Matt B Talks New Single ‘Gimme Love’ feat. Eddy Kenzo
You can’t get any more Chicago than Matt B. The celebrated artist belongs to the South Side forever: he’s been praised by Rhymefest and other city luminaries, he’s made himself a local attraction and constant presence, and he’s even taken the stage at Soldier Field and the annual The Magnificent Mile Lights Festival Parade. Eden, his 2021 debut album, is firmly in the tradition of ambitious, dedicated, wonderfully immersive Chicago hip-hop and R&B. When you spin it, you’re guaranteed to get lost in it, but you’ll never forget that its roots are embedded in Chi-Town soil. Even his vocals sound like Chicago — simultaneously muscular and welcoming, tough yet sweet.
But Matt B also belongs to the world. His brand of soul and R&B is immediate, vibrant, and transcontinental, and it fits in seamlessly on international party-friendly playlists. It’s notable that before he was well known in the United States (Eden reached the Top 40 on Billboard R&B Albums), Matt B hit overseas: he’s charted in Taiwan, Japan, and Latvia. So he isn’t just an artist with a regional following. He’s a vocalist with global appeal, and his music resonates everywhere the sun shines.
Matt B’s latest single is poised to expand his influence and audience even further. For “Gimme Love,” he’s joined forces with one of the most popular artists in Uganda — the electrifying, award-winning Eddy Kenzo. “Sitya Loss,” Kenzo’s globe-shaking hit, continues to rack up millions upon millions of views on YouTube. Part of that is down to the song’s amazing video, but it’s also because of Kenzo’s winning vocal performance and the pure warmth that radiates from the irrepressibly optimistic track.
Matt B weighed in on a few things
What inspired you to pursue music? How has your support system been?
I always just loved music. I found myself drawn to melodies as a kid more than words. As I grew up I found music to be a great emotional outlet and therapeutic. As for my support system, I really had to do a lot of it on my own early on. Despite my family being very musical, I think that the fear of failure weighed heavily on them and because of it they really didn’t want me to do it. So there was little to no support. It wasn’t until I met my girlfriend—who’s now my wife and manager—that I really got the support that I needed to take things to the next level. I guess it’s true what they say, “behind every good man is a good woman”.
How do you stay motivated? What is one motto you live by?
A lot of different things motivate me. First and foremost, God is at the center of everything I do. Then everything else spirals around that. My wifey and little ones are one of my biggest inspirations and give me the drive I need to take the extra step forward or give that last 10% even when I think I don’t have anything left to give. Of course my fans help to motivate me as well. I can’t tell you how many life changing stories people have told me about my music being an escape for them. If I were to sum up a motto I live by, it would be to keep your mind, body, and soul aligned. Eating healthy, exercising, and doing mental check ins to keep your mental health in tact is very important. Especially in this fast paced industry.
How did this collaboration between you and Eddy Kenzo come to be?
First off shoutout to my team, without them none of this would be possible. Eddy and I met at an event in LA back in 2021. Ironically because of the seating arrangements, we ended up sitting right next to one another. We had a chance to chop it up and instantly clicked.
Tell us about “Gimme Love”, what was the development process of this song like?
‘Gimme Love’ is one of those records that wanted to be created. It wrote itself. Eddy and I couldn’t get into the studio because his sound engineer was running late, and my wife and I had our little ones in the backseat of our SUV. Eddy decided to play some beats from his phone and the first one he played was the instrumental that would soon become ‘Gimme Love’. I instantly said we had to work on that one! We went into the booth and bounced some melodies around. Eventually everything was freestyled into the record you hear today.
How was it shooting the music video for “Gimme Love”? Any funny or interesting things happen on set?
The music video was like organized chaos. We shot the video in Topanga, CA at the top of a mountain. The lead model, Nyakim, had a flight to catch that same morning, so she was under a tight time crunch. She only had about an hour to actually shoot. As if that wasn’t bad enough, her Uber ended up dropping her off on the wrong side of the mountain a few miles from the shoot location. Then the dancers were left at the bottom of the hill and didn’t know what was going on because phone signals up there were horrible. So I had to go pick them up in a tiny car that was on set. Halfway up the mountain, the car’s transmission couldn’t take so many people in it, so I had to leave a few of the dancers on the side of the road and come back for them. Then, my stylist forgot half the wardrobe at her studio, and Angela was holding it this down to make sure things got done. It was definitely a crazy day, but the video turned out amazing!
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About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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