Cmat
A self-described global pop star from Dublin, CMAT crafts sunny radio-friendly pop songs that have a pronounced country influence. Citing Dolly Parton and Katy Perry as equal influences, CMAT's songs examine everyday life through the lens of kitschy pop culture, finding room to comment on relationships, mental health, and self-image with a serious intent and a dry sense of humor. If her material is seemingly built on contradictions, she presented a clever, unified creative vision on her 2022 debut album, If My Wife New I'd Be Dead. The country influences faded a bit on her second LP, 2023's Crazymad, For Me, but the emotions cut deeper in its 11 songs about the crash and burn of a failed relationship.
Born in North Dublin in 1996, CMAT stage name is an abbreviation of her given name, Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson. She grew up on a musical diet of contemporary pop and classic country, citing Johnny Cash as a local favorite and recalling many karaoke nights where folks at the bar would do their best to emulate their Nashville favorites. CMAT began making music when she was 17 years old, and after relocating to Manchester, England, she first attracted serious attention for her work as half of the duo Bad Sea; she and bandmate Alan Farrell first met one another on the online dating platform Tinder. While Bad Sea earned enthusiastic press, the project was short-lived, and as Thompson was plotting her next move, she attended an event where fans were invited to give pop singer Charli XCX pointers on a handful of unreleased tracks. CMAT attracted Charli's attention when she was the only attendee who offered any actual criticism of the music, and Charli reached out to the aspiring songwriter, advising her to leave what she'd been doing behind and start fresh with new inspiration.
CMAT returned to Ireland, attended college for a while. She began to focus on her mental health, and dropped out to take a job at a clothing shop while she moved in with her grandparents. She gave herself an assignment to write one new song every week, and over the course of six months, she posted videos of her new tunes online while staging periodic performances at a local yoga studio. In 2020, she started posting singles of her work, and "I Don’t Really Care for You" and "I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby" racked up impressive numbers on streaming services, as well as airplay on BBC Radio One. She struck a deal with AWAL Recordings, and CMAT's first album, If My Wife New I'd Be Dead, was released in February 2022.
The album was a commercial success in Ireland, debuting at number one on the local album charts on the strength of the single "Peter Bogdanovich," with CMAT portraying the filmmaker in a witty, imaginative music video. In March 2023, If My Wife New I'd Be Dead won the Choice Music Prize, an award given to the year's outstanding album from an Irish artist. As CMAT soaked up the acclaim, she traveled to Norway to work on her second album with producer Matias Téllez. Crazymad, For Me, released in October 2023, was described by CMAT as a three-part concept album about a traumatic relationship that also involved faulty time travel and an accidental detour into Paris in the 1890s.
© Mark Deming /TiVo
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Discography
18 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Aw, Shoot!
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 7 May 2024
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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If My Wife New I'd Be Dead (Deluxe)
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 4 Mar 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
If My Wife New I'd Be Dead
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 4 Mar 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Another Day (Kfc)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Diet Baby on 22 Apr 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Where Are Your Kids Tonight?
Pop - Released by CMATBABY on 12 Jul 2023
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby!
Alternative & Indie - Released by Diet Baby on 23 Sep 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
I Don't Really Care for You
Alternative & Indie - Released by Diet Baby on 23 Feb 2021
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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2 Wrecked 2 Care
Alternative & Indie - Released by Diet Baby on 23 Jun 2021
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Whatever's Inconvenient
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 19 Apr 2023
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Communion (Country version)
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 29 Jun 2022
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Every Bottle (Is My Boyfriend)
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 23 Feb 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
No More Virgos
Alternative & Indie - Released by CMATBABY on 27 Oct 2021
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo