Matt Ferranti is a genre-bending musical maestro who has become a seasoned member of the music industry, beginning his illustrious career over a decade ago. From releasing solo music to touring with Jelly Roll, Brett Young and more on the keys, it looks like the Michigan native and father of one is not going anywhere anytime soon, releasing his first solo single since 2021 titled “Still Talkin” on November 1.
With even more new tunes on the horizon, Ferranti sat down with Music Mayhem to detail his musical journey, including where he’s been and where he’s going. For all things Matt Ferranti, see below.
Musical Beginnings
Beginning with the origin of his career, the multi-faceted musician explained to Music Mayhem that he began by playing gigs all around his home state of Michigan, eventually moving to Nashville in 2013 to pursue a career in the music industry on a much more professional level.
According to Ferranti, networking was key during this transitional time in his life, becoming friends with anyone and everyone in Music City, all while working as a bar back to pay the bills: writers, producers, sound guys, etc.
Working with Jelly Roll
“I was buying sound guys drinks… I actually was barbacking and was serving Jelly [Roll]’s dad before he passed actually, so Jelly’s dad was coming in. I think Jelly was still in prison, I’m pretty sure. His dad was coming in every day at like 3:30, and it was just, you know, ‘Hey, what’s up dude?’ I made friends with this old guy, kept chilling, kept hanging out, kept following him every day,” Ferranti explained, and this relationship with Jelly Roll’s dad led to a major opportunity with the “Halfway to Hell” singer.
He continued, “When Jelly got out of jail, buddy ended up bringing him to Tin Roof, and Jelly was like, ‘Hey man, my dad said you play keys, you’re a cool dude, what you want to do?’ I was like, ‘Man, I’m so sick of bartending. I f*****g hate this s**t. Like, I’m here for music.” One thing led to another, and soon enough, Ferranti and Jelly Roll were working together, with the CMA Award-winner paying Ferranti “like 300 bucks a day” to play the keys for him.
Working With Brett Young
After working with Jelly Roll for a little while, Ferranti expanded his network, eventually landing a gig with another famous face: Brett Young.
“We started writing a song together, and he was like, ‘Yo, I need a guitar player next week.’ I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll do it,’” Ferranti recalled. “Brett has had ten number ones. I did a lot of cool stuff with him, but anytime I could, I would go play with Jelly, because Jelly always had my back, you know?”
“Rollercoaster”
Splitting his time between Young and Jelly Roll, Ferranti stepped away from the keys for a little while to pursue a solo career instead, beginning by releasing a tune titled “Rollercoaster” in 2018.
“When ‘Rollercoaster’ came out, I was playing big stuff with Brett and then getting off. Like, opening up for Luke Bryan and Brett Eldredge at Madison Square Garden years and years ago,” he reminisced, eventually slowing down his touring schedule to release some more solo songs.
After taking a brief pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic — as well as some opportunities he simply could not pass up — Ferranti is now stepping back into the limelight, relaunching his solo career for the first time since 2021, delving into the details in our exclusive interview.
Relaunching His Solo Career
Despite taking a pause when it comes to releasing some solo songs, Ferranti confirmed that he never stopped working hard, and he “never stopped planting seeds.”
Now, he claims it is the “perfect timing” to relaunch his solo career, telling Music Mayhem that he has “70 songs right now — like 35 from the last year, plus the ones that he’s written, plus the ones that are getting jammed up right now” — and he is ready to let them loose, beginning with the release of “Still Talkin” today (Nov. 1).
“Still Talkin”
“STILL TALKIN IS STREAMING NOW! Hope y’all like my new single! Thankful for each and every one of you who have supported me along the way,” he wrote via Instagram, announcing the release of the track.
Written long ago alongside Brandon Sammons, Eric Van Houghton, Heath Warren, and Stephen Kirk, Ferranti stated that with this release, “you’re getting like three years of angst.” According to the rising artist, “It wasn’t even the best song then,” but after going through some trials and tribulations over the past few years, “It just means more now,” making “Still Talkin” the perfect song to kick off the resurgence of his solo career.
In true Matt Ferranti fashion, he really leaned into the keys with this tune, hoping to stand out amongst other country-leaning artists within the music industry as of late. He added that both sonically and lyrically, “Still Talkin” is a song that he really believes in, and it is safe to say that fans already approve.
“Song is 🔥🔥 — Been waiting for this one bro,” one fan wrote in the comment section of his post. Another added, “Let’s go!! 🔥”
What’s Next?
Naturally, “Still Talkin” just scratches the surface of all the new tunes Ferranti has in store, sharing that he’s “trying to get as much music out there,” however, he’s “not chasing a record deal, not chasing a publishing deal, not chasing nothing.” Organically, he is simply trying to reintroduce people to his music, because it’s been so long since he has released some solo songs.
He then told Music Mayhem his roll-out plan: “We just partnered with Empire for distribution, so Empire is distributing the next probably eight songs, so we’re going to treat them as singles and hopefully every 45 to 60 days release a new tune. Just keep it going.”
He then added that there’s a method to his madness: “Save the breakup song for Valentine’s Day. Save the summer party song for festival season. All those things kind of come into play when you pick songs, how you pick songs, but either way, I have a s**t ton. We’re just going to be putting them out as often as possible.”
Working With Jelly Roll
With his solo career aside, it is safe to say that the budding artist is still staying true to his roots, simultaneously touring with Jelly Roll on his Beautifully Broken Tour, conforming that he will always be the “first and foremost responsibility.”
“#TheBeautifullyBrokenTour has been incredible – no one deserves to be on top of the charts more,” Ferranti wrote via Instagram earlier this week, just scratching the surface of how grateful he is to have such a strong friendship AND such a strong working relationship with the “Save Me” singer.
According to Ferranti, he was simply doing Jelly Roll a favor by filling in, in his band, having no idea that this favor would transform into what it is today. “He needed something when he was about to be the biggest star in the world. He’s like, ‘Yo, I gotta lean on somebody. I need you here right now.’ I canceled my Vegas residency. I canceled flights… I dropped everything I was doing, and my wife knew it. She was like, ‘We already live a crazy enough life. I just got used to you being home, playing a bunch of shows, going to Vegas once a month. The only thing that would happen is if Jelly calls you back,’ and that was in September of last year,” he gushed.
When the Beautifully Broken Tour comes to a close, Ferranti plans to hit his solo career harder than ever before, releasing as much music as possible (as mentioned previously). To stay tuned on his journey, you can connect with the soon-to-be superstar via Instagram @mattferrantimusic.
