Matt Thiessen
Thiessen performing at Wonder Jam 2009
Background information
Birth name	Matthew Arnold Thiessen
Born	(1980-08-12)August 12, 1980 (age 44) St. Catharines,Ontario, Canada
Origin	Canton, Ohio, U.S.
Genres	Christian rock,alternative rock,pop punk,folk music,indie pop,guitar pop
Occupation(s)	Singer, musician, songwriter
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active	1998–present
Member of	Relient K

Matthew Arnold Thiessen (born August 12, 1980) is a Canadian-born American musician known for being co-founder, lead singer, guitarist, pianist, and primary songwriter for the rock bandRelient K. With Relient K, he has releasedeight full-length albums, including three that werecertified Gold, and three that peaked in the top twenty on theBillboard 200. Outside of his work with Relient K, Thiessen leads a side project calledMatthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes, which released its debut albumWind Up Bird in 2018. In 2009, he co-produced and collaborated onOwl City's albumOcean Eyes.

Thiessen founded Relient K in 1998, with guitaristMatt Hoopes, and bassistBrian Pittman,^[1] and recorded the demoAll Work & No Play the same year. The recording attracted the interest ofToby McKeehan who signed the band to his labelGotee Records. Between the years 2000 and 2003, Gotee released three full-lengthalbums, one Christmas album, and fourEPs with Relient K. In 2004, their fourth albumMmhmm was released on bothCapitol Records and Gotee, and peaked at number fifteen on theBillboard 200.^[2] After recording another EP in 2005,Mmhmm andTwo Lefts Don't Make a Right...but Three Do, their 2003 album, werecertified gold, followed by their 2001 albumThe Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek in 2006.^[3] In 2007, Gotee, Capitol, andEMI released Relient K's fifth studio album,Five Score and Seven Years Ago, which peaked at number six on theBillboard 200.^[2] After the release of thedouble EPThe Bird and the Bee Sides in 2008, the band signed with Gotee'sMono Vs. Stereo imprint, on which they released their sixth studio album,Forget and Not Slow Down, again reaching the top twenty of theBillboard 200.^[2] Thiessen and the other members of Relient K have taken upA&R positions for the label as part of the record deal.^[4]

Thiessen has been the lead vocalist, frontman, guitarist, primary songwriter, and, along with guitarist/backing vocalistMatt Hoopes, the only member who has been in the band for its entire history. Because of this position of musical leader, he maintains the most creative and artistic control of the band members.^[5] He has also served as co-producer on several occasions as well. As the band matured musically, Thiessen started being credited with piano in most releases, beginning withThe Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek in 2001. Since the release ofMmhmm in 2004, his piano playing started becoming more prominent, and he began including a piano onstage as well.^[6]

In addition to being in Relient K, Thiessen plays in his own solo piano project called Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes. Prior to 2018, the project had released a total of five songs on varioussamplers and compilation albums fromGotee andMono Vs. Stereo, and several songs written for the project have been re-recorded on Relient K releases. In 2010, after the release and supporting tour ofForget and Not Slow Down, Thiessen announced that he would begin work on a full-length solo album.^[7] Although he had previously expressed interest in recording a studio release, he had placed his priority on Relient K, and relegated his solo work to his free time.^[5]

In April 2018, Adam Young ofOwl City announced that Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes would be joining them on tour later in the year.^[8] In June 2018, Thiessen announced that his debut album under Matthew Thiessen and the Earthquakes,Wind Up Bird, would release later that summer.^[9]

Thiessen has occasionally collaborated withJon Foreman ofSwitchfoot. After initial interest in recording vocals for a Switchfoot song, it instead worked out for Foreman to contribute vocals for the Relient K song "Deathbed" fromFive Score and Seven Years Ago.^[10] He later contributed songwriting and vocals to the Switchfoot release "Rebuild" in 2007, in conjunction for theAppetite for Construction Tour.

In 2009, he contributed vocals, songwriting, and production toOwl City'smajor-label debutOcean Eyes, which has sold over 1,500,000 copies worldwide and reached the top ten on theBillboard 200.^[11] Lead single "Fireflies" reached number one on theBillboard Hot 100 in late October, and was a global success, topping the charts in many countries including Australia, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.^[12] Thiessen continues to work with Owl City's Adam Young and contributes vocals to "Plant Life", a song on the album, "All Things Bright and Beautiful". He also co-wrote "Good Time" with Owl City andBrian Lee.^{[citation needed]} Thiessen has also made guest contributions on a number of releases with other artists, includingBlackbear,John Reuben,tobyMac andThe Fold.^{[citation needed]}

Thiessen has received piano lessons since he was seven years old, with early interests inragtime andScott Joplin, specifically the soundtrack fromThe Sting. He taught himself guitar at the age of 14 by learning to play songs bygrunge bands likeSilverchair andNirvana. Thiessen does not use guitar picks while playing; he instead uses his thumb. According toMatt Hoopes, this is because he can't.^[13] Since Relient K's early days, Thiessen's main influences have been in thepop punk genre,^[6] specificallyNOFX,Less Than Jake,Ghoti Hook,MxPx,^[5] andGoldfinger.^[14] He later introduced influences fromSimon & Garfunkel,Ben Folds, andThe Beach Boys,^[6] whom he has named as his favorite band.^[5] Thiessen has claimed that after years of writing and performing pop-punk songs, he now finds writing slower music more enjoyable.^[14] He has described his Matt Thiessen and the Earthquakes side project as being influenced byRufus Wainwright andBen Folds.^[6]

Though he has played several guitars throughout his career, Thiessen is best known for playingGibson ES-335s and has also been seen playing aGibson Tom DeLonge Signature ES-333 occasionally.^[15]

Thiessen was born inSt. Catharines, Ontario. His parents divorced when he was six years old and living inStevensville,Ontario. Later, his mother remarried and the family moved toBolivar, Ohio, where he met and befriended future bandmatesMatt Hoopes andBrian Pittman. The three have said that they have known each other since first or second grade.^[16]

Thiessen dated future pop starKaty Perry for a time from 2003 until 2005, and wrote several songs with her andGlen Ballard during her early recording sessions. One of the songs the three wrote, "Long Shot", would go on to be recorded byKelly Clarkson on her 2009 albumAll I Ever Wanted.^[17] Remaining on good terms with Perry, he also co-wrote "Dressin' Up fromTeenage Dream: The Complete Confection.

In 2008, it was announced that Thiessen proposed to Shannon Murphy, a morning radio co-host of the "Mojo in the Morning" show based in Detroit. The couple planned for an August 22, 2009 wedding.^[18] However, the engagement was terminated in December of that year. Murphy later reported that, though they were no longer together, they were on good terms.^[19]

Thiessen marriedEmily Wright on August 23, 2015, in New York City, withMatt Hoopes as his best man. They kept the engagement and marriage a secret from the public.^[20] The couple divorced in February 2018.^[21]

• Media related toMatt Thiessen at Wikimedia Commons

• 1980 births
• American performers of Christian music
• American male singers
• American rock guitarists
• American male guitarists
• American rock singers
• American people of Canadian descent
• Canadian Christians
• Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States
• Canadian male guitarists
• Canadian male singers
• Canadian performers of Christian music
• Canadian rock pianists
• Living people
• Singers from Ohio
• Musicians from St. Catharines
• Singers from Ontario
• Musicians from Canton, Ohio
• People from Tuscarawas County, Ohio
• Relient K members
• Annie Award winners
• Guitarists from Ohio
• Canadian male pianists
• 21st-century American male singers
• 21st-century American singers
• 21st-century Canadian male singers
• 21st-century Canadian singers

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