Matt Heaton plays high energy, engaging music for discerning kids and the grown-ups who love them. 

With his bright orange rockabilly guitar, wry sense of humor, and formidable songwriting chops, he delivers smart little songs about big things. It’s like spinach tucked in a smoothie! While kids dance and giggle, they also learn simple math, how to share and be kind, how to rhyme. (He also shares his love of great music with some choice covers, and of course, good hygiene with crowd favorite, Don’t Drink the Water that Your Butt’s Been In.)
 

For some of the grooves and messages, he digs into his own childhood media memories of Sesame Street, Mister Rogers, the Muppet Show, Free to Be You & Me, and the Electric Company. 
 

Before Matt turned his attention to music for families—which he did when his kid was a toddler with a LOT of energy to channel—he played traditional Irish music with his flute player wife Shannon, electric guitar with his surf rock trio The Electric Heaters, and picked up a master’s degree in classical guitar.  He still does these things. But he spends a lot more time on the early morning stage with families, playing shows solo and with his crackerjack band, the Outside Toys.
 

Since turning his attention to music for families, Matt has released four full-length albums, won numerous grants and awards, and been featured on NPR’s Planet Money. When Covid hit, he launched the Mornings with Matt livestream, which ran for nearly 400 episodes. It became a pandemic lifeline for many families with young children. And in the process, he developed an even deeper conviction in the power of bringing people together through music—in community singalongs and in kitchens. It reinforced his belief that kids deserve smart, honest songs to help explore big and small ideas. 

Matt performs in libraries, theaters—he’s even launched family friends series in pubs. And he’s still trying to help his (now teenage) son burn off some energy!