If you Google “Matt Stamm,” you easily get 380,000 hits. And whether you’ve heard of this up-and-coming musician or not, one thing we’re convinced of is that his musical presence is sure to grow exponentially, on the web and off.

Singer-songwriter extraordinaire, Matt started making music when he was young, influenced by Billy Joel—his very first vinyl record—and his dad’s collection of classic rock. Though he gave up music in middle school to pursue sports with his friends, Matt got back into it in college and is now turning heads with his soulful songs. Not only does he play guitar and piano (though he does prefer keys to strings), he’s busy pursuing both a solo career and a group career as keyboardist with rock band The Rideaways, which is about to sign with a major record label.

Check out our Q&A with this rising Jewish star, and then treat yourself to a Hanukkah present by picking up his new five-song EP, Where Do We Go. You’ll be glad you did!

I’ve really enjoyed listening to your CD. I wish there were more than five songs!
That’s the trick! Always leave ‘em wanting more.

What’s your favorite song on this album?
I guess my favorite song is “Everybody Falls.” I think it has a really positive message, one of those “don’t give up” types of songs. I think just about everybody who hears it can relate to it in some way or another.

What inspires your songwriting?
Anything can spark a song. [I’m influenced by] a lot of things that have happened in my life. Right now, most of my songs have a very positive twist to them. I feel like I’m in a great place with my music, with my career. In my personal life, things are really great as well. I’ve been feeling really grateful for that and wanting to tell other people that. Not necessarily to say, “Oh, look at me, my life is great,” but to say, “Hey, if you’re not doing that great right now, don’t worry because things are going to get better.”

What’s performing like for you?
Performing is great. I love it. I still get nervous before I go on, but it’s not like debilitating stage fright or anything like that. But I love that; the nerves, the adrenaline, it fuels you. Now, the more nervous I get, the better I wind up performing. Somehow I’ve learned how to turn that into a good performance and not let the nerves show onstage.

What is it about being a musician that pushes you to keep pursuing it, even though it’s tough to “make it”?
Right now, it is really a difficult time for the music industry as a whole. But it’s also a really exciting time, because somebody’s going to figure out what to do with all the digital downloading, MySpace, fans, self-promotions and independent labels. At this point, it’s just kind of in me to do this. I can’t stop! Just about every night I go to rehearsal or I go to a songwriting session and keep plugging away. The best way to be in the music industry right now is just to be as versatile as possible as a performer and as a songwriter.

So I’ve heard you’re the perfect Jewish camp advocate! What role did camp play in your upbringing?
That actually is huge, especially as far as my Jewish identity goes. I went to a URJ Jewish summer camp—Camp Harlam—in Pennsylvania. I was there for about 13 summers altogether, as a camper, staff member, unit head and all that. I would say that especially when I was younger, there were two major influences on my Jewish identity. One was my grandfather. He was very, very proud of being a Jew, and that really rubbed off on me.

Second to that, I would say that my Reform Jewish identity comes from my time at Camp Harlam and as assistant director at Eisner Camp, another Reform camp. Those camps in particular do an amazing job of teaching kids and staff members how to incorporate Judaism into your everyday life and love living Jewishly. Every prayer that I know now, just about, is because I went to summer camp. I didn’t know I was getting this huge lesson! It just becomes ingrained in you. And to the point where, tonight, I’m leaving work early to go song-lead at Friday night services at a synagogue out on Long Island. I’m happy now that I’m able to use that skill and turn kids on to that.

Did you have a bar mitzvah?
Yeah, definitely. I remember being really nervous just before my Torah portion. I remember that when I was 13, I was really, really small. I was like 4 feet 10 inches and 80 pounds or something like that. I still had my high-pitched voice; I hadn’t hit the puberty wall. I remember I had prepared for months and months, and being musical, the singing and memorizing of the Torah trope was never a problem for me.

So what’s next for you?
I’ll definitely be playing a bunch of gigs in New York City. Signing to the record label with the other band is a huge thing, and until that happens, I’ll definitely be out and about, pursuing my solo stuff. In the spring semester, I’ll be doing a lot of college shows, hopefully at Northeast colleges. I’m always writing, and my ultimate goal is to get into the studio pretty soon and finish the album.

For more info on Matt, visit www.mattstamm.com. And enter to win a copy of his CD here.

Kali Foxman is Associate Editor at JVibe. She recently attended two very different concerts: Kelly Clarkson and the Idan Raichel Project. She recommends both.