Videos related to Matisyahu (part 3)

Some videos related to Matisyahu (Things I found on "YouTube")


Fox TV LA - Jewish Rap - Chutzpah


interview with matisyahu

Videos related to Matisyahu (part 2)

Some videos related to Matisyahu (Things I found on "YouTube")

Roots in stereo


matisyahu, atpi music video


A monkey singing "Strength Of My Life"

Matisyahu to open for Sting

Hassidic rapper to return to Israel for first appearance since December

Hassidic rapper Matisyahu will be the opening act for Sting on June 8 at the Ramat Gan Stadium. Matisyahu last appeared in Israel last December, and attempts have been made since then to arrange another appearance for him in Israel.

Sting’s son Joe Sumner is also expected to appear with his band Fiction Plane.

I'm not a big boxing fan, but still, I give you Dmitriy Salita:

(Right click and select "Save as .." to see the video)

The reason I'm talking about Dmitriy (a jewish boxer) is because Matisyahu came to sing for him. Dmitriy came into the ring ushered by Matisyahu and was in charge from the get-go, dropping Gallegos in round six and ending things in the ninth to claim the NABA Title.

Babylon calling - an interview with Matisyahu

Babylon calling
Matisyahu is a Hasidic Jew - and America's biggest reggae star. He tells Dorian Lynskey about life on tour, LSD and coming to religion late

Listen to a free mp3 from Matisyahu's album here

Thursday May 11, 2006
The Guardian

'Pretty freaking spiritual' ... Matisyahu

If Matisyahu weren't such a success he would be a punchline: what do you call a Hasidic Jew who sings reggae? For the 26-year-old Brooklyn resident, however, faith is no laughing matter. As he strides on to the set of Later With Jools Holland, he cuts a solemn figure, more like a rabbinical scholar than a musician: 6ft 5in, broad-brimmed hat, bushy beard, glasses, frock coat. Even Creedence Clearwater Revival's John Fogerty, who must have seen a rum thing or two in his time, cocks a bemused eyebrow.

Matisyahu knows some people take him for a novelty act. While Jewish newspaper the Forward named him one of the five most influential Jews in America, ahead of Jon Stewart and Philip Roth, the American edition of Esquire magazine gave him a more equivocal award: Most Lovable Oddball.

Oddball or not, he is currently his country's most popular reggae singer, bolstering lilting rhythms and quasi-Jamaican vocals with rock muscle. Last year's breakthrough live album, Live at Stubb's, sold half a million copies and his second studio outing, Youth, went in at number four on the Billboard charts. Two weeks ago, he played to his biggest ever audience at California's Coachella festival.

But the life of a touring musician doesn't sit easily with that of an Orthodox Jew. Matisyahu can't work or use electricity on the Sabbath, and he must pray by a certain time every morning, which means he is forced to snatch moments in hotel rooms or on planes. A bigger problem is the law prohibiting physical contact with women outside his family. "It creates some uncomfortable situations," he says in his quiet, even tones. "You can't be crazy. If someone wants to take a picture and puts her arm around me I have to pull away a little bit without being too abrupt. You can't just freak out. It's a balance."

Commercial opportunities have also fallen foul of Matisyahu's beliefs. He has turned down an offer from Burger King to endorse their decidedly non-kosher meat products. Was he surprised they asked? "It does seem weird, doesn't it?" he says. "I don't know what that was about. Most people who come to us have some sense of what would be appropriate."

Matisyahu radiates propriety. Sinking into the sofa of his hotel room, fingering the tassels of his prayer shawl, he has a serious, teacherly air. As Matthew Miller, he grew up in White Plains, New York, in a non-observant family that regarded its Jewish identity as cultural rather than religious. At school, he shunned the curriculum. "I intuitively felt that a lot of the system was rotten to its core." His education came from listening to Bob Marley. He grew dreadlocks so long that one day, in a chemistry class, he leaned too close to a Bunsen burner and set them on fire.

Rastafarians believe they are the true Israelites, and it was Marley's talk of Zion and Babylon that ignited Matisyahu's spiritual curiosity. "A lot of things that I had heard before but hadn't related to strongly were making a lot more sense in that context. Reggae music isn't Jewish but a lot of the ideas are." His own music mixes religion and politics: in Fire of Heaven/ Altar of Earth, the first track on Youth, he sings, "Fire descends from on high in the shape of a lion/ Burn the sacrifice of pride and ride on to Mount Zion." Jerusalem, a song explicitly about Israel, has the lines "3,000 years with no place to be/ And they want me to give up my milk and honey."

As a teenager he spent time in Israel exploring Judaism, and had problems adjusting to life in America on his return. He found comfort in following jam band Phish around the country - an odd kind of spiritual odyssey, surely? "I went to a Phish concert with a friend and we ate LSD and that experience, I would say, was pretty freaking spiritual." He comes close to a chuckle. "Although looking back on it, the answer wasn't there, it was a big part of it. It's about taking the chance. I gave up my family, I gave up my friends, I gave up on school. I went out with no money. It was walking on the edge. That's a Jewish idea. You could even say that was a very Jewish experience."

He ended up walking on the edge for a little too long. On his return home, Matisyahu's parents dispatched him to a "wilderness school" in Oregon. There, he took the music option and worked on his reggae and hip-hop skills. Back in New York he attended the Carlebach Shul, a progressive synagogue that took its name from singing rabbi Shlomo Carlebach and encouraged worship through music. Carlebach changed the lives of many Jewish hippies with his work in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury during the 1960s, but was plagued by allegations of sexual harassment.

Matisyahu says he has learned from Carlebach's mistakes. "He didn't hold by the rule; he would hug and shake hands with women. I wouldn't want to get caught up in rumours. Truth being told, I agree with the rule. It certainly guards you."

One day, walking in Washington Square, he met a rabbi from the Hasidic movement Chabad-Lubavitch; he went on to embrace the ultra-Orthodox lifestyle, adopting the Hebrew name Matisyahu. "With my family it was difficult at first. It was very strange for them to deal with."

Reggae is a uniquely effective vehicle for religious sentiments. Whereas most secular music fans would rather listen to Crazy Frog than Christian rock, they will happily hear countless reggae singers chant down Babylon; Matisyahu didn't sell so many records by appealing only to Orthodox Jews. "I think there's a certain humility tied in with that music," he says. "When people feel a certain religion claims to have all the answers, that's what turns them off."

Although his gentle voice never wavers, he occasionally displays righteous disapproval. He frowns on America's "it's-all-good attitude, like everything is a game", and believes the country is suffering from a spiritual void. "When there's light shining on a tree, that tree takes on different meaning. If there's no light at all it just looks dead. If you look at light as godly meaning, the world comes alive in a certain way. There's people drowning in the actual thing, whether it's food or sexuality or their jobs."

Although his religious affiliation would tend to place him on the right of Israeli politics, Matisyahