Pages tagged “Matisyahu”

It’s been a while since we've really heard from Matisyahu. His last record was released in 2006, and since then he’s toured, taken a spiritual respite in Jerusalem and completed his latest guest DJ stint with Sirius Satellite Radio. Now he’s returned, and he isn’t doing it quietly.

I've said it so many times, but it still sounds surreal: There are more than 27 million slaves on this earth, more than existed in during any point in the trans-Atlantic slave trade 200 years ago. About 80% of those are women and children. No government officially condones it, but even in America, kids are trafficked from other countries or from state to state, forced into prostitution with the threat of harm or death. My own city of Atlanta is one of the Top 10 in the nation for human trafficking. There have been several good fictional films dealing with this issue lately, including Trade, Holly and Eastern Promises. But the most inspiring film dealing with this topic is coming out this fall—Justin Dillon's Call+Response.

The film opens Oct. 10 nationally.

On December 26, 2006, Epic Records plan to release a new CD and live concert DVD set by Hasidic Jewish reggae rap musician Matisyahu. The CD, No Place To Be features seven new songs including tracks produced by Sly & Robbie, AdRock, Bill Laswell, and others. The DVD, entitled Live In Jerusalem contains footage shot live in Isreal in December 2005, interspersed with interviews and street performances from the same trip. The DVD also contains the music video for his new single, “Jerusalem.”

Matisyahu will be kicking off his first annual Festival of Light Hanukkah concert series in December. The tour includes three headlining nights at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City (12/16, 12/17, 12/19) as well as shows in Washington, D.C. (12/13), Philadelphia (12/14), Boston (12/20) and Providence, RI (12/21).

Get out yer yarmulkes, it’s time for Hannukah…except with Hasidic reggae artist Matisyahu and not Adam Sandler. Those wanting to see Matisyahu and his band Roots Tonic perform on Dec. 16-19 can roll right over to Hammerstein Ballroom in New York to witness the first Festival of Light concert series, with the treat of a different special opening act each night.

Fan members can buy tickets now through www.matisyahuworld.com; fans can join “The Bridge,” the official fan club, and get exclusive access to tickets before public sale.

Starting August 8, Hasidic hip-hop artist Matisyahu will embark on a new string of tour dates, headlining for a diverse lineup that includes Michael Franti & Spearhead, The Polyphonic Spree, Gomez, Keller Williams and a co-headlining performance on September 16 with The Flaming Lips.

Matisyahu will also perform at the Austin City Limits festival on September 17, adding to a lineup that features Tom Petty, Van Morrison, Gnarls Barkley, The Raconteurs and Damian Marley. He will be joined by Street Drum Corps, a drum trio playing on every date outside the venue prior to the show and between sets.

Tour dates
8/8 Santa Barbara, CA - Santa Barbara Bowl (w/ Michael Franti & Spearhead)
8/9 Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre (w/ Michael Franti & Spearhead)
9/3 Denver, CO - City Lights Pavilion (w/ Polyphonic Spree)
9/4 Aspen, CO - Snowmass Village (w/ Keller Williams, Polyphonic Spree)
9/6 Redmond, WA - Marynoor Amphitheatre (w/ The Polyphonic Spree)
9/7 Troutdale, OR - Edgefield (w/ Polyphonic Spree)
9/9 San Jose, CA - Civic Auditorium (w/ Polyphonic Spree)
9/10 Berkeley, CA - Berkeley Community Theatre (w/ Gomez)
9/12 San Diego, CA - Viejas Concerts at Bayside (w/ Gomez)
9/13 Mesa, AZ - Mesa Amphitheatre (w/ Gomez)
9/16 Grand Prairie, TX - Nokia Live (w/ The Flaming Lips)
9/17 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Festival
9/19 Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre (w/ Gomez)
9/20 Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium (w/ Gomez)

For more information visit matismusic.com.

Friday night may be all right for most touring musicians, but not reggae toaster Matisyahu. When the shadows lengthen, the performer gives his band the night off, then hangs up his raps and his jaw-dropping beatbox chops for the next 24 hours, in accordance with the strict tenets of Hasidic Judaism.

“Every Friday morning we get up early and drive so we can be there by sundown,” he says, sitting on the porch of the Chabad House—the Jewish student center across from the University of Texas campus. “Because once sundown hits, if we’re on the highway, I’m walking. So we get to a town, I ?nd a Rabbi—ahead of time—and I spend the next 24 hours not thinking about music, traffic, my cell phone, managers, records or anything except trying to connect to God, being with a family and being in a community. And then when I come back out Saturday night I’m refreshed and rejuvenated.”

Whether fresh on a Saturday night or mid-week, Matisyahu can’t help but cause double takes onstage. With closed eyes, you’d expect the dubby riddims and impassioned vocals to be spewing from a dreadlocked Rastafarian, not a bearded Son of Abraham, resplendent in his wide-brimmed hat, black suit and button-down shirt.

But this is no “2 Live Jews” gimmick; Matis is serious about both his work and his religion, and he’s got the skills to outlast the novelty of a skull-capped Orthodox Jew throwing down delicious reggae and hip-hop grooves. Since Rastafarianism—and its lyrical world of exile and longing for justice—draws so heavily upon the Torah, the combination isn’t as odd as it might seem.

Any doubts about the reality of Matisyahu’s religious practices are answered on a warm Sunday afternoon, when he answers the door at the Chabad House wearing tefillin (prayer boxes) and a prayer cloth. He excuses himself for a few minutes to finish up his prayers before the interview can begin.

“When you’ve had this kind of thing in the past, it’s [been] a joke,” acknowledges the man born Matthew Miller in West Chester, Pennsylvania. “Not only is it a joke, but it’s offensive. … Jews are not clowns; we have a serious job in this world.”

Matisyahu’s music is an outgrowth of everything he is and everywhere he’s been—from his sprint across the U.S. following the 1996 Phish tour to the reggae and hip-hop that often fills his headphones. But things didn’t really start working for him until he got serious about his Judaism, he recounts. “It got me focused and centered, and helped me get over the inner obstacles that were holding me back.”