Matt Mathews Spills The Tea On His 'Raunchy, Real, Raw And Vulnerable' Show!

Matt Mathews wears many hats. As a comedian, photographer, store owner and TikTok creator, he’s living more than just a dream, and is paving his own way while constantly gaining new fans. He just recently added a bunch of new stops on his “When That Thang Get Ta Thangn’” tour for 2024 and is ready to sell them all out.

When asked if he ever imagined his TikTok content blowing up the way it has, he said, “Absolutely not.” 

“I never wanted to do TikTok. I thought I was too old for TikTok, because it kind of, you know it kind of blew up in the middle of the pandemic and everybody was like, ‘Matt, you have to do TikTok,’" he told The Blast exclusively. "And I was like, ‘I am not getting my a-- on TikTok. It’s a bunch of kids dancing and lip syncing and I’m not doing that.’”

But everyone kept telling him he should really do it, so he finally gave in and posted his first TikTok during the pandemic.

“One of the very first videos I posted got like 13 million views and I was like what in the actual h--- is happening? I was like, this is ridiculous," he said. "I gained like 500,000 followers in like two days, and I was like, what is going on?” 

People kept commenting on his videos saying he was “so funny” and telling him that he made them laugh. Some even told him that they haven’t felt that good in a long time. He was called “a light in a dark spot” and that helped to fuel his fire on creating more and more. His content "exploded" in a way that he didn't expect to happen.

“I never wanted to do comedy. This was never something I wanted to do. I never thought I would be a comedian. I never dreamed I would be a comedian. It was never something that was a dream or goal of mine,” he said. “But everyone kept telling me, ‘Matt, you should do stand-up, you’re so funny.’”

Mathews grew up singing, writing music and playing the guitar, so performing in front of people was something he’s always done. And while he's always loved performing, he thought music was going to be his main focus. But then came comedy. 

“I always knew I would do something in the entertainment industry. I was always performing and I was in a band in high school," he told The Blast. "I sang at my elementary school talent shows and always performed for my teddy bears growing up, so I always knew I would do something in entertainment, but I didn’t know exactly what it would be, and I never really pursued music.”

With everyone telling him that comedy is something he should consider, he decided to give it a shot and see where it takes him. He started working with a local comedian and writer in Birmingham, Alabama, and then opened for two comedians.  The first time he said was “terrible,” but the second time was much better. The comedy club then told him they were going to give him three shows of his own and see how it goes. All three shows sold out in three minutes. He was then given a show in their big room that held 450 people and that show sold out in one minute. 

“I was gonna just do a couple of shows to have fun with it, and I ended up signing with an agent and we booked a full out tour and it has sold out," he said. "And has been absolutely insane.” 

The way everything has happened for Mathews makes him believe it’s fate and a path he was always meant to take. His current tour just expanded to include dates in 2024. 

“This tour is a lot. I promised myself when I started comedy that I didn’t want to be like every other comedian. So I didn’t want to get on stage and tell jokes and have a punchline. I wanted my story to be different and I wanted people to come to my show and be inspired and I wanted people to be motivated," he told The Blast.

"And so my show is really about my life and growing up gay in the south and growing up poor with an alcoholic mom and really struggling growing up and learning not to be another statistic. It’s a lot of learning to break the cycle and becoming better for yourself and loving yourself and being comfortable in your skin.” 

It’s a "raunchy, real, raw and vulnerable show," he said, and is a different side of Mathews than people see on the internet.

The TikTok star wears a lot of different hats. In addition to his stand-up comedy and wildly popular TikTok page, he’s also a boudoir photographer. 

“The hats are hattin’. There’s so much. I had a whole business that I’ve had for over a decade and I’ve been a boudoir photographer for over a decade and it’s been absolutely incredible,” he said. “I’m able to show people that the number on the scale does not determine your self worth and it’s all about being comfortable in your skin and being comfortable in your body and loving yourselves.”

If that’s not enough, Mathews also owns a store in the same building as his photography studio. He opened the store during the pandemic and sells an all-natural candle line, skin care line, clothing, and just launched their first bags. 

“It’s just been incredible to really grow my brand and having an audience that loves all of the things I’m doing and selling,” he said. “So I have my store and have my studio, and they are actually in the same building.”

Mathews said that doing his photography is really rewarding for him. 

“The best part of that is seeing people come into my studio really nervous and vulnerable. A lot of my clients are coming to me because they’ve come from really bad divorces, or they’ve struggled with eating disorders, or they have cancer, or something huge or a milestone in their life and maybe they don't’ feel beautiful or are told they are not worthy enough or they’ve been told they’re not beautiful enough, or they’re too big or too small, whatever the case may be,” he said.

“Seeing those people come out of their shell and realize their worth and realize how beautiful they actually are; that’s the most rewarding part. They’ll tell me they’ve never felt this beautiful before, like I’ve never felt this good before. I think that’s definitely the number one perk of being a boudoir photographer.” 

For anyone who follows Mathews on TikTok, you’ve seen his hilarious farm chores videos. That started because some of his boudoir photography videos were being deleted by the app and he didn’t want to risk the page being deleted. He decided to show a different side of his life, so living on a farm and having so many animals made for great material and took off. 

What’s next for Mathews? He doesn’t know what’s next as he is a “fly by the seat of my pants kind of person.” But there’s no end in sight, so there will always be something exciting going on in his life. 

"When That Thang Get Ta Thangn'" tour just added dates in 2024 and tickets go on sale Friday, Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. EST. Visit Mathews' website for complete tour schedule and more information.