Matthew J. Free was born on May 17, 1983 at Schumpert Medical Center in Shreveport, LA.  His first accomplishment came on that very day as he took the hospital record for biggest baby, weighing in at 14 pounds and 4 ounces.  The local newspaper even wrote an article on his super colossal size. Matt was the youngest of 3 children, following his brother Tim, who was 4 years older and sister Misty, who was 7 years older than him.  As a young child Matt spent his time fishing and hunting with his father, riding bikes and building tree houses with his friends, and playing sports in the neighborhood park, particularly baseball.  On his 8th  birthday he received a Nintendo video game console.  Today, some say video games contribute to the demoralization of our youth, but for Matt, they unlocked the doors to his imagination, which bared unique creativity. Matt had a gift deep inside that had not yet surfaced and practically overnight he developed this desire to express this creativity and strive for achievement.

         Matt was a good student and always made good grades. During high school he became interested in music and taught himself to play the guitar. He played in several bands, limited mostly to his garage. Observing his stepbrother, Justin’s talent playing guitar encouraged Matt to become a better musician and from that point he focused on a more progressive approach to music which led to his future musical endeavors.

         In July of 2000, Matt enlisted in the United States Air Force. He joined his brother Tim in the 22nd Airlift Squadron at Travis Air Force Base, California. He served as a Loadmaster on the C5 Galaxy. Once again going for colossal size, Matt had to fly on the largest airplane ever manufactured. During his military career, Matt was able to travel all over the world and visit many countries such as Australia, Greece, Italy and Japan. He served in both Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom where he received numerous recognitions for his combat service.

         After receiving an Honorable Discharge from the Air Force he returned home to Louisiana and pursued a career in Computer Networking. He worked for New Tech Computer Systems as an IT Specialist installing computer systems in pharmacies. Matt was pursuing a BS in Information Technology and also continued to advance his musical skills. He studied a variety of musical influences like John Petrucci, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Mark Tremonti. Matt was thrilled to be able to experience his first stage performance at the Municipal Auditorium and was honored to have played on the same stage as music legends like Elvis Presley and James Burton. He soon joined An Hour’s Day and brought his own unique style to their music. Matt loved performing live just as much as he loved sitting alone writing his own music. His final live stage performance was shared with his brother Tim, playing drums, only a few months before his death. Matt died on December 24, 2008 at the age of 25.