Matt Hansen is the living definition of an “overnight success.” After posting one cover song on TikTok, he woke up to nearly a half-million new followers, and has been able to capitalize on that momentum ever since.
His originals are where he’s really shone in recent years, including “Lifejacket” and “Versions of Forever,” that teem with emotional vulnerability and relatable life themes. After his Lollapalooza debut Thursday, Hansen chatted with the Sun-Times about his favorite artists, the recent revival of folk music and singer-songwriters and why Malort is on his bucket list for this weekend.
Q: You had an excellent opening set Thursday. What have you been doing with the rest of your weekend?
A: I’ve been enjoying the artists. It’s my first Lollapalooza. I got to finally play here and then enjoy the festival as a fan too, so it’s been fun. I got to see Reneé Rapp yesterday and I saw In This Moment, a female-fronted metal band, they were awesome. I’m going to see Deftones and TV Girl and Ethel Cain later. There’s some good vibes today.
Q: What Chicago foods are you excited to try or planning to try while you’re here?
A: I’m planning to try Malört. I’ve heard that it’s really horrible but it’s like a tradition, so I have to try it. … But I still haven’t done my shot yet. I gotta do it.”
Q: Your performance at Outside Lands last year was your first time playing a festival. What did you take from that experience to bring to Lollapalooza?
A: I was also the first slot for Outside Lands but I think only 200 people showed up for that set and I think I had over 5,000 here on Thursday, so definitely it’s really a wild change in one year. I’ve been performing ever since … I opened for Teddy Swims and for Lauv in Australia and did my own headline tour and then I started doing festivals this summer. This is my fifth one and last one of this season, and I’m going on tour with Alec Benjamin in the fall. … So I’m getting my stage chops up.
Q: So many people have talked about your incredible songwriting abilities and really tapping into all emotions with your lyrics. Who are some of your songwriting heroes?
A: I would say Chris Martin of Coldplay, Lewis Capaldi, The 1975, Hozier, all of those bands. I love euphoric sounding big songs with big vocals. Seeing Hozier on the Bud Light Stage a couple days ago was pretty surreal.
Q: You actually opened up for Hozier, playing the same stage just hours before. What was that like, and did you have the chance to meet him at all?
A: I did not, he didn’t get there until much later. But it was really cool, I got to play the stage and then watch [his set] from the crowd and see him play in the same spot I was. It was really cool to see someone who you really admire play the same stage as you.
Q: This year at Lollapalooza it seems like folk and singer-songwriters are really having a moment more than other years. What do you think is behind that?
A: Totally. I think ever since COVID ended, people just want to see live music again, and I think singer-songwriters and folk music lends itself so well to a great show because it’s so raw. When you add instruments to it, it makes it even cooler. You have someone like Noah Kahan, you could stick him out there, just him and a guitar, and he would still crush it. But then you put a band behind him and it’s like, “Oh, my god, this is one of the best shows I’ve ever seen.” It’s all about when the song can stand alone and if you add more stuff to it, it’s even better.
Q: You did a cover in your set of the Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” on Thursday. Were you even born when that song came out?
A: I don’t think so, no [laughs]. … That was one of the first covers that ever went viral for me on TikTok. I got my start posting covers. That song was how a lot of people found me on YouTube, on TikTok, so once I started playing shows people would request that song. … I actually had to learn it again. … I made my own version and it’s been great to play.
Q: Speaking of covers, what have been your favorites to do and maybe most challenging?
A: One of my favorites and one of the most challenging is “Godspeed” by Frank Ocean. It was literally the cover that changed my life. I posted it, a 30-second cover of the beginning of that song, and I woke up to 50 million views and 400,000 new followers on TikTok and my whole life changed.
Q: I love at the end of your set, you spoke to musicians telling them to post material on TikTok because it’s how you were discovered. But I heard you were quite shy in the beginning, so what made you get over the fear to share your work with such a large audience?
A: To be honest, I was just kind of shoved into theater by my parents. They forced me to do the shows and I wasn’t a very talkative kid, but for some reason when I went on stage I was like, “I feel pretty good out here.” I actually feel more comfortable on stage than in a normal setting, which is weird. But it got me out of my shell.
Q: What is the message you’re ultimately trying to convey with your music?
A: Basically the whole Matt Hansen community is for people who have been through any kind of s****y relationship. That’s the core of what it is. It’s where the music started, it’s what I write about and what I went through and I try to make it really relatable to anyone in that sphere. Anything large or small, whatever the size of the issue, I want people to be able to listen to the songs at 2 a.m. and wake up the next morning like, “OK, I’m going to do something about this.” I’m going to stop looking for this in some people, or stop ignoring this trait in others so they can focus on themselves and their healing journey. … That’s why I make my music, I know I’d want to hear that from someone.
Q: What’s next for you?
A: I have a song coming out in a couple of weeks called “Strangers Again,” and then my debut album will be coming. I’ll be announcing that soon.