Matt’s Story: Music with a Message

As an artist, I dive into deeper parts of my mind, and it is both a blessing and a curse. Much like philosophy and religion, the deeper you go, the more questions you ask, the more nuance you find, and with that depth, you open yourself up to more challenges. But, I welcome those challenges because of how rich they make the world taste in my soul.

If you are in a place where you feel alone, much like philosophy and the idea that there are no questions we have that haven’t been asked throughout history, there are people in the world going through similar challenges. When we separate ourselves with different barriers, it is easier to feel alone. But, when we remember our humanity, we can recognize that we are never alone, and there are so many challenges people face that are universal. The music we love often shows exactly that. The song you’re blasting on your headphones to feel the depth of heartbreak has 10 million streams? It could be just you listening on repeat, but at least a few others feel that too. One of the most incredible things about creating music is that no matter what I intend with the music, people always have a different story about how it affected their lives and hearts.

“You’ll be fine,” a phrase I have had a love-hate relationship over the years, both internally and externally. Often the phrase is charged with a misunderstanding of our mental health, dismissive towards our internal struggle. But, in self-talk can be seen as a way to persevere through difficult times. The last solo project I released into the world was called You’ll Be Fine, and it was an encouragement to myself and my peers who were struggling to find themselves and find a supportive community. The disparity between what the mind knows and what the heart feels often leaves me in a place that feels torn within myself. This song sums up my mental health journey.

You’ll Be Fine tells the story of showing up to a party and not being able to enjoy the present moment because you don’t feel like you belong. Even though you can validate it with a thousand different reasons, it doesn’t feel right. The people around you aren’t who you need them to be; by no fault of their own, you just need something different. Then the song takes you to the feeling I described above, the disparity between the head and the heart, the tearing of self from within that leaves you feeling lost and alone. The bridge was what I needed to continue life into the next day.

“My life’s broken, my life’s messed up. When I think about it, it don’t seem tough. Just stay happy, you’ll be fine. Just stay one last time.”Thankfully, I know that tomorrow is a new day, and often my emotions change when I sleep on things. That’s why the bridge is only focused on taking things one day at a time.

My encouragement to whoever is reading this is to build deep roots with the friends you have around you. Trees that grow close together weather the storm better than trees that stand alone, and I am going to encourage you to go deeper. Reiterating what I started this article with, allow life to get messy, let your heart feel things deeply because, to experience deep joys, we must leave ourselves open to deep pain. And again, that is something that demands community. So, build strong relationships to celebrate the deep joys and weather the deep pains together.

I wrote that song almost three years ago. The song comes from a place of perspective after the fact. I always heard the phrase, “it gets better,” and I never really believed it, though I wanted to hope it was true. I am glad that I had just a little hope and the ability to take life one day at a time, because I could never have imagined life's opportunities. Take small steps toward a better tomorrow and always try to lift others up. You never know when your little efforts will make someone's day.

Follow Matt on Instagram and listen to his song You’ll Be Fine on Spotify.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, or needs emotional support we urge you to head to movember.com/getsupport for crisis support options. To speak with someone immediately, contact your local 24-hour support service.