul. We can’t let that happen.

Travelling – just getting to the freakin’ gig can be an adventure in itself. Planes, trains, and automobiles- it’s all fun until it isn’t. It can make one tired! I have stories of vans breaking down, flights delayed, and getting lost back in the road atlas days. Google Maps rocks!

Family – being gone can be a struggle. I encourage people to not try to balance but to integrate their domestic & artistic lives. Involve your family in what you do. Trying to stay creative & keep putting wood on the artistic fire, while wearing all the other hats- that might be the biggest struggle of all.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a singer/songwriter. I traveled full-time for 20 years all across the US, as well as Canada and Europe, averaging 120 dates/per year.

I released 6 CDs on my independent label, selling upwards of 100,000 copies. I have also played for artists such as The Temptations, The Drifters, The Four Tops, and Aretha Franklin. Doing studio session work (background vocals, trumpet, piano, and guitar) and playing in other bands has helped fill in the gaps.

For the last 15 years, I have worked as a worship leader at a church, which gives me great opportunities to mentor younger artists and continue writing and recording music. I do House Concerts! These are my favorites! Visit my website for more information, and please consider hosting one. You will be glad you did.

I am also a pilot, and I love to hike and backpack. I love people, and mentoring younger artists.

What makes you happy?
What makes me happy is when I know I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, doing anything else than what I’m doing right now. This usually involves sharing my musical gifts & talents with people. Seeing younger artists develop their gifts.

Spending time with my family. Writing songs, being around songwriters, singers, storytellers, and weirdos. These are my people! Also being outside – seeing the beauty of creation. Hiking, backpacking, and flying planes.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mattblagg.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matt.blagg/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthew.blagg.5
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mattblagg9866
• SoundCloud: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/matthew-blagg/1046744633
• Other: https://linktr.ee/mattblagg