Mat and Savanna Shaw from Kaysville, Utah, are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The dynamic father-daughter duo has set an amiable goal to be a ray of hope and sunshine to the world.
The Beginnings of Something Phenomenal
In late February 2020, when the father-daughter duo sat down at their kitchen table to sing “The Prayer” —originally made famous by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli in the late ’90s—the intent was to make a video solely for their family and friends. They decided to make the video when then-15-year-old Savanna’s choir canceled practices due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Within a two-week period, the four-minute video, which was released on 6 March 2020, had garnered more than 2.7 million views on YouTube and 4.4 million views on Facebook. As of late July 2022, the video has been viewed in excess of 9.3 million times on YouTube alone, and their YouTube channel has 627K followers.
In a telephone interview, Mat Shaw told The Daily Signal, “I think it’s been touching for some people to see a family, a father-daughter relationship, enjoying their talents and spending time together, it reminds them of their own relationships.” Savanna added, “I just wanted to be able to keep in touch with my friends. I had not had social media before this. . .. I just wanted to post a song to start out on Instagram.”
Neither 41-year-old Mat nor his 17-year-old daughter Savanna are experienced in working with social media. Mat admitted, “I don’t have any experience with YouTube at all, as far as posting … It took me hours. I had to figure out how to start a channel and then [“The Prayer”] was our first post to YouTube.” The Daily Signal reports that what the duo lacks in social media know-how was more than made up for in their performance of the song and the message of hope it inspires.
The Humblest of Beginnings
The success of their first song has led them to record more songs of hope and inspiration.
The first songs that they recorded were made in their “quarantine recording studio”—what the duo calls their in-home closet setup.
Mat commented, “Neither of us have ever set foot in a real-life recording studio, so I don’t know what’s normal. But for us, normal is an iPad, a little mic that plugs into the iPad that we bought at the Apple Store. [The iPad] is propped up by my pajama pants in my closet.” After the audio was recorded, the video portion was filmed at their kitchen table.
And that was just the beginning of a music career that has literally skyrocketed.
On the Road to Stardom
Since releasing their first music video, Mat and Savanna Shaw have released more music videos, several of which that have also gone viral. Among the music videos that they released is their rendition of the classic song, “L-O-V-E,” by the incomparable Nat King Cole. That video was released on 14 February 2021, Valentine’s Day, and to date has been viewed on YouTube more than 178K times. The father-daughter duo also released a cover of “Keep Us Safe” by Carrie Underwood, which they dedicated to all those who wear the uniform — past and present. Their latest release, which features Nathan Pacheco, is an uplifting rendition of the song, “I Can Only Imagine,” by Mercy Me. The video was released on 17 July 2022 and has already garnered 96,375 views on YouTube.
In the past two years, the singing duo have appeared on several television and radio shows, including Good Morning America and the Kelly Clarkson Show, performed at various charity events, performed a Live streaming concert, and released four full-length albums – their debut album, Picture This, their Christmas album, Merry Little Christmas, their album, Stand By Me, and their second Christmas album, The Joy of Christmas. A new album, Happy Like That, is now available for pre-order on their website.
Mat and Savanna also collaborated with their arranger, Stephen Nelson, and co-wrote the title track of their first album, “Picture This,” and released a music video of the original song, which is literally their story put to music.
Making Music Involves the Entire Family
Mat and Savanna Shaw attribute any success that they have achieved to the loving support of their family — wife and mother, Brooke Shaw, and brothers and sister, Easton, Eric, and Pennie Jean. Their family means everything to them.
Their family members have appeared in several music videos. Brooke appears as a member of the choir in the “Amazing Grace” music video. Sister, Pennie Jean, and brother, Easton (playing the ukulele) appear in the music video cover of “Tonight You Belong to Me.” Pennie Jean also appears in the Christmas music video, “Where Are You Christmas?” Mat and Savanna also recorded a special song called “Invisible,” which was written by Hunter Hayes and arranged by Stephen Nelson. The song was released in April 2021, during Worldwide Autism Month, and was dedicated to son and brother, Eric Shaw, who is on the Autism spectrum. All the profits from the song were donated to the charity Autism Speaks.
Both Mat and Savanna Have Music Experience
Although the whirlwind experiences of all the good things that have been happening in their lives since deciding to sing together may be somewhat new, music itself is something that both Mat and Savanna Shaw have some experience with.
Mat sang in musical theater in high school and college and even had a vocal performance scholarship. But, as Mat says, “You know, life gets real. I started a real estate business; I have 4 kids. And so, singing, I set aside a little bit.” He continued, “Savanna pulled me in from doing yard work to sing that song with her, and it really reignited that passion of music and allowed me to express myself musically again where I haven’t been able to do that for so long.” Mat also spent some time in the Army National Guard.
Savanna took voice and harp lessons when she was younger. However, because she was very shy, it was difficult for her to share her voice. She said, “Luckily, I’ve been able to really work on that. . . .and I feel like a whole different person. I’ve been able to gain so much confidence.”
The Mission — Spread Hope and Share Joy
Mat and Savanna choose songs that have meaning to them, like their cover of “Try” by Colbie Caillat and their cover of “Remember Me” from the film Coco. They explain what the songs mean to them in their social media posts. They also like Broadway, musicals, big band, and songs from the 50s and 60s.
When asked why they are continuing to produce duets together, they both agree that they want to bring hope to those who need it. Savanna said, “I want [viewers] to walk away with a little bit of hope. I want to give them some joy. There is a lot to be sad and scared about right now. But I want to be the good thing that helps create joy, because I feel like we need more of that right now.” Mat added, “I have heard that the only thing more contagious than a virus is hope. And so, we are just trying to do our small little part in the world to spread a little bit of hope.”
Savanna said, “Our mission is to spread hope and share joy through our music. I think to just have a platform and [to be] able to lift heavy hearts through something that we love to do is just a really great thing.” Mat added, “We did not intend for it, but we are trying to use music to share hope and spread joy. We take that responsibility seriously. But we also love it.”
You can follow Mat and Savanna on social media. You can also support them on Patreon.
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