Matt Brouwer

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Matt Brouwer
MattBrouwerJunoAwards2010-1.jpg
Matt Brouwer at the 2010 Juno Awards in St. John's, Newfoundland
Background information
Born (1976-02-28) February 28, 1976 (age 48)
Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada
Origin Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres CCM, pop
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active2001 (2001)–present
Labels Reunion, Black Shoe
Website mattbrouwer.com

Matt Brouwer (born February 28, 1976 [1] ) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. While in college, he and fellow students founded the band Monday Night Worship (MNW). [2] Because of the spiritual content of his lyrics he was 'discovered' by a Nashville record company in 2000, and in 2001 recorded his solo debut CD Imagerical . The album was released on May 29, 2001, on Reunion Records. He then formed his own label called Black Shoe Records and released albums titled Unlearning in 2005, Where's Our Revolution (Universal) in 2009, and Till The Sunrise in 2012. [3] Brouwer's music is known for its Contemporary Christian message as he shares his life's story of tragedy (the death of his father) and hope (his spiritual pilgrimage) with his listeners. [4]

Contents

Early years

Matthew Paul Brouwer was born in Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada. His dad ran a dairy farm and his mother worked as a teacher. When Brouwer was three years old his father was killed in a car accident. Brouwer is one of 7 siblings.

While attending college, Brouwer co-founded a group known as Monday Night Worship (MNW). "It started with a conversation a group of us (students) had about our hunger to not only know about God, but to begin a journey of actually knowing Him," said Brouwer. MNW released two independent CDs featuring songs written and sung by Brouwer, many of which were also featured on his solo debut CD, Imagerical . Brouwer and other members of the college group eventually parted ways or were signed to Provident Label Group as separate acts. [5]

Musical career

Matt Brouwer's first single, "Water", was a hit on CCM radio's CHR chart, reaching No. 2 on R&R in 2001. The follow-up singles, "A New Song", and "Sanity", were top 20 and top 10 hits respectively as well. Brouwer hit the airwaves again with a cover of Sheryl Crow's "I Shall Believe", which graced Billboard 's Christian chart in 2005. [6] The hit "Sometimes" from Where's Our Revolution did even better, charting in the top 20 on Billboard in 2010. An acoustic cover version of the Goo Goo Dolls song, "Better Days", also charted for Brouwer on the Billboard chart in 2011. [7] Brouwer's CD Imagerical was nominated for Best Gospel Album at the 2002 Canadian JUNO Awards. [8] He won a JUNO Award in 2010 for the album Where's Our Revolution ; it was named best Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the year. [9] He has been nominated for 15 GMA Canada Covenant Awards, winning three. His songs have been featured in the Canadian produced hit teen television drama Degrassi . [10]

Personal life

Matt Brouwer married Hannah Dawn Ficker on August 29, 2010, in Houston, Texas. The couple met during a trip Brouwer took to Guatemala, where Hannah's family serves in medical missions. [11] The couple has 3 children. [12]

Discography

Albums

Notable appearances

Songs on compilations

Awards and recognition

GMA Canada Covenant Awards
East Coast Music Awards
Independent Music Awards
Juno Awards
Shai Awards (formerly the Vibe Awards)

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<i>Wheres Our Revolution</i> 2009 studio album by Matt Brouwer

Where's Our Revolution is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Matt Brouwer. It was released on August 25, 2009 through Universal Music Distribution. The album is Brouwer's most successful release to date and was well received with critics calling it, "...a gorgeous piece of work" and commending Brouwer's songwriting and vocal performance. The hit "Sometimes" reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart and 3 other singles received considerable airplay on Christian radio stations in Canada and the US. The album won a Juno Award in 2010 as it was named best Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the year, and was also nominated for seven GMA Canada Covenant Awards, winning the Covenant Award for best song and fan favorite artist of the year. The album was nominated for Gospel Recording of the Year by the East Coast Music Awards and Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album and Song of the Year by the Independent Music Awards.

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<i>Till the Sunrise</i> 2012 studio album by Matt Brouwer

Till The Sunrise is the fourth studio album by Canadian Singer/Songwriter Matt Brouwer. The album was released on February 28, 2012. It was well received with many positive and glowing reviews. The album was nominated for 4 GMA Canada Covenant Awards including Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year in 2012 and song of the year nods (2012-2014). Till the Sunrise was also nominated in 2013 for Gospel Recording of the Year by the East Coast Music Awards, Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year by the Independent Music Awards and Inspirational Album of the year by Music Nova Scotia Awards. The song Ocean from the album won a GMA Canada Covenant Award for Inspirational Song of the Year.

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<i>Writing to Remember</i> 2014 studio album by Matt Brouwer

Writing to Remember is the first compilation album by Canadian Singer/Songwriter Matt Brouwer. The album was released on November 25, 2014 and features a collection of the 14 best loved songs from Brouwer's previous 4 studio albums. All the songs have been remastered and some re-mixed as well. The album includes one brand new single which appears as the first track on the project called, "Waking Up". Brouwer and Co. opted to include original college recordings of his songs, "Breathe" and "Lead" instead of the more polished versions that appear on his debut album, Imagerical. The exclusive single, "Waking Up, from the album was nominated for song of the year by the GMA Canada Covenant awards.

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References

  1. "Matt Brouwer – Singer-Songwriter – BIO". Matt Brouwer – Singer-Songwriter. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  2. Kittle, Ashleigh. "Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved May 10, 2009.
  3. "Artist Biography - allmusic.com". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved October 10, 2018..
  4. Kathy Douglas (c/o Extreme Dreams Management) Archived July 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine .
  5. "Christian Music Artist Index - Christianbook.com". www.christianbook.com. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  6. Billboard Magazine, 2005.
  7. Juno Awards archive Archived February 24, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  8. "Winners + Nominees".
  9. TV.com. "All Communities Feed - TV.com". www.tv.com. Archived from the original on May 29, 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  10. "Love story: From geographically undesirable to inseparable". Chron. February 6, 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  11. "Matt Brouwer Blog Post - mattbrouwer.com". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  12. Losey, Stephen Douglas. "(Review) Imagerical". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 25, 2016. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
  13. Chapman, Jackie. "Unlearning Review". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  14. Ross, C.W. "(Review) Where's Our Revolution". Breathecast. Retrieved March 6, 2010.[ dead link ]
  15. Breimeier, Russ. "Christmas Music Wrap Up". crosswalk.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2015.
  16. Williams, Lindsey. "Faith, Marriage Inspire "Till The Sunrise"". crosswalk.com. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
  17. "Writing To Remember". crossrhythms.co.uk.com. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  18. Brouwer also received five GMAC nominations in 2009, for Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year: Where's Our Revolution, Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year: Where's Our Revolution, Recorded Song of the Year: "Come Back Around", and Video of the Year: "I Shall Believe". GMAC 2009 Covenant Award Nominees Archived June 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved October 25, 2009.
  19. East Coast Music Awards official site Archived July 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved December 2, 2009.
  20. East Coast Music Awards Official site Archived July 8, 2013, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved February 19, 2013
  21. Independent Music Awards official site. Retrieved December 3, 2009.
  22. Independent Music Awards official site Archived March 26, 2013, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2013-19-03.