Matthew Mole (born 28 October 1991) is a South African singer-songwriter from

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. He is the winner of the

South African Music Awards The South African Music Awards (often simply the SAMAs) are the Recording Industry of South Africa's music industry awards, established in 1995. The ceremony is held annually, usually in late April or May, with the judging process starting in N ...

record of the year 2021.

Early life and education

Matthew Mole is from

Fish Hoek Fish Hoek ( af, Vishoek, meaning either Fish Corner or Fish Glen) is a coastal town at the eastern end of the Fish Hoek Valley on the False Bay side of the Cape Peninsula in the Western Cape, South Africa. Previously a separate municipality, Fish ...

. Mole's father taught him how to play the guitar. He later learned how to play ukulele, banjo, piano, organ, and drums. He started writing his own music at the end of high school. According to Mole, his approach to writing music involves starting with a lyrical idea, a rhythm or a melody, and then recording different instruments and switching back and forth between them to build a finished song. Mole studied

music production A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

in Cape Town in 2010.

Career

His independent EP ''You Did Well, Kid'' was released online in 2011. He also opened his other singles for free on the Internet. In August 2012, he won

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

's Get Out of the Garage competition, which awarded him a gig in London's

100 Club The 100 Club is a music venue located at 100 Oxford Street, London, England, where it has been hosting live music since 24 October 1942. It was originally called the Feldman Swing Club, but changed its name when the father of the current owner ...

and a recording session at Converse's studio in New York. After winning the competition, he signed to

Just Music Just Music were a West German avant-garde music ensemble, an interchangeable collective of classically trained instrumentalists founded at the , Frankfurt/Main in 1967 by multi-instrumentalist Alfred Harth. An inherent anti-commercial bias kept th ...

and released his second EP, ''Same Parts, Same Heart'', in December 2012. His song from the EP, "Same Parts, Same Heart," was included in the soundtrack of the film ''

Leading Lady A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typica ...

.'' Mole recorded and released his debut studio album, ''The Home We Built'', in 2013. The album was produced by Matthew Fink. Mole became the first South African artist to enter the iTunes SA chart at #1 on the first day of releasing his debut album. The album received nominations for Male Artist of the Year, Best Pop Album, and Best Engineer of the Year (Matthew Fink). Mole also received a nomination for Best New Comer in the MK Awards. His second album, ''Run'', was released in 2016, followed by ''Ghost,'' released in November 2019. ''Run'' was ranked number 1 on South Africa's iTunes within three months of release, and the single "Run" achieved Gold Status within three months of release. At the 23rd Annual

, the album was nominated for Best Pop Album, Best Produced Album, and Record of the Year. Mole describes his musical style as folk with an electronica influence. In live performances, Mole can be seen playing guitar, synth, kick drum, and triggered beats at the same time. He has performed at festivals such as

5FM 5FM is a South African FM radio station that follows a Top 40 music format and is owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), South Africa's public broadcaster. SABC announced the appointment of Mr. JD Mostert as Business Mana ...

's Cape Town Live Loud,

947 Year 947 ( CMXLVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – A Hungarian army led by Grand Prince Taksony campaigns in Italy, heading ...

's Joburg Day, East Coast Radio's Durban Day, Oppikoppi, Rocking the Daisies, K Day, the

Kirstenbosch Kirstenbosch is an important botanical garden nestled at the eastern foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town. The garden is one of 10 National Botanical Gardens covering five of South Africa's six different biomes and administered by the South A ...

Summer Sunset Concert, and the

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...

. He has performed in South Africa, the UK, the US, Thailand, and Russia. In 2020, Mole campaigned with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and NPO, WILDTRUST to raise awareness for ocean protection. He and his wife Jess are featured in a video highlighting the importance of oceans to the environment. Matthew_Mole_performing_at_Huawei_Joburg_Day

Matthew_Mole_performing_at_Huawei_Joburg_Day

Discography

Awards

* Winner of Converse's Get Out of the Garage Competition *The 20th Annual

Nominee for Male Artist of the Year and Best Pop Album (2014) * An MK Awards nomination in the Newcomer category.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mole, Matthew Living people Artists from Cape Town 21st-century South African male singers South African guitarists Male guitarists White South African people 1991 births 21st-century guitarists