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Biography Quick Bio: MattDuskOnline.com Biography: Born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1978, Matthew-Aaron Dusk showed promise as a musician from a young age. He was enrolled in the St. Michael's Choir School (Toronto, ON) at the age of seven, where he spent eleven years studying classical music and opera. This area of focus changed significantly at the age of 18, when Matt was introduced to big band music, including singers such as Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, and other jazz musicians. Dusk attended York University for a bachelor degree in music with a focus on jazz and popular music. Matt graduated with a BFA in 2002, and a year later was signed by Decca/Universal for the recording of his first major release album, “Two Shots”. The album featured many original songs, along with a few standards including “Fly Me to the Moon”, “Please, please me” (recorded in the slower more introspective version than that originally recorded by the Beatles), and “Two Shots”, a song originally penned by U2’s Bono in honour of Frank Sinatra. Originally scheduled for a 2003 release date, the release of Two Shots got pushed back to June 2004 when Matt and his management team got word of a new reality TV show appearing on the Fox Network called "the Casino". The Casino (produced by the Mark Burnett (Survivor)), featured two "dot com" millionaires who ventured into the purchase and attempt at revitalizing Las Vegas' Golden Nugget Casino. Matt Dusk was featured as the lounge singer at Zax lounge, trying to make it big by performing in the casino's main showroom. Due to low ratings, the show was not re-signed for a second season, although the exposure Matt Dusk received as an artist, and for his new album was extremely beneficial. Before signing with Decca/Universal, Matt Dusk recorded four independent albums (Live in Concert, Eggnog and Mistletoe, The Way It Is, and MP3.com Sessions/Unreleased), and successfully managed his own band, "Matthew-Aaron Dusk and His Swingin’ Little Big Band”, performing up to twenty events per month in Toronto and surrounding area. Matt was also a featured artist on the internet music site, MP3.com, where he received over four hundred thousand spins/downloads of his songs, and even made it to number four out of the top forty with his rendition of “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”. Matt has performed in many locations, spanning the In the late summer and fall of 2004, Matt had an intensive tour scheduled for his album Two Shots throughout Canada and the United States. During this time he made a guest appearance on Canadian Idol, and finished his 2004 tour schedule with a surprise holiday CD release -- "Peace on Earth". Matt’s new mini-album featured six classic holiday songs, plus one penned by Dusk himself, “Christmas is Finally Here”. Matt concluded the year with two performances in Toronto, one at the Winter Garden Theatre, and the other at Nathan Phillips Square as the honorary guest for the 20 th annual New Year's Eve bash. In 2005 Matt continued his tour schedule with dates scheduled both nationally and internationally. In February 2005, Matt Dusk’s talent was recognized with a Juno Award Nomination in the category of "New Artist of the Year". On June 13, 2006, Matt released his second major release with Decca/Universal, entitled "Back in Town", featuring the single that made it to number one penned "All About Me". Read Matt Dusk's official biography from MattDusk.com - 2006 version |
