Matthew Lipschultz is a "rising star", grinding-out passionate vocals for a variety of Twin Cities bands including The Soul Shack, The SoulSide All-Stars, and Hot Brockoli. He's also worked with The No Limits/B-Side Band, Twin Cities SouthSide Band, The Locals, FlipSide, & Two-Legged Zoo. However, his favorite project is MIAZ. Matthew always offers soulful renditions of your favorite tunes from the 60's, 70's, 80's and more.
He LOVES to interact with the crowd, making each night a unique experience that's truly "in-the-moment"! Monkeys In A Zoo (MIAZ) is a passion project borne out of fate.
Matthew Lipschultz (lead vocals) and Phil Lawrence (guitar) played together in Matthew's former band, The Twin Cities SouthSide Band, on a night when Phil sat-in with the band on electric guitar at a wild beach party on The St. Croix.
Fast-forward a year later, and the same party-goers brought Matthew and Phil together, asking them to play as an acoustic duo on "A Dock", for a Friday night social.
Things clicked immediately between these two musicians, but it wasn't until the following February of 2017 when Matthew and Phil looked to really deepen their collaboration and friendship.
After a few months of YouTube sessions, broadcast out on social media, #MonkeysInAZoo debuted at the Hard Rock Cafe; a premier gig that earned them a contract to play at Hard Rock, throughout the remainder of 2017, totalling more than 25 combined gigs, which included a headlining gig at The Dancing Dragonfly Winery's Food and Wine Festival.
MIAZ has developed a book of over eighty (80) songs that span genres from Classic Rock to Pop, from Soul Music to Blues, and from mellow acoustic sound, to the rhythmic sounds of Funk.