New Multimedia Teacher Matthew Burke has an extensive history in the music industry, having performed his rap songs alongside notable names such as Maya Angelou, Cage the Elephant, and members of The Rolling Stones. However, he hopes to bring to UC High more than intriguing stories about being on tour. His main goal is to inspire students to pursue their passions, especially when it comes to music. Burke is no stranger to stepping into the music industry for the first time and struggling to discover where to begin, and he hopes to become a source of guidance to young artists.
Similar to many new college students, Burke had no idea what he wanted to major in. Eventually, he decided to study English, one of his many strong suits. “While I was in those classes I began to tell stories. It was easy for me to get a good grade because I would rhyme all my assignments and the teachers thought it was creative. This is before everybody was doing it, so I was more of an outlier at the time. I started writing raps and poetry for my college classes, and then when I got my teaching credentials was when I really started rapping, which must’ve been 25 years ago” said Burke.
Eventually, Burke was able to get a song in a movie, and so he quit his teaching job and went on tour for two years. He confided that it was love that brought him to San Diego: “While on tour, I fell in love with a girl and followed her down to San Diego, where I started rapping with a band called Vocab Kompany, which took off right away,” said Burke. The band even did a song with Lincoln Parish, the lead guitarist from Cage the Elephant, that was played nonstop on 91X FM radio.
That very song led Vocab Kompany to be discovered by the man who ran Hieroglyphics and Zion I, popular underground hip-hop artists. So Burke packed up his bags to go on tour once more. In 2012, he put out an album called VKCE, which was a commercial hit. To this day, songs off of that album have millions of spotify streams (spotify.com). It’s undeniable that Vocab Kompany was extremely successful. According to the San Diego Reader, “In 2009, the group was nominated Best Hip-Hop at the San Diego Music Awards, and appeared on the Best of Daygo local hip-hop compilation album” (sandiegoreader.com).
Here at UC High, Burke hopes to contribute by helping students create great music. His intriguing past in the music industry may help students reach for their dreams. He wants to inspire young artists to explore their passions. “I really want the kids who might not know they’re into music yet write poetry, and hopefully realize that poetry can be turned into song. I think there’s music in a lot of people,” said Burke.
One of Burke’s students, Senior Emmanuel Wecheyi, said, “My first impression of Burke was that he’s a pretty cool guy. He seems funny, and the fact that he can rap is really cool. He’s definitely really outgoing and adventurous. I think he’s a good teacher. He definitely adds value to UC High.” Wecheyi also commented on how Burke’s knowledge of the music industry could be helpful to any aspiring musicians on campus.
Burke brings to the table much more than just some cool bars. He brings a contagious enthusiasm for music. Any aspiring musical artists on the UC High campus should not hesitate to stop by his room 231 and pay Burke a visit. Who knows, one may even wind up finding oneself playing Burke’s songs on repeat, or perhaps one might find oneself with the knowledge to create a song of one’s own.