MattyInk Announces New Single “Cous Cous”

Album cover for “Cous Cous” by MattyInk

Slated to drop June 2nd of this year, MattyInk enters a new era with Cous Cous, a record that—despite being his 19th official single—arrives with the unmistakable significance of a debut. It’s the first time Ink approached a track not as a demo, not as an experiment, but as a definitive artistic statement. And it shows. From the analog‑grain mix to the sharpened lyrical intent, Cous Cous plants a flag in a catalog he’s been quietly cultivating for years.

Cous Cous: The 19th Debut

If earlier singles were the mythological framework, Cous Cous captures the moment the narrator steps into frame. Mixed and mastered by Ink himself using SSL console plugins, the record channels the tactile, imperfect beauty of alternative music from the 90s—an era when songs felt lived‑in, not polished to sterility.

The track’s DNA traces back to Beck’s Loser, not in imitation but in spirit: the slacker‑prophet energy, the debut‑album‑intro irreverence, the sense of a maverick stepping into the world with a smirk. Ink leans into that pedigree while carving out his own lane, embracing what he calls the “wartime era” mentality—an acknowledgment of today’s cultural moment, and the need for artists to respond with resistance, conviction, and a little bit of provocation.

The second verse points the lens inward. Matty’s bravado cracks just enough to reveal telling insights into his internal word. Relationships, expectations and the quiet negotiations of his identity, are hashed out with the subtleties that demand a repeat listen.

And in true MattyInk fashion, the record is entirely self‑built: written, produced, played, recorded, engineered, and distributed through his own Wood Records Co. Independence not as branding, but as practice.

FAKE SH!T: A Road Trip, A Studio, A Song Reborn

While Cous Cous marks a sonic milestone, the newly released FAKE SH!T video offers a window into the collaborative ecosystem surrounding MattyInk.

The track, created with longtime friend, Asher Shashaty, began as a contemplative reggae demo about authenticity, identity, and the question of who we are without our material armor. When the trio brought the idea to Greg Shields, the lead singer of Kash’d Out, something clicked. The concept resonated with Shields and the song was rewritten, redrafted, and re‑recorded into its final form at TSM Studios in Lakewood, FL,

This video captures that transformation.

A Studio Session for The History Books

The opening moments play like a road‑trip vlog: MattyInk and Asher standing in front of Orange World in Kissimmee, FL, joking about their pilgrimage to record with Greg Shields. It’s light, unguarded, and disarming—a stark contrast to the synthetic aesthetics dominating modern music visuals.

Once the intro fades, the song kicks in and the frame dives into a mosaic of behind‑the‑scenes footage from the two recording days at TSM Studios. We see:

• Ink receiving vocal notes from Shields

• Ink freestyling for the room—Greg, Asher, Angel Graves

• Shields in the booth recording his verse

• Ink stepping into the booth for his own takes

The energy is communal, creative, and unpretentious. It echoes the intimate, documentary‑style warmth of Mac Miller’s Hand Me Downs video—less a performance, more a memory.

A Song About What’s Real in a World Full of Noise

Thematically, FAKE SH!T retains the philosophical core of the original demo. Lines like:

“There’s a fine line between used and abused, A big difference between laced and infused”

and

“You better watch out… you don’t know what he’s got, I couldn’t tell you what it is but I know what it’s not”

speak to their discernment of quality, character and intention. It’s the elder voice warning the youth, the friend pulling you aside, the artist reminding you that authenticity is an identity, not a posture.

Ink’s Dual Release Signals a Shift

Together, Cous Cous and the FAKE SH!T video form a compelling one‑two punch: one track planting a flag, the other revealing the community and philosophy behind the music. It’s a pairing that feels intentional, almost strategic, but proliferates from an artist defining his sound while simultaneously showing the world how that sound is made.

If Cous Cous is the declaration, FAKE SH!T is the documentation.

And for MattyInk, this moment doesn’t feel like a continuation. It feels like a beginning.