09
Sep
2010
Country Music News Today
Matt Stillwell grew up in Sylva, North Carolina with an eye on athletics. While he dabbled in music growing up, performing mainly at his church, he focused on sports. He played baseball through college and was a member of the Western Carolina University baseball team which won the Southern Conference while he was a member. When a career in the pros didn't work out, Stillwell started looking towards music.
“I played baseball my whole life, all the way up through college and that kind of dominated everything,” Stillwell said. “After I moved to Nashville, I dove in head first.”
While countless artists make the move to Nashville hoping to make it big as country music stars, for Stillwell, the move was about learning – learning the business, the craft and how to be relevant in the industry for a long time.
“The move to Nashville was to learn my craft, whether that's songwriting, performing, or being in the studio,” Stillwell said. “Nashville is by far the most talented city in the world. In terms of songwriting, the studio musicians, engineers, that kind of thing, there is no place that comes close. Learning has always been my focus. People come to Nashville thinking it will make them a star, but it doesn't do that for people.”
Stillwell has worked diligently since moving to Nashville and he feels his latest album, Shine, will be the album that gets him noticed on a grander scale. While it is not his first album, in a lot of ways, Stillwell said, it is.
“This is what I truly consider my first album. I've recorded about eight others but this is what I call my first one. This is the one that is supposed to get my name out there,” Stillwell said.
The album is called Shine and features ten tracks, half of which are written by Stillwell. The album is laid out as a set list so, if Stillwell wanted to, he could play the album from start to finish live and not ponder if he has too many slow songs together or if the songs transition from one to another well. Shine will be repackaged as a deluxe edition in April and will include four new songs.
The current single, “Dirt Road Dancin,'” was written by Stillwell's producer. The song's opening verse is put together in a way that leaves the listener visualizing a dirt road winding into the middle of nowhere. The track is getting airplay across the country.
“Mickey played it for me and I thought it would fit in pretty well with what I do,” Stillwell said. “It's got some bluegrass stuff. I really liked the song. It definitely gets you dancing.”
Stillwell's work ethic is unmistakable. He averages three to four shows a week and makes it a point to not only reach out to his fans but to also reach out to those who might be hearing him for the first time.
“The most important factor in this whole deal is people, fans,” Stillwell said. “I make a very big effort with shows, or online, whatever deal is, to meet people, to sign whatever they want signed, to talk to them and hang out with them as much as I can. It's getting a little more difficult to hang out, but I make a big effort.”
Stillwell's live shows have been described as a good time which is exactly what he strives for. And fun shows also brings the audience back – with their friends.
“I want them to associate fun with me and that's usually more of what people get from my show. Fun usually gets people coming back and telling their friends,” Stillwell said. “I have a little bit of me that wants people to like my songs, like me, like the band band, but if I can help people have fun at show, they go away feeling good and come back again and bring their friends.”
Stillwell has a busy tour schedule lined up and plans to play during CMA Music Fest in June. He has also played with some of the biggest names in country music such as the Zac Brown Band, Kellie Pickler and Alan Jackson to name a few. Instead of feeling pressure to live up to the same standard as these artist, Stillwell draws on something he leaned in baseball.
“Being an athlete, that's how you're taught. You want to play against the best to be the best. You want to practice against the best to be the best. It's that mentality that I take,” Stillwell said.
At the end of the day though, it is the people, the fans, that keep Stillwell working hard.
“Those are the people that are going to keep me working,” he said. “As long as they get what they want, I'll be able to do what I love as long as I want to. That's my goal. And hopefully that will be on a big level.”
