You may already know Maty Noyes from her collaboration with Norwegian producer/DJ Kygo called "Stay," but the 19-year-old singer/songwriter from Corinth, Mississippi has a new single out called "In My Mind," along with a brand new five-song EP, cleverly titled Noyes Complaint, which she released on October 28th via Republic Records.
Maty, full name Madeline Ashley Noyes, might be young, but she has a bright future ahead of her and a lot more music to put out. We recently learned more about her when she stopped by iHeartRadio HQ for an exclusive interview, including how she got in to music, her influences, moving to Nashville at only 16 years old before finally making it out to Los Angeles, being featured on The Weeknd's song "Angel," working with Kygo, having Kesha's support, and plans for a full-length album.
On her musical background & musical influences
Maty grew up in the town of Corinth, Mississippi, where the desire to pursue music started. She explains her mother signed her up for piano lessons at a young age, but after figuring out that wasn't necessarily for her, she asked for a guitar and immediately began writing songs. She says, "I was actually forced to take piano by my mother, so I hated it. But when I was around 12, I asked for a guitar, and within a week I was writing songs. I always just knew it's what I wanted to do."
Listening to music by the Beatles, Johnny Cash, and Elvis Presley to name a few, she "just wanted to make stuff that made people happy."
In fact, Maty can recall the first song she ever wrote. She was just 12 years old when she wrote it, and it was called "Bigger." She explains, "It was about a girl who was really pretty, but didn't think she was pretty, so she was too afraid to kiss anyone. So her lips got so big that they fell off. That's really what it was about."
Aside from the Beatles, Johnny Cash, and Elvis, Maty also calls out legendary artists like Marvin Gaye and James Brown as some of her influences. And as far as music she likes to listen to, she describes it as "a very big mix of music." She says, "I just love all music. It kind of influences what I do, because I don't like to put myself in a box. I just like to create everything I love."
On moving to Nashville at 16 years old
When Maty was just 16 years old, she convinced her parents to move to Nashville, AKA Music City, to get her start in pursuing a career in music. She recalls that it wasn't easy to persuade her parents into letting her go, but eventually (with a big list of rules to follow) they agreed, after realizing that they needed to do so if she was seriously going to have a music career.
"It was very hard to convince them, obviously, because most people never let their kids do that. But they knew I didn't want to go to college, they knew that I didn't like school. I didn't really get along with anyone or fit in. So, in order for me to pursue what I wanted to do, they kinda had to let me go. And they gave me a big list of rules, so I just did them all, and they were like, 'Okay. You did it. We didn't think you would, so you got to go.'"
Maty describes being in Nashville as an "amazing" experience, playing open mic nights often, and meeting many people in the business. "I would play every week at different open mics. And it was a great opportunity to really find myself, and meet new people. It helped a lot [in] my development."
Eventually, she moved out to Los Angeles, where she lives today. She says, "I moved to LA because, with what I do, I know that if I wanna go really big, I should probably be there. And I love the weather, obviously, and just love LA. I was always an LA girl."
On how she got featured on The Weeknd's song "Angel"
If you didn't already know, Maty is actually featured on The Weeknd's Grammy-winning album Beauty Behind The Madness, on the last song of the record called "Angel."
"It was really cool, because being a new artist, it was amazing to have an experience where you're working with one of the biggest artists in the world, in their own lane. That was an honor. But it was cool because he didn't even know I did it. I was in the studio with the producer we were both working with, and I was like, 'Hey, let's throw it down. Let's not tell him.' Because you can't really tell people you're going to do something, or else they'll be like, 'No, no, no.' You kinda have to make them think it's more their idea. So, when we played it for him, he ended up really loving it. It was really amazing."
On what it was like working with Kygo
Maty was also featured on Kygo's "Stay," which appeared on his 2016 debut studio album Cloud Nine. The song hit No. 6 on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart and No. 8 on the US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, as well as achieving Gold status in several countries around the world including the UK, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, and Poland. Maty has performed the song live along side the DJ on many occasions, including during our 2016 iHeartRadio Summer Pool Party in Miami.
"Basically, I wrote the song and sent it to him, because I wanted someone to do a drop to it, and I loved his drops. And surely enough, he loved it, and did it in three days, and it came out two weeks later. It was amazing. The first time I heard it was when we were in Norway doing the Nobel Peace Prize. It was cool."
She says that performing the song in front of large crowds with Kygo helped her feel more comfortable on stage, and prepped her for what she's about to do in her solo career. "It definitely got me really used to what I'm going to do in my solo career. Now, I'm not afraid to perform in front of people, and it was a great experience."
Despite her appearances on stage with Kygo, back in October, Maty was banned by the DJ's manager from performing at his two sold-out Hollywood Bowl shows, reportedly because she missed a gig -- which in an Instagram post, Maty explains she was sick for. After hearing the news, Kesha took to her own Instagram to show her support for Maty, and that really meant a lot to the 19-year-old young woman who is about to embark on her own solo career.
On Kesha showing her support
"Having her support just made it all even more worth it. Because it's a hard thing to do when you're putting yourself out there, and standing up for yourself and for other women. So, to know that someone like that had my back, just really made it amazing for me. I know she's been though a lot too, and we gotta stick together as women in the industry."
Being a woman who is kicking off a solo career in music, and following this particular experience, Maty says of being a woman in the music industry, "You really have to establish yourself as a woman in this industry. In order to stop any type of wrong that's going on, you really have to stand up for yourself. It's 2016. Nothing like this can keep happening. So, I just want to be one of those people who helps put a stop to it."
As for whether or not she's going to be performing with Kygo anytime soon, Maty says she's focusing on her own solo career at the moment. "It was a great experience, learning, but I think now I really want to focus on my solo career."
On her EP, new single, & plans for an album
Maty has a lot to look forward to after releasing her debut EP Noyes Complaint, which she has been working on for a year. She tells us after writing "many different songs," the tracks that were chosen (last minute) were songs that she wrote "in the last few months." Of course, Noyes Complaint features her new single "In My Mind."
"'In My Mind' is about when you're in love with someone, but they're also really annoying sometimes. But, you weigh the pros over the cons. So, when they're annoying you, instead of physically leaving you, you just mentally leave, in your mind, somewhere peaceful."
Maty's fans can look forward to a full-length album from her at some point in the future. She describes her music as having a "retro pop vibe" and that she has an album "practically done." She says, "It's practically already done, actually. People say I wrote my first album, second. Like, I wrote all the songs for the second album before I wrote the songs for the first one."
Watch Maty Noyes' "In My Mind" music video below:
Photos: Rachel Kaplan for iHeartRadio
Original article by Nicole Mastrogiannis at iHeartRadio