Matthew Gerrard
Biography[edit]
Gerrard grew up in Don Mills, a suburb of Toronto's north-east end. He attended George S. Henry Secondary School where he played trombone in band, later playing bass in a school-based 5-piece jazz fusion combo called Nemesis Fusion. Nemesis Fusion competed in two Canadian stage band festivals earning silver in 1982 and won the competition the following year when Gerrard wrote the group's original material. After high school Gerrard was a member of a band called Regatta, which released one self-titled album. He also played bass and toured with Kim Mitchell (former Max Webster lead man) and Von Groove (until the late 1990s/early 2000s).
Career[edit]
Gerrard has written hit singles by artists such as Nick Carter ("Help Me"), Kelly Clarkson ("Breakaway"), Hilary Duff ("I Can't Wait", "Why Not?"), Eden's Crush ("Get Over Yourself") and Jesse McCartney ("She's No You"). He contributed songs to the soundtracks of the Disney Channel films High School Musical, The Cheetah Girls 2 (both 2006), Jump In! (2007) and Camp Rock (2008) and to the series Hannah Montana television soundtrack. He also wrote the original music for the Nickelodeon television movie Spectacular!, as well as writing the self-titled-debut song for Big Time Rush.