In a pre-performance interview with 96.5 TIC’s Salt Mac, Rob Thomas and Kyle Cook of Matchbox Twenty talked about everything from social media mistakes to Thomas’ short-lived career as an actor.

For fans who may not know, Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas guest starred on an episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia back in 2008. His character was actually just himself but as a patient in a rehab facility with comedian Sinbad. As for how that opportunity came up, Thomas said, “We were just fans – and Matchbox was playing the Staples Center (in L.A.). We just called their management and were like, ‘Hey, we’re big fans. You should come to the show.’ And they came early [and hung] out the whole day. We got drunk after the show together, and by the end, they were just like, ’You’re gonna be on the show.’”

But perhaps the greatest story he got out of the show wasn’t even his own but about his son’s experience with Sinbad nearly a decade later. “The best thing is, years later my son’s on a college campus, and Sinbad was at the college, “ Thomas said, chuckling.

“My son comes up to Sinbad, he’s like, ‘You know, listen, my dad’s Rob Thomas, I met you when I was like 10 years old.’ And he goes, ’Tell your dad he’s still my b***h,” which left the group roaring with laughter.

Nowadays, Thomas’ son, Maison Thomas, is actually a member of the band. Maison is a guitar player and musician in his own right, having studied at Berklee College of Music and graduated in 2020. When it comes to performing with his son, Rob wishes him nothing but the best. “I hope that career-wise he has everything I’ve had and a thousand times more. But, in a fight, I totally could take him” Thomas joked. “He just doesn’t have the killer instinct. He’s got the reach, but I just don’t really think he’d go for it like I would.”

And Thomas acknowledged that stardom would be different for his son than it was for Matchbox Twenty way back when. He told Audacy, “When we came out at the end of the nineties, we were a young band, and we made a whole lot of mistakes. But we made them in private and we got to learn from them and got to move on.” Describing how particularly brutal stardom can be, Thomas continued, “I don’t envy a young pop star today, having to figure it out publicly in front of everybody, and your mistakes are out there, and all of a sudden they define who you are. When that’s just not how life works.”

The audiences themselves have changed as well, with interviewer Salt mentioning the seeming uptick in performer injury and negative performer interactions. But Matchbox Twenty has avoided that ‘trend’, praising their audience and calling them a, “more generational” group. As for the band's outlook, they are all for the audience's experience. “We’re in the hospitality industry, so our job is to be there for somebody’s good time, and if your good time is taking a selfie, then you take a selfie,” Thomas said, adding in, “As long as your good time doesn’t mean throwing stuff at me.” Fair enough!

Check out the full interview with Matchbox Twenty above, and be sure to keep an eye out for all things Mix Beach House 2023!

Words by Isabella Eaton Interview by Salt