A troubadour of truth, Nashville resident Crys Matthews is among the brightest stars of the new
generation of social justice music-makers. An award-winning, prolific lyricist and composer,
Matthews blends Country, Americana, Folk, Blues, and Bluegrass into a bold, complex
performance steeped in traditional melodies punctuated by honest, original lyrics. She is made
for these times.
Of Matthews, ASCAP VP & Creative Director Eric Philbrook says, “By wrapping honest
emotions around her socially conscious messages and dynamically delivering them with a warm
heart and a strong voice, she lifts our spirits just when we need it most in these troubled times.”
Justin Hiltner of Bluegrass Situation adds, her gift is a "reminder of what beauty can occur when
we bridge those divides." In her own words, Matthews says her mission is: "to amplify the voices
of the unheard, to shed light on the unseen, and to be a steadfast reminder that hope and love
are the truest pathways to equity and justice." Her new album is an embodiment of and a
testament to that mission.
When Matthews attended a panel at Folk Alliance International in February of 2024, she heard a
Scottish Folk artist inquire as to how many record labels pursue what the artist referred to as
"music from my tradition," four words that intrigued Matthews. "I loved the idea of that. It seems
like the best way to talk about music: what is your tradition, who are your people, what is the
fabric of you?"
A daughter of the South by way of Nashville now and North Carolina forever, and the
self-proclaimed poster child of intersectionality, Matthews is boldly answering those questions
on her new album aptly titled Reclamation.
Recorded in Nashville, TN at Sound Emporium Studios, Reclamation was produced by Levi
Lowry (co-writer of Zac Brown Band's hit song Colder Weather). The project features her
partner on and off stage Heather Mae, her friends and fellow singer-songwriters Kyshona,
Melody Walker, and Chris Housman, and some of the best musicians in Music City like Megan
Coleman, Megan Elizabeth McCormick, Ellen Angelico, Ryan Madora, Jen Gunderman, and
Michael Majett.
"This album is both sonically and ideologically the fullest representation of who I am as an artist
and as a human," she says. A preacher's kid, a Black woman, a Butch lesbian, and a proud
Southerner who sings social justice music right alongside 'traditional' Country and Americana
music, Matthews is reclaiming not just of the space Black artists have been denied in Country
and Americana music, not just of the space LGBTQ people have been denied in communities of
faith, not just of the autonomy women have been denied over their own bodies, she is
reclaiming the South that raised her.
