Who was Matthew Sweet married to? Personal life explored as Hanson singer suffers debilitating stroke

Following a stroke, singer Matthew Sweet is "on a long road to recovery." According to his manager Russell Carter, while on tour with pop rock band Hanson, the 60-year-old suffered "a debilitating stroke" in Toronto, Canada, on October 12.

Carter said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, on Tuesday, October 22:

"Matthew was quickly admitted to Toronto Western Hospital where he was put into excellent care and taken out of immediate danger. Matthew was transferred to a rehabilitation center back home in Omaha today where he will undergo extensive therapy. He is now on a long, difficult road to recovery."

Not much is known about Sweet's personal life except that he married a woman named Lisa. Since 2013, he and Lisa have lived in Omaha, Nebraska. However, it is not known whether or not he was married before.

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A look back at Matthew Sweet's career

As per his website, before becoming a successful solo performer in the 1990s, Matthew Sweet, was a part of the emerging music scene in Athens, Georgia, in the 1980s. Sweet was born in Nebraska's Lincoln. At the age of 13, he began to write songs and play the guitar.

In 1983, he received his diploma from Southeast High School in Lincoln. In the middle of the 1980s, Sweet left home to attend college in Athens, Georgia. He collaborated with Michael Stipe, the leader of R.E.M., during this period. He joined Stipe's sister in the band Oh-OK and then formed The Buzz of Delight.

Soon after that, Columbia Records signed him to a solo recording contract. Matthew Sweet is a supporter of Artists Against Racism, a Canadian NGO. After being signed by A&M Records, Sweet released his second album, Earth in 1989. Sweet then experienced a low point in his professional life as A&M let him go.

Nevertheless, Matthew Sweet formed a new band with Fred Maher, Lloyd Cole, Greg Leisz, Richard Lloyd, and Robert Quine. He then signed with competitor Zoo Entertainment after A&M dismissed him from his contract in 1990.

In the same year, the new group worked on Sweet's next album, which was initially called Nothing Lasts. Still in the planning stages, the album was retitled Girlfriend and released in October 1991. Considered by many to be an artistic breakthrough, this album soon achieved significant US sales and contained a classic mix of pop-rock tunes.

As per a Vogue report, in 1995, Sweet used a quote from Kurt Cobain's su*cide letter in the album, 100% Fun:

"The worst crime I could think of would be to pull people off by faking it, pretending as if I'm having 100% fun."

The album's lead single, the self-deprecating Sick of Myself, combined a lively pop sound with gloomy lyrics. Matthew Sweet then collaborated with Delerium, a Canadian band, to release the song Daylight from their album Poem in 2000.

At the beginning of 2002, he joined Shawn Mullins and Pete Droge to form the supergroup The Thorns. Later, Wicked System of Things, his 2018 companion album, came after Tomorrow Forever and Tomorrow's Daughter. His 15th studio album Catspaw, was the first to include Sweet playing all lead guitar parts. It was released in 2021.

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As per Billboard, due to the stroke, Sweet had to postpone his cross-country tour, which included Hanson's support slots as well as his headline concerts. The same report stated that, although Matthew Sweet's crew had already announced on Instagram on October 10 that his gigs would be canceled due to a medical condition, the details of the matter were only disclosed this week.

Sweet's family and management team have also started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for his growing medical bills. As of Wednesday, the total amount raised was close to $219,005. Following the news, his fans took to social media platforms like X to pray for the star's speedy recovery.