In this song i'm playing the drums for Chlöe Howl on her Live Lounge Session. This is the cover song we did, 'Talk Dirty To Me' by Jason Derulo.

Talk Dirty To Me - Chlöe Howl BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge Cover (Jason Derulo)

In this song i'm playing the drums for Chlöe Howl on her Live Lounge Session. This is a stripped back version of one of her singles, 'Rumour'.

Rumour - Chlöe Howl on BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge

We did an acoustic session at London's Dean Street Studios where Chlöe performed numerous songs with the accompaniment of just an acoustic guitar and a cajon/percussion (me. We did some original songs and some covers. Here, we are playing Paolo Nutini's popular song 'Last Request

Last Request - Chlöe Howl Paolo Nutini Cover

I really like Karen Harding's new single 'Say Something' so i did an overdub cover. I found an acoustic, live performance of Karen singing 'Say Something' and then went into my studio and recording some Cajon rhythms on top of it and mixed them together to produce this version. Hope you like it.

Karen Harding - Matt Brooks 'Say Something' Cover

This is me playing the cajon for Meghan Trainor for her January 2015 appearance on Chris Evans' BBC Radio Radio 2 breakfast Show. We performed a stripped back version of of an Elvis classic, 'Can't Help Falling In Love,' with Jon Sosin (USA) on Acoustic Guitar and me on Cajon and additional percussion.

'Can't Help Falling In Love' - Meghan Trainor on BBC Radio 2

Me playing with Raleigh Ritchie (Chad Edwards and Daniel Hutchinson) on Dermot O'Leary's "In Session" on BBC Radio 2 (February 2016).

Sunny (Cover)- Raleigh Ritchie "In Session" With Dermot O'Leary

While i was putting the set together for Nicole Scherzinger, it became apparent that we'd need an intro, that she could walk on to and hit the crowd hard with energy from the beginning. 

I played around with a few different ideas, and decided to go with something that may be familiar with "fans" but would also allow the band to start the show with high energy... I used the Pussy Cat Dolls song 'Beep' and carved out an intro that ticked the right boxes!

Taken from rough rehearsal recordings...

UK Band Rehearsals (Nov 16)

Beep (Live Set Intro) For Nicole Scherzinger

I've loved drums for as long as I can remember. With a love for drums due in part to my late Uncle Probyn “Bobby” Clarke who was a session musician in the 80’s/90’s (Paradise, LCGC, East 17, London Beat), I was drawn to the drums but had nothing but chopsticks, pots, and pans with which to express my desire until the age of 11 when my local church got a drum kit… The rest (as they say) is history.

It didn’t take long for me to become the church’s main drummer and also get noticed by musicians in the Midlands and further afield, playing with many artists from around the country week-in-week-out.

While at University I got the call to work with an international band 4Real (based out of Austria) and toured with them for 2 years, which led to me doing clinic’s and workshops for musicians in Europe.

After a break from professional drumming, 2013 saw me take to the set depping gigs for Raleigh Ritchie (Columbia) and that re-ignited my passion to pursue a music career again. I’ve since worked with numerous artist’s as a Drummer, Musical Director, and Programmer and I continue to venture into different genres of music, travelling around the UK and the world doing what I love.

People describe me as a solid, musical, pocket drummer who plays different genres of music authentically, but (in my own words) describe my drumming as, “dynamic, expressive and energetic.”

Over the last year (2016), I’ve been developing as a Musical Director / Band Fixer and honing my craft, working to briefs from managers and labels and overseeing the process of creating live shows that represent the artists I’ve worked for, bringing in the right personnel, negotiating budgets and delivering a live show that sonically represents the artist’s music. 2016 saw me take on the MD role for two major label development artists and also saw me put the band together for Meghan Trainor’s performance on The Graham Norton Show and MD the band for Nicole Scherzinger (formerly of the Pussy Cat Dolls).

I’m learning and growing and believe that I have something different to offer the music industry and your live music project, whether that’s from the drums or sitting in the MD’s chair (or both).

MattJABrooks

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