matisyahu

Matisyahu is the Hebrew and stage name of Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), a popular American Jewish reggae artist.

Early life and Chabad-Lubavitch

Matisyahu is a member of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic community in the Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York. Matisyahu was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania and his family eventually settled in White Plains, New York. He was brought up a Reconstructionist Jew, and for some time during those years he played by the alias "MC Truth" for MC Mystic's Soulfari band. At the age of 16 he traveled to Israel and took part in the semester long Alexander Muss High School in Israel in Hod Hasharon, where students explore Jewish heritage, first hand. His experiences there signficantly affected his feelings towards Judaism. He eventually turned to Orthodox Judaism, becoming a baal teshuva around 2001 through Chabad of Washington Square and began playing with the Jewish band Pey Dalid. [1]

Matisyahu studied Torah seriously in Hadar Hatorah, a yeshiva for returnees to Judaism, and he wrote and recorded his first album while still a student there. He counts among his musical inspirations Bob Marley, Phish, and Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, while giving credit to Rabbi Simon Jacobson's book Toward A Meaningful Life for the lyrical inspiration to the title song of his new album, Youth.

Origin of the name Matisyahu

Matisyahu is the Ashkenazi Hebrew and Yiddish pronunciation of the Biblical name Matthew (מתיתיהו, often shortened to מתתיהו in Modern Hebrew). The Modern Hebrew pronunciation is Mātityāhu. In Ancient Hebrew, it would have been pronounced Mātiþyāhu/Mātithyāhu or Motiþyāhu/Motithyāhu. The name corrupted to "Matthew" through early Latin-speakers (accounting for the spelling Mat_it_yahew).

The name means gift of God.

The Biblical Hebrew name Matisyahu refers to the Hasmonean leader, Mattathias (in Greek), who began the revolt against the Seleucid Empire during the second century BCE.

Matisyahu Miller explained the origin of his personal use of the name in an interview in Kosher Spirit Magazine (a publication by OK Kosher Certification) as follows: His full secular name is Matthew Paul Miller, and the legal Hebrew name he received at his bris (circumcision ceremony) at eight days of age was forgotten. In Hebrew school it was assumed to be Matisyahu because of the connection between Matthew and Matisyahu (as discussed above). The original certificate from the bris was later located and he discovered that his actual Hebrew name was Feivish Hershel. He was advised by his Rabbis to continue using the Hebrew name he had grown up with.

Career

Matisyahu is currently getting some success in the mainstream with the live version of the song 'King Without a Crown', which has broken into the Modern Rock Top 10; an accompanying video and new album - 'Youth' - produced by Bill Laswell were released on March 7, 2006. On March 16th Youth was Billboard magazine's #1 "Digital Album" and as of April 4th stands at 16th on iTunes' top albums.

During June 2006, Matisyahu was the Xbox Live Artist of the Month ^[1] with the videos for "Youth" and a live recording of "King Without a Crown" available to download from Xbox Live in High Definition.

Also, his most recent accomplished output of exposure was his live showing in front of over 80,000 people at the Bonnaroo Music Festival 2006.In the autumn of 2006 he was on tour which included a Montreal,Canada stop. In November 2005 Matisyahu was among the top 5 members in the American Jewish community in The Forward ^[2]. Matisyahu was given an Esky for Most Lovable Oddball in Esquire's 2006 Esky Music Awards. The magazine called him "the most intriguing reggae artist in the world."

In an interview with Chabad.org, a popular Jewish website, Matisyahu states that "All of my songs are influenced and inspired by the teachings that inspire me. I want my music to have meaning, to be able to touch people and make them think. Chasidism teaches that music is 'the quill of the soul.' Music taps into a very deep place and speaks to us in a way that regular words can't." ^[3]

In the spring of 2006, Matisyahu cut ties with his label JDub.^[4]

Matisyahu is also known for not performing in concert on Friday nights, as to do so would be considered "work", which is prohibited on Shabbat for Jews.

Personal

Matisyahu married an NYU student named Tahlia Silverman in August of 2004 and recently had a son, Levi Yitzchak. ^[5] When not on tour, he currently resides in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York.

