Matt Maher

All Music Guide:

Christian singer and songwriter Matt Maher was born in Newfoundland, Canada, but it was not until a family upheaval led Maher to the desert climes of Arizona that he would find his calling and begin a musical career that would find him composing work for genre artists such as Bethany Dillon and Chris Tomlin, as well as releasing albums and playing shows across the Southwest -- and eventually the world. Having been asked to take on the mantle of youth pastor and music director at his church, Maher -- who was also a scholarship winner for studies in jazz piano at Arizona State University -- would develop his skills quickly, leading to a working relationship with songwriter Tom Booth after moving to Mesa. In 2001, Maher released the first of three independent albums, The End and the Beginning, which was followed by 2003's Welcome to Life and 2006's Overflow. His eventual publishing deal with EMI led to further exposure, and he soon found himself signing a record deal with the Essential label. That relationship allowed Maher to record and release his first "official" album, April 2008's Empty and Beautiful. A number two hit on the gospel charts, Empty and Beautiful would lead to Maher playing more and more shows outside of his Arizona home base, including plans to tour Europe and Australia in 2008. Maher's second album on Essential, Alive Again, was released in September 2009.

Wikipedia:

Matthew "Matt" Guion Maher (born November 10, 1974) is a contemporary Christian music (CCM) artist, songwriter, and worship leader originally from Newfoundland, Canada, who later relocated to Tempe, Arizona. He has written and produced six solo albums to date. Three of his albums have reached the Top 25 Christian Albums Billboard chart and four of his singles have reached the Top 25 Christian Songs chart. He is a practicing Catholic.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).

Biography[edit]

Maher was born and raised in Newfoundland, Canada. His parents recognized his musical talent, and he grew up taking piano lessons and immersing himself in a broad variety of music and playing in concert and jazz ensembles, singing in a choir, and playing in a garage rock band.

Maher started his post-secondary studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland, but soon after received a scholarship from the Jazz Department at Arizona State University, so he moved to Phoenix, AZ where he studied Jazz Piano and got his music degree. He paid for his first three years of college by playing piano in a hotel.

Matt currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee. He married Kristin Fisher on September 10, 2010. Their son, Michael Conor, was born on August 1, 2011.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).

Career[edit]

His first label was the Spirit and Song, a division of OCP Publications, where he released his first three collections. Early in 2007 Maher signed to Essential Records. He released his first big-label album (and his fourth album overall) Empty and Beautiful on April 8, 2008. His second album with Essential Records (and his fifth album overall), Alive Again, was released on September 22, 2009. In late 2009, Maher toured with Michael W. Smith, Meredith Andrews and Phil Stacey on the "New Hallelujah Tour". Alive Again peaked at No. 6 on Billboard magazine's Top Christian Albums chart in 2009.

When Pope Benedict XVI visited the United States in April 2008, Maher was asked to lead worship for crowds of thousands at the Rally for Youth and Seminarians in Yonkers, New York, which also featured Kelly Pease, tobyMac and Third Day, among other musicians. He was subsequently interviewed on Fox News, where he played his title track from Empty and Beautiful.

Maher was a guest singer songwriter speaker at Crowder's Fantastical Church Music Conference at Baylor University in late 2010 put on by the David Crowder Band. In early 2011 he toured the United States on the Rock And Worship Roadshow headlined by MercyMe.

Maher performed Lord, I Need You for World Youth Day 2013 in Rio, Brazil.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).

Awards and recognition[edit]

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