Katie Matzell
Are you from Maine originally? If not, where are you from?
Yes, I grew up in the midcoast area and have been in Portland for roughly 10 years.
How did you become a musician? What inspired you?
My dad has worked in radio as a disc jockey since I was a little kid, so I always had access to a ton of music in our house, and he was always playing drums or guitar to his favorite records and I would sing along as his backup singer. I was always singing and performing for my family. I did a lot of musical theatre in high school and college and then started playing open mics about 10 years ago, which led to playing cover music in bars, and in 2018 I released a 6-song EP of original music.
Tell me more about Don't They Say and the messaging behind it.
“Don’t They Say” was one of the first songs I wrote, and pretty quickly too. It feels like I wrote it so long ago but the general message is “we’ve got this” — I wrote it with my husband (and bass player) in mind. Because of his perspective and what he’s added to my life since we met, I feel like I can take the long view and not sweat the small stuff, and when you’re with the right person, conflicts or challenges are just part of the ride you signed up for.
Do you plan to launch new music?
Yes! I’ve been writing for the past few months and also collaborating with other bands/artists on their albums, so I hope to release something new next year and you’ll hear me around on other releases.
Do you plan to perform live or virtually anywhere in the near future?
I’m thinking about doing something virtually, but waiting for the opportunity that feels right. The last few months have been a nice break for me but I’m really looking forward to performing again soon with brand new music.