Review: MATT ROGERS performs at Magnolia Blossom Festival

Often while walking around places, I will hear melodious siren calls and my body follows along like one of those cartoon characters that are whisked away in a trance to whatever is mesmerizing them. This time I happened to be hanging out at the Magnolia Festival a few weeks ago, and I heard this country blues sound beckoning, and I immediately floated to the main stage to find a Travis Tritt type good ole boy crooning to the ladies as they starred up starry eyed in appreciation of the serenading Georgia born heartthrob. Who is this? This happened to be the delectable Matt Rogers who was the opening act for Chapel Hart. 

According to his bio, Matt Rogers is a seasoned songsmith who currently boasts 15 songwriting awards that serve as a testament to his signature hard-hitting lyricism electrified by his husky, rich vocals. His song, "Coal," has won several songwriting awards from NSAI/CMT, Music City Songstar, American Songwriter, Songwriting University, and Mid-Atlantic Song Contest. He achieved the top award from Music City SongStar for his song, "She Was Everything," as well as a finalist slot in the USA Songwriting Competition. Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) and CMT selected his song “I Was Raised” for a songwriting achievement award, and it went on to be selected by NSAI as a Top 40 song.  

During the concert, he treated us to a lot of his originals, several that have made it onto the radio charts. You're My Hallelujah, Whatever Keeps You Crazy, Tea Was a Little Sweeter and Get You Off That Fence all seemed to make the audience happy, but Better at Heartbreak, which is being released to the masses today, became my favorite Matt Rogers song right away. I hope radio stations are taking notice to this one, because I feel it is a perfect radio hit.  

Recently, Broadway World was able to chat with Matt about his life as a country performer.  

BWW: Hey Matt. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today. What have you been doing? 

Matt: Writing songs and chasing that neon rainbow. 

BWW: Pursuing world domination I see. We are happy you made it to Magnolia to perform at the festival. 

Matt: It's such a cool little town. It reminded me of my hometown. It's a little bit bigger than my hometown of Eatonton, Georgia, but it seems like a cool little place and everybody there were really nice, and we were treated very well. So, it felt like home. It felt like a nice little place. 

BWW: We like it, and you looked like you were having a good time. 

Matt: Live shows are my favorite thing to do. 

BWW: I can tell, and your band mates are serious pros.  

Matt: I’ve been dragging those boys all over the place for years. The guitar player has been with me for 6 ½ years. His name is Nick Reed. I also have Fate Melton on bass and Derrick Johnson on drums. 

BWW: They sounded great!  

Matt: We enjoy playing and making connections with the audience.  

BWW: Well, the Magnolia crowd seemed to be really into what you guys were doing. Your music really speaks to the soul. I loved South Dakota Sky, but my absolute favorite is Better at Heartbreak.  

Matt: Thank you. It’s a unique song for me. I wrote it while I was in Denmark with two Danish writers. 

BWW: Well, I love it. It is definitely going into my heavy rotation playlist.  

Matt: I write a lot, and I challenge myself to keep from sounding the same. In Nashville, you’re always trying to push your limits and be a little better than the day before. This newest single is drawing influence outside of country. I feel it has a John Mayer influence to it. 

BWW: It’s a great song. I want to see this one go all the way. So what’s next? 

Matt: For a while I was doing a lot of writing, and I've been sitting on a lot of these songs. Now we are getting out of the creative space, releasing these songs and performing all over. Soon we will be in New York, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. 

BWW: You’re hitting the northern states during the hotter months. That’s smart. 

Matt: They only have a few months where you can perform outside.  

BWW: Well, that makes sense. Ok, is there anyone you’d like to thank? 

Matt: I want to thank the folks in Magnolia, Arkansas, for treating us so well, and I want to thank Chapel Hart for sharing their audience with me. 

BWW: Thank you for allowing me a few minutes of your busy day. I wish you great success. 

To find out more about Matt Rogers, check out all his socials: 

Website: mattrogerscountry.com 

Facebook: @mattrogerscountry 

Twitter: @mrogerscountry 

Instagram: @mattrogerscountry 

TikTok: @mattrogerscountry 

YouTube: @mattrogerscountry 

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