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Artist of the Week: Matt Ward

5 November 2021 | 10:02 am | Mallory Arbour

CountryTown in partnership with iHeartCountry Australia is proud to announce Matt Ward as our Artist Of The Week, following the release of his new album.

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CountryTown in partnership with iHeartCountry Australia is proud to announce Matt Ward as our Artist Of The Week, following the release of his new album, If I Was In Dallas Tonight.

Coming from a long line of family boot makers and with years of experience in land management across the outback, Ward delivers country in spades, breaking hearts with classic waltzes whilst kicking down doors with energetic outlaw barnstormers. Bold, progressive and leaving no stone unturned for his truth, the South Australian singer-songwriter is a breath of rarefied authentic air in Australian country and Americana music and one of its most influential forces.

In 2019, he released his debut album, Heartland. Based on a true story and a lyrical journey of love, loss and redemption. Heartland reached the number one spot on the ARIA Australian Country album chart, debuted at number one on the iTunes Country Album chart and has gone on to rack up over 140,000 streams worldwide.

Following a run of new singles in 2020 – including the bluesy rhythm and country rock of Tattoos, Trucks & Country Music and Old Ground, a sublime fiddle and pedal steel-assisted duet with Bonnie Montgomery that harks back to classic honky tonk and Western swing – Lost & Found, his first release of the year, was inspired by adventure, country, and love – with a little bit of truth about one particular road trip from Austin to West Texas.

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His second album, If I Was In Dallas Tonight was inspired by Ward’s travels and experiences across Australia and America and all the highlights, challenges and mistakes along the way.

Despite the challenges presented by the ongoing COVID pandemic, Ward is currently on his Challenge 21 tour in South Australia. A fundraising initiative close to his heart, Challenge 21 was established for the WCH Foundation in tribute to Ward’s nephew, Sam Roberts, who passed away at 4 years of age, (and would have been 21 this year), as a result of a rare genetic condition, Niemann-Pick Disease. 

With 50% of the album sales going to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH) Foundation, Ward hopes the platform of his album release and touring can assist in raising awareness and also provide some additional fundraising capacity.  Find out more about Challenge 21 and the WCH Foundation here:  https://fundraise.wchfoundation.org.au/event/challenge-21/

Keep up to date with Matt Ward, follow him on Facebook here.

For more Artist Of The Week features, including Matt Ward, check out here.

Image: Supplied