Style

The music, developed partly with his backing band Roots Tonic has a unique sound, mixing reggae, traditional rap, and guitar solos typical of rock music. His fans are of different walks of life, religions, and ethnicities. He sometimes performs with Kenny Muhammad, a Muslim beatboxer. Matisyahu's major label debut album was produced by avant-garde musician and producer Bill Laswell, with minor contribution by pop producers Jimmy Douglass and the Ill Factor.

His reggae vocal style is along the lines of traditional Rasta Roots stylings mixed with dub sound. The easiest comparison would be similar to the conscious and cultural sides of Buju Banton, Sizzla, Capleton, or Junior Kelly, but with the upbeat message of Luciano, Bushman and Everton Blender, and vocal dexterity of Barrington Levy. The production of the tracks draws from King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, Mikey Dread, and Linval Thompson. Similarities to the Foundation Sound of the late 1970s and 1980s would be accurate, and comparisons to Morgan Heritage likewise, would not be wrong. However, he mixes in contemporary stylings of rap and beatboxing, similar to Sublime, as well as the traditional Hazzan style of Jewish cantors and Hasidic nigunim. The otherwise critical New York Times' Kelefa Sanneh has compared him to "early dancehall reggae stars like Barrington Levy and Eek-a-Mouse." The Chicago Tribune's Kevin Pang has described a Matisyahu performance as "soul-shaking brand of dancehall reggae, a show that captures both the jam band vibe of Phish and the ska-punk of Sublime." Reviewers generally agree that Matisyahu may disappoint reggae purists, but acknowledge the unique blend of musical traditions that Matisyahu harnesses generally please the people who see his performances.

Most of his songs are almost entirely in English with just a few words of Hebrew and Yiddish sprinkled in.

Matisyahu's style has been compared to Jew da Maccabi, an Orthodox Jew from Florida who includes religious lyrics within a musical style derived from hip-hop.[2]

Backing Band

Matisyahu's backing band for the studio and live on stage are Roots Tonic, however, there were also guest musicians featured on his both studio albums, playing other instruments or contributing vocals. Roots Tonic were the only musicians featured on his live album.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Guest Appearances

• So Called - A HipHop Haggadah, Jewish rapper, JDUB Records, 2005

track 3rd Cup: Yahu (also featuring Trevor Dunn)

• P.O.D. - Testify, Christian crossover band, Atlantic, 2006

tracks Roots In Stereo and Strength Of My Life

• Ta-Shma - Come Listen, Jewish rap group, JMG, 2006

track Rachamana

Radio and TV Appearances

1. Jimmy Kimmel Live (August 24, 2004)
2. Last Call with Carson Daly (2004)
3. Steve Harvey's Big Time Challenge (2004)
4. The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (2005)
5. Late Night With Conan O'Brien (2005)
6. World Cafe (NPR) (aired: July 29, 2005)
7. The Late Late Show (CBS) (November 15, 2005 1:40AM EST)
8. mtvU Woodie Awards 2005 (performed: November 2, 2005, aired: November 10, 2005)
9. MTV 10 Spot (December 6, 2005 10:00PM PST)
10. MTVU : Uber (December 19, 2005)
11. Late Show with David Letterman (January 16, 2006)
12. Late Night with Conan O'Brien (March 7, 2006)
13. Jimmy Kimmel Live (March 8, 2006)
14. CBS Sunday Morning (March 26, 2006)
15. Guerilla Gig Live (March 31, 2006)
16. Later with Jools Holland (May 12, 2006)
17. Late Late Show Ireland with Pat Kenny (May 19, 2006)
18. Zane Lowe, BBC Radio 1 (May 31, 2006)
19. MTV LIVE, MTV Canada (June 12, 2006)
20. Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN (June 18, 2006)
21. Rock Werchter 2006, Belgium (June 29, 2006)
22. Lollapalooza, Chicago (August 5, 2006)
23. Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin, TX (September 17, 2006)

References

External links

• myspace.com/matisyahu official myspace site
• matismusic.com official website #1
• matisyahuworld.com official website #2
• matisyahu-thebridge.com official fan club
• Downloadable live shows from the Internet Archive
• Downloadable live shows from etree
• JDub Records former label
• Interview with The Onion A.V. Club