Matt Maeson (born January 17, 1993) is an American singer-songwriter and musician from

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city (United States), independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 United States cen ...

, signed to Neon Gold Records and

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...

Early life

Maeson was raised in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 cen ...

. His parents were juvenile delinquents who later became "musicianaries", eventually playing in

Christian metal Christian metal, also known as white metal, Jesus metal or heavenly metal, is heavy metal music distinguished by its Christian themed song lyrics and the dedication of the band members to Christianity. Christian metal is typically performed by ...

bands. He was banned from listening to secular rock music on the radio until he was a teenager. Maeson started playing the guitar when he was 15. He performed at biker rallies and prisons with his parents' ministry. Maeson's uncle, who was a part of the same ministry, was murdered. Maeson's forearm tattoos "Born a sinner" and "Die a martyr" are inspired by his uncle's legacy.

Personal Life

Maeson became engaged in 2020. He and his wife have one child, a son named Joa, who was born in 2021.

Career

In November 2016, Maeson released his debut single "Cringe". In 2018, Maeson performed at festivals such as Bonnaroo,

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Mus ...

, and

Forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " b ...

. Prior to the release of his debut album ''Bank on the Funeral'' on April 5, 2019, he released two EPs, ''Who Killed Matt Maeson'' in 2017, and ''The Hearse'' in 2018. In January 2019, his song "Cringe" reached No. 7 on the Adult Alternative Songs chart. The song later spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard

Alternative Songs Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart in August that year, the longest running number-one single by a new artist in 2019. "Cringe" was certified gold by the RIAA on February 11, 2020. In August 2020, Maeson returned to number one on the ''Billboard'' Alternative Songs chart with " Hallucinogenics", which went on to top the ''Billboard''

Rock Airplay The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

chart one week later. Maeson was featured in Illenium’s 2021 single “Heavenly Side” from their fourth full length studio album 'Fallen Embers'. Full studio album Never Had to Leave was released on August 26, 2022.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Singles

References

1993 births American Christians Living people Singer-songwriters from Virginia American male singer-songwriters Atlantic Records artists Contemporary folk musicians {{US-singer-stub