"Never Trust a Girl at Coachella"

Maybe it's the music nerd in me, but I genuinely appreciate hearing about how songs came to be. Whether it's a friend of a friend introduction that turned into a collaboration, a song about a significant other that went bad, or in this case, a shared festival experience, I'm usually inclined to spend my time sharing stories that move me. Usually I do a quick summary, but thanks to Matoma, I can sit this explanation out...

"I played my first ever Coachella last year and it was a truly incredible experience. Between the two weekends I was doing writing sessions in L.A. and met up with Nasri from MAGIC! who I have always been a huge fan of because of their feel-good reggae-inspired music.

We wanted to write a song about Coachella since I had the moment of my life at that festival, so we came up with this story about a girl who teases with a guy’s feelings at heart at the festival. It's just a fun story about the good vibes and reckless fun that people experience at a music festival.

We finished the song really quickly and then asked D.R.A.M. if he could do a verse since we felt a rapper could take the song to exciting new heights. After hearing his verse I can from my heart say that he nailed it. I was so honoured to work with such amazing artists and hope you love this feel-good summer song!"

I usually associate Matoma with Trop House, so seeing a collabo with MAGIC! really piqued my interest. I don't have too many examples to go off of, but mixing anything reggae with Trop House is usually a good look. The subject of the track is pretty self-explanatory, but I feel like the sheer fact that they based on it meeting a girl at a music festival is a genius move. I'm apathetic about D.R.A.M.'s verse, but with all the music festivals popping up weekly, you can bet this one will have a ton of replay potential. Give it an iTunes or Spotify if you feel like beating your friends to the punch on this one before summer festival season starts...#GirlAtCoachella

Matoma feat MAGIC! & D.R.A.M. - Girl At Coachella

"When Everybody Go, I'm Hoping That You Stick Around"

Ooohhh man, Akon putting together a Trop House track?? You want to talk about a match made in heaven, holy crap! Thanks to Matoma, we now have a confirmation of how great Akon with a little bit of autotune sounds over calypso chords. Stick Around is as poppy as you'd expect lyrically, but the soothing, flute driven house beat is ever-so melodic. I'll be the first to admit, I haven't posted enough Matoma on the blog, but this new one might just tip the scales in his favor. Can't say for sure whether this is going to end up on an album for either artist, but that's why they release singles on iTunes. The real question remains, how long will it take T-Pain to embrace the Trop House movement...#StickAround

Akon & Matoma - Stick Around

A Whole Lot of Tropical House Mashing

As more and more remixes like the one below surface, Tropical House continues to gain steam. There's an undeniably carefree spirit to the cheery synths that Matoma & Nelsaan inject into to John Mayer's remix of Tom Petty's Free Fallin'. It's more smooth than it is uptempo, making it less house and more tropical, but you won't hear me complaining. It's a fresh squeezed glass of audible happiness that can turn around even the worst day. You have my full permission to start the day off on the right foot with this one...#FreeFallin

Matoma & Nelsaan - Free Fallin Tropical Mojito Remix (John Mayer Tribute)