Matt Nakoa
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Doors: 7:30 p.m.; Show: 8 p.m.
Stoltz Listening Room $25
Easton, MD
“Between his piano chops and heartfelt originals on guitar, he drops jaws.” Boston Globe
Matt Nakoa is an award-winning songwriter, singer, and multi-instrumentalist who makes his home on the highways and concert stages of America, appearing regularly with folk music icon Tom Rush.
Born on a small goat farm in New York State, Nakoa trained to be a concert pianist before accepting a scholarship to attend Berklee College of Music as a vocalist. He developed his dramatic songwriting style with his college alt-rock band, The Fens, and later played solo in Manhattanʼs all-night piano bars.
Nakoa’s first solo albums, released in 2012 and 2014, garnered multiple songwriting awards, including a win at Kerrville Folk Festivalʼs New Folk Competition. His latest, “Casting Shadows,” is a spellbinding blend of pop, soul, and classical influences that tells a story of childhood dreams crashing headlong into grownup reality.
The Ark of Music magazine proclaims, “What we have here is a truly encouraging sign of what pop could once again become …”