— Bob Roth, CEO David Lynch Foundation — Kevin Lyman, Founder of Vans Warped Tour/Kevin Lyman Group Matt Butler is a songwriter, poet and storyteller. His solo show Reckless Son tells the story of how his concert at the Albany County Jail led to over 100 performances in jails and prisons across the country. He’s been featured on NPR Morning Edition, The Blue Grass Situation, and PBS with SPIN saying “Butler is doing something special for the American arts” after adding him to their albums and artists of the year lists. He’s performed at events held by The David Lynch Foundation, The Columbia Center For Justice, American Folk Art Museum, National Alliance On Mental Illness (NAMI), The Caron Foundation and was an inaugural ‘Activist In Residence’ at the Kripalu Center in the Berkshires and Artist In Residence at HB Studio in Manhattan. Along with performing, Matt works as a facilitator and consultant for corporations and non-profits. He is the creator of the Generation S.O.S. Correctional Community Initiative, a program that gives currently incarcerated individuals in recovery from substance use disorder a platform to share their lived experience with the public. He’s written two collections of poetry, The Sonnets Of Becoming and Sonnets Of The Sea.
