Mato Standing Soldier (born October 26, 1997), professionally known as Mato Wayuhi, is an Oglala Lakota actor, musician, producer, and composer from South Dakota, United States known for his studio albums and his original soundtrack for the television series Reservation Dogs.
Early life Mato Standing Soldier grew up in Sioux Falls, spending a notable amount of time on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Wayuhi had an interest in music from a young age but, he did not start creating pieces until he was 15. While attending Lincoln High School,Mato: LHS alum receives Forbes 30 under 30 award – Lincoln High School Statesman he began experimenting with rapping and music production, influenced by multiple genres from traditional Lakota music to punk rock. His interest in music production was a hobby Wayuhi tooled with in his basement until, taking a course on music production, where he learned basic skills and it "opened up everything" for him. Mato Wayuhi graduated with a bachelor's degree in Cinematic Arts from the University of Southern California, where he further developed his artistic voice.
Career
2014-2016: Beginnings In his later years of high school and first years of college, Mato Wayuhi released multiple singles and EPs on various music streaming platforms. His earliest single, titled "Potions" was released in 2014 followed by eight singles throughout 2014-2016. After these initial singles, Wayuhi released his first and second EPs, Sonic Serenades and Pretty Pink Tapes in 2016. The last piece of this time period was the single, "Faud's Outro", which was a song dedicated to Wayuhi's late friend and collaborator. Wayuhi's songs prior to 2017 are not available on his Spotify or Apple Music pages.
2017-2019: Part-Time Indian and Scatterbrain Wayuhi continued to publish singles going into 2017. He released four different singles and then, in 2018, "Beeswax", which would be a song featured on his first album. Said album, Part-Time Indian (2018), was named after the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, reflecting the album's overall themes. This album is partially why Mato Wayuhi became the composer for Reservation Dogs, with director, Sterlin Harjo reaching out to Wayuhi after listening to Part-Time Indian. The song, "Stone Cold Lover" on Part-Time Indian brought new interest to Wayuhi's music as well, having over 200,000 streams on Spotify. Wayuhi wrote that the music video for "Stone Cold Lover" was even shown to the cast of Reservation Dogs by Harjo.
In 2018, Wayuhi with the band, Treehorse, entered the single, "Wildberry Poptart" to NPR's Tiny Desk Contest. The song did not win but, received a shout out. Over the next year, Wayuhi would put out "Hooky!" and "Come See Me Live", the former featuring the artist, AWU! who Wayuhi has worked with often. These two singles led up to Wayuhi's second album, Scatterbrain (2019). Along with the previously mentioned AWU! and Treehorse, Scatterbrain also featured Moon Allure and Ayoni.
2020-present Mato Wayuhi contributed music to the soundtrack of Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae (2024), a 4-episode television series about Anna Mae Aquash.https://www.imdb.com/name/nm15825428/
Awards/appearances Wayuhi received a shoutout by NPR's Tiny Desk in 2018 for his entry “Wildberry Poptart” backed by the band Treehorse. Pillar Fitzgerald, then assistant manager of Tiny Desk Concert, described his song as “a critique of the traditional American dream, direct from the mouth of the oppressed.”
Wayuhi received critical acclaim for his 2024 album STANKFACE STANDING SOLDIER and was also featured in the 2023 publication of Forbes 30 under 30. In film and television, Wayuhi has also made name for himself, scoring and acting in the television series Reservation Dogs. He co-wrote the music for the film War Pony, which was featured at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival and won best first feature. Wayuhi also makes an appearance in the 2025 show The Lowdown as the character Chutto McIntosh.
Discography
Studio albums
BYGONER - 2025 STANKFACE STANDING SOLDIER - 2024 Pleasure - 2021 Scatterbrain - 2019 Part-Time Indian - 2018
Soundtrack albums
Reservation Dogs (Original Soundtrack) - 2021 Reservation Dogs: Season 2 (Original Soundtrack) - 2022 Reservation Dogs: The Final Season (Original Soundtrack) - 2023
Singles
Leftovers - 2025 Mischief - 2025 Sundowner - 2025 Constellations (REMIX) - 2025 FEE FI FO FUM (feat. Black Belt Eagle Scout) - 2024 NAMESAKE - 2024 VEILS - 2023 The Roof (From “Disney Launchpad: Season Two”/Original Soundtrack) - 2023 KETCHUP POTATO CHIPS (feat. Black Belt Eagle Scout) - 2023 BOOGEY BOY (feat. Niandra Blonde) - 2023 FALL OUT BOY - 2023 STANKFACE (feat. A$h Da Hunter) - 2023 Constellations - 2021 The Ends - 2021 Overwhelmed - 2020 Come See Me Live - 2019 Hooky! (feat. Awu & Ayoni) - 2019 Beeswax - 2018 Fly With Ya (feat. Your Grandparents & The Moon) - 2018 Roam - 2017 Salmon - 2017 Blossom - 2017
Filmography
Television YearTitleRoleNotes2023Reservation DogsYoung BuckySeason 3, Episode 5, special appearance2025The LowdownChutto McIntoshSeason 1, Episodes 2, 4, 6, 8,
Music videos YearMusic VideoLengthAlbumDirector(s)2018Beeswax4:12Part-Time IndianRyan Chavez, Mato WayuhiStone Cold Lover3:52Part-Time IndianMato Wayuhi2019Hooky! feat. A.W.U and Ayoni4:34Hooky! (Single)Taylor WillisCome See Me Live4:10ScatterbrainDaze Cornejo2021Constellations3:56PleasureDaze CornejoPleasure1:01PleasureMato WayuhiDown2earth2:50The Ends (Single)Mato Wayuhi2023STANKFACE feat. A$h Da Hunter5:08STANKFACE (Single)Mato WayuhiFall Out Boy4:35Fall Out Boy (Single)Fox MaxyBOOGEY BOY feat. Niandra Blonde2:30BOOGEY BOY (Single)Mato Wayuhi2024NAMESAKE (with Xiuhtezcatl)2:48NAMESAKE (Single)FEE FI FO FUM feat. Black Belt Eagle Scout2:37FEE FI FO FUM (Single)Mato Wayuhi2025THE SUNROOF SONG3:35Sundowner (Single)Mato WayuhiLeftovers feat. Black Belt Eagle Scout2:49Leftovers (Single)Mato Wayuhi
Publications
"Tory" in My Life: Growing up Native in America New York: MTV Entertainment Books
References
External links
Bandcamp