Dear Fans & Friends,

First of all, I can't thank you enough for listening to my music all these years. It's you that helped me take my name from the bottom of the flyer to headlining my own shows. I read your messages and comments on Facebook, Youtube etc. and I love them all. To this day, I am still amazed at how many people's lives have been impacted by things I have said on my records. From the 15 year-old kid telling me that my song helped him stand up to a bully at school, to the soldier shooting at people from a helicopter while Moonshine played in his headphones. In the beginning I didn't think I'd have more than a few fans, and now the Matlock Spotify and YouTube channels both have over a million plays each. That still sounds crazy to me. I am an artist by nature, and every artist needs an audience. You guys have been mine, and for that I am eternally grateful.

There is one very redundant comment I see regarding my music online over and over and over again. It goes something like this: "Your music is incredible, why aren't you famous?" or "Matlock, you're better than 99% of these rappers out today, you should be signed to Def Jam!". When I started to see this same question constantly popping up, it made me push harder. I made more music, booked more shows, promoted everywhere I could, and reached out to "industry" people that I thought could further my cause. I worked tirelessly for years as the artist and the business only to end up in the same position I was in.

In 2013 I was burnt out. Mentally, physically and financially drained. Frustrated and no longer having fun, I announced I was going to release my final album and that would be it for me. I withdrew from "the scene", stayed off social media and went back to work. 2 years after I announced "Last Raps" I was starting to doubt if it would ever come out myself. Then one day at my job our new manager came in playing 2707 on his phone. He looked over at me, then down at his phone, then back at me with this "Holy shit it's you!" look on his face. Turned out he had been a fan for years. I spent the next 20 minutes proving to him that it was really me while he quizzed me on Matlock trivia. Then he said it: "What the fuck are you doing here? You should be on a tour bus". My brain exploded. I quit and have been in my notebook ever since.

Songs have been oozing out of me like they did when I just started. For the first time in forever, it has been extremely fun and theraputic writing and recording. I've once again joined forces with Kaz1 who is as criminally slept on as I am on the production side of things, and we've worked up such an artistic rhythm together that there were talks about this being a double album. It's a complete return to form for both of us, and I believe it doesn't just rival our work on Moonshine, but surpasses it. Feeling more like myself than ever, with my notebook and pen always within arms length, I'm calling it Book of Matthew.

The album is finished. Now comes the time to put a push behind it. We accept the fact we probably won't do Kanye numbers, but our goal is to be competitive with some of the bigger independent records this year. We feel strongly about the album and want to do everything in our power to give it the stage it deserves.

In all this time, my music has only been featured in a handful of major music publications and is usually just a small blurb. Radio play has been scarce with the exception of some college radio stations. So this time around, instead of just relying on word of mouth we want to hire a publicist to ensure that all hip-hop fans world-wide know who Matlock is. A radio promotion company to make sure people actually hear the songs. A booking agent to get bigger and better shows. Advertisements on music sites online and in print magazines so they know the record is out and where to find it.

And lastly, we want to finally do a Matlock tour, something that has never happened before but definitely should have. The grand goal is touring Europe. Many US artists have had trouble gaining popularity here, but have found it overseas. From all the reports I've seen on where my music is sold/listened to, Europe is where I have the most fans. I hear I'm bigger than Hasslehoff in Germany.

The moves we want to make are costly and we are definitely looking for some good-hearted folks to dig deep but every dollar counts. We can't make all this happen without you. Funds will go towards:

Promotion: Publicist, Marketing, Radio Promo & Advertising

Visuals: Professional photography, Videos, Artwork & Web Design

Tour expenses: Merch, Gas/Transportation, Meals, Hotel (when needed)

I hope everyone enjoys the album. Lots more music to come.

Thanks,

-M