Rob Thomas, formerly of Matchbox Twenty fame releases his much anticipated single ‘Her Diamonds’ through Atlantic Records on June 22.
The whole thing started 15 years ago because I had a bunch of songs,” says Rob of the genesis of Matchbox Twenty. Since then, he has penned a remarkable string of smashes, including their #1-charters “Push,” “3AM,” “If You’re Gone,” “Bent,” “Disease,” and “Unwell,” and other major hits like “Real World,” “Back 2 Good,” “Mad Season,” and “Bright Lights.”
In 1999, his smash collaboration with Santana, the Thomas-penned “Smooth,” earned Rob three Grammy Awards and today ranks #1 on Billboard’s “Top Hot 100 Rock Songs” chart and #2 on the magazine’s “Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs.” He has also worked with the likes of Willie Nelson, Mick Jagger, Marc Anthony, and Bernie Taupin.
In 2004, the Songwriters Hall of Fame presented Thomas with its premiere “Starlight Award” – created to recognize a composer in the early years of his or her career who has already made a lasting impact. He has won numerous BMI and ASCAP Awards, and has earned the Songwriter of the Year crown from both Billboard and BMI for two consecutive years.
With the 2005 release of his first solo album, the #1, multi-platinum “…SOMETHING TO BE,” Rob embarked on a major, sold-out world tour. He also appeared at the historic Live 8 multi-concert event in July 2005, performing both as a solo artist and joining Stevie Wonder for a duet version of the Wonder classic, “Higher Ground.”
In 2007, Thomas reunited with Matchbox Twenty for “EXILE ON MAINSTREAM.” Their first album in five years, the set combined a retrospective of their greatest hits with a six-track EP of new songs produced by Steve Lillywhite – including the RIAA gold single, “How Far We’ve Come.” Debuting at #3 on the Billboard 200, the RIAA gold “EXILE ON MAINSTREAM” scored the biggest first week of the year for a greatest hits collection.
Thomas landed another solo hit in 2007 with “Little Wonders,” from the soundtrack to the Disney animated feature, Meet The Robinsons. In December 2008, he performed at the 31st Annual Kennedy Center Honors in Washington DC, where he paid tribute to Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey with an emotionally charged rendition of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley,” featuring a choir of 150 New York City policemen and firefighters.
Moving forward, Thomas will continue to toggle between his solo career and Matchbox Twenty. “Over the years, the other guys have evolved as writers,” says Rob. “Now that I have a solo outlet, we can be more creative together; we can be a band and really explore what Matchbox can become – the best of what it can be – without my ego as a songwriter getting in the way. The reason I do what I do is because I have all these songs that are always building up in my head, so it’s really cathartic to get a load of them out into the world and start over again. And the solo career is a really important way for me to do that.”