2007: Australian Idol At age 16, Corby auditioned for the
fifth season of
Australian Idol, where he finished as runner-up. describing how the struggle to forge his own identity post-idol was bigger than most could have seen from the outside. "I took all the negatives out of that (Idol) and thought 'Bugger, I've ruined everything'". One aspect of
Australian Idol that the media speculated about was the number of Christian musicians among the finalists. The media suggested that Christians were "stacking" the voting to keep "their" artists on the show. After the Idol finale, Corby passed on a record deal offered by
Sony Music Australia. In 2010, Corby released two EPs with Communion,
My False and
Transition to Colour, but was forced home when he ran out of money, having accrued a debt of around $80,000. Upon its release, Corby posted a message on his website and Facebook page: By December 2012,
Into the Flame achieved 6× platinum certification by ARIA. Corby supported the release of his EP and its single "
Brother" with a national into the Flame Tour. It included a mini Secret Garden Summer Tour around New South Wales. In January 2012, Corby was named the 'Next Big Thing' and won 'Song of the Year' for "Brother" at FBi Radio's annual SMAC Awards in
Darlinghurst, New South Wales. He premiered his rendition of
The Black Keys' song, "
Lonely Boy," for radio station
Triple J's segment, "
Like a Version", with hosts
Tom and
Alex, along with an acoustic rendition of his own song, "Brother." Both have since received significant attention online. Corby secured a support slot with
Feist in Adelaide on her 2012 Australian tour. Early in 2012, he toured throughout the US and UK. Corby's song "Brother" was voted into the No. 3 position for the
Triple J Hottest 100, 2011, and his cover of "Lonely Boy" was voted at No. 69 in the
Triple J Hottest 100, 2012. Corby released a Digital iTunes Session EP on 7 December 2012, playing five of his songs from his previous EP's acoustically on guitar and one on piano, as well as a rendition of "Amazing Grace." Corby spent the first half of 2013 in Los Angeles, working on his upcoming record, due for release later that year. Corby was nominated for three 2012 ARIA Music Awards, including two nominations in industry voted categories,
Breakthrough Artist and
Best Male Artist. He won the publicly voted Song of the Year category. The newly recorded version of 'Made of Stone' can be heard on the
NCIS television promo in the USA. Matt was featured on a
Hunters & Collectors tribute album collaborating with Australian artist
Missy Higgins, recording a version of "This Morning."
2013–2014: Resolution On 21 May 2013, Corby released "
Resolution." It became his first charting single, peaked at number 3 on the
ARIA Charts. The song also charted in New Zealand and the United Kingdom, becoming his first charting material in those countries. On 12 July 2013, the
Resolution EP was released, containing the single and three new original songs. One of which, "Lay You Down," entered the ARIA Charts at number 75 despite receiving no independent promotion. "Resolution" was voted in eighth place in
Triple J Hottest 100, 2013. In December 2013, "Resolution" won the
ARIA Award for Song of the Year. On 13 December, Corby released the
Live On the Resolution Tour EP. Its five original songs were recorded live at the Australian and New Zealand shows, including a cover of
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's "
Almost Cut My Hair". Corby got involved with a Brisbane-based arts collective called "Museum Collective," described on their Facebook page as an "Audio Visual Sensory Experience." The band also features Rohin Jones (who is Museum Collective's musical director), Bree Tranter & Michael Haydon, formerly of
The Middle East, as well as Lyndon de la Cruz, Kahl Wallis (of
The Medics), Bud Rokesky and Tom Wearne. Museum Collective ran free performances at Brisbane's Old Museum building in September & December and also at Woodford Folk Festival on 28 December 2013. In January 2014, Corby released the song "What the Devil Has Made," arranged specifically for the
Spirit of Akasha soundtrack. The surf documentary was inspired by the 1971 film,
Morning of the Earth. He recorded all parts of the track – including harmonies, flute and guitar – on his own in his home studio. The soundtrack also features Corby's version of Tamam Shud's "First Things First" (originally used in the 1971 film). Also in February 2014, Corby's song "Breathe", from his 2010 EP
Transition To Colour, was featured in the closing scenes of the 21st episode of the fourth season of the popular US teen drama / mystery thriller TV series
Pretty Little Liars, entitled ''
She's Come Undone''.
2015–2017: "Monday" and Telluric On 1 October 2015, Corby released his first song in two years, "
Monday" from his debut album,
Telluric. The song was described as containing "lush, transcendent harmonies, wailing falsetto, folky boom-claps and heartbreaking lyrics." The song reportedly took 10 minutes to record, and was laid down in a cottage in the NSW coastal town of
Berry where he wrote and recorded most of the album. Corby said to Matt and Alex of
Triple J: "It's stomping on the ground and clapping. It feels good to have that as a composition in a weird way, it's just your voice and everyone who would maybe want to do a cover of that if they so wish, it'll always sound different because they'll have to harmonise with their own [voice]." "Monday" was voted number 53 in the
Triple J Hottest 100, 2015.
Telluric was released on 11 March 2016. American artist,
Gary Burden, designed the album cover. It debuted at number one in Australia. Corby was featured on the track "Serious" from Norwegian DJ
Kygo's debut album
Cloud Nine, released on 13 May 2016.
2018–2021: Rainbow Valley Corby released his first song in 2 years titled, "No Ordinary Life" on 3 August 2018. On 7 September 2018, Corby announced his second studio album
Rainbow Valley would be released on 2 November 2018. Upon released, the album was the highest local debut of the week in Australia, debuting at number 4 on the ARIA charts. He also subsequently released the second, third and fourth singles from the album, titled "
All Fired Up", "All That I See" and "
Miracle Love". In February 2019, Matt released a mini-documentary
Behind Rainbow Valley documenting the recording and creative process of the
Rainbow Valley album. Speaking of the influence of his newborn son Hugh on the creation of the album, Corby states "I wanted to create something that was almost instructional for my little boy... A reference for him of the way I see reality and the simple truths that I've come across. The lyrics are simple truths. I'm not trying to be too clever or poetic. If anything it was, "This is the way I see the world and this is the way I feel about it". Corby embarked on the 2019
Rainbow Valley Tour in Europe, the UK, Australia and New Zealand but many dates were cancelled due to the pandemic towards the end of the tour. Corby was announced as the replacement for
Ziggy Marley after he dropped out at
WOMAD 2020, in Adelaide. In 2020 Corby released the singles "If I Never Say a Word" and "Vitamin".
2022–present: ''Everything's Fine'' In November 2022, Corby released his first single in two years, "
Problems". In January 2023, Corby announced the release date of his third studio album, ''
Everything's Fine'', alongside the release of its second single, "
Reelin'". ''Everything's Fine'' was released on 24 March 2023. In September 2025, Corby released the single "Long and Short" ahead of his supporting
Teddy Swims on his Australian ''
I've Tried Everything but Therapy'' tour in October 2025. Corby's fourth studio album
Tragic Magic was released on 17 April 2026. ==Personal life==