Biography

Mississauga, Ontario native Matthew-Ray Jones, also known as Testament, is a connoisseur of anything and everything involving words. From poetry, spoken word and emceeing to facilitating, hosting and keynoting, Matthew-Ray has been using his natural speaking abilities to inspire audiences for over 20 years. His mother is his hero. She endured many hardships throughout her life and made sacrifices so that Matthew-Ray could pursue his dreams. She provided him with a diary at age 6 that inspired the artist to start his writing journey through self-expression. 

Matthew-Ray has performed and taught nationally from coast to coast in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Nunavut, and British Columbia. He has performed internationally in Venezuela and Italy and has travelled to six continents.

To date, he has recorded three albums and shared the stage with Talib Kweli, Naughty by Nature, Biz Markie, GZA, Kardinal Offishall, Saukrates, DāM-FunK and more. He co-founded an artist collective called P.E.A.C.E. (“People Everywhere Actually Co-existing Equally”) helping people realize they are 'a piece of P.E.A.C.E.' through poetry, HipHop, music, workshops, presentations and trainings. 

Matthew-Ray has appeared on Breakfast Television, CP24, MuchMusic, MTV and Rogers TV. He has been written about in Exclaim and Eye Weekly magazines plus numerous national and local newspapers and has made various appearances on radio stations.

A father, artist, entrepreneur and revolutionary, Matthew-Ray uses his passion for words, art and life to motivate, inspire and lead. He trusts in the values of peace, love and unity as his guiding principles as he continues to spread his message worldwide.