WATCH: Matt Stell Showered With Puppy Kisses On The ‘Pupdate’

The Country Now Pupdate is back with Matt Stell!

The puppies of Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue immediately melted into Matt Stell’s touch as he revealed that his love for animals that stems from being raised on a farm. 

“We had dogs and cats and cows and horses and pigs and goats and all that kind of thing. So, yeah, I mean, I love all animals, although I might love these two puppies the best right now,” Stell said.

In addition to falling in love with these four-legged friends during his visit to the Country Now studio in Nashville, TN, Stell also took the time to chat about his latest collection of songs, and all the various sentiments it holds for him and the current stage of his career. 

One Of Us EP

The Arkansas native dropped his highly-anticipated One Of Us EP on February 10, in an effort to capture the essence of what he was searching for when he took a leap and moved to Nashville back in 2014.

“Making new music and releasing new music is my favorite part of all this. You know, I moved to town to be a songwriter, and I get to do that, and then I also get to release music of my own. That’s really living the dream for me,” he told Country Now. “So having this new music out in the world and watching how people respond to it is just about my favorite thing. That, and hanging out with these puppies.”

“Shut The Truck Up”

Among the six-track collection is the vulnerable heartbreak anthem, “Shut The Truck Up.” Written by Stell with Chase McGill and Jessie Jo Dillon, this catchy tune emphasizes the power that one truck can hold because of all the experiences and memories it’s seen. 

“’Shut The Truck Up’ is one of my favorite things that country songs do. It’s like, the title makes you think it’s gonna be one thing, but it turns into something else,” he shared as the puppies distracted themselves with his boots. 

“I also like taking some things in country music that can kind of be thought as a little cliche, like, you know, whiskey and trucks and beer and mama and prison and all that stuff and finding an interesting way to talk about some kind of traditional subject matter. So yeah, I love that song. It’s probably one of my favorites on the whole project.”

Even the music video holds a special meaning to Stell as it features a truck that his grandma bought new back in 1991 and later landed back in his possession. 

“She sold that truck to me when I had like $5. So I got it, I sold it, and then when I moved to Nashville and we finally had some success on the radio, I bought that truck back from the guy. Actually, my brother helped me track it down. Bought that truck from the guy and had it completely restored, just frame off restored to basically factory new,” he said with great pride. “It was a labor of love and it’s something I was proud to get to do and it’s something that she’s proud of. Yeah, we made it the star of a music video here recently.”

Connecting With Outside Cuts

The title track to One Of Us is an outside cut penned by Gavin Slate, James Barker, Jim McCormick and Travis Wood. Despite not being a writer on the track, the words still hit close to home for Stell, which is what led him to recording it and making it the center of his EP. 

“You know, that song, when I heard it…I knew I loved the song, but really what made it so special to me is, you know, it’s like, that song’s about a bunch of different characters and one of those characters in that song, in the second verse talks about a guy that passes away in a truck wreck. I had that happen to a really good friend of mine right after college, and he was about the best guy that I knew,” Stell shared honestly. 

“So when I heard that song, and it’s talking about all these different kinds of people, but I heard that and it sounded just like my buddy, John. It really made it hit home in a different way and I knew that I wanted to be the guy that sang that song every night because I think we probably all got friends like that or know somebody like that, that tragedies happened to,” he added. “And I get to celebrate my buddy John cause he was a great guy. So that’s really what makes that song just over the top special to me.”

Just as he has connected with his songs and his fanbase, Matt Stell also gained a close bond with the puppies, who he named squeaks and chughead after one of his childhood dogs.  

To hear even more from Stell, including the song that best defines him as an artist, which actor he would want to play him in a movie, his country music Mount Rushmore, a mustache update, and more, click above to watch the Pupdate.

About Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue

Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue, a foster-based 501c3 charitable organization based in Middle Tennessee, is run primarily by volunteers. Proverbs is totally dedicated to all animals they rescue. For more on Proverbs and to donate, click HERE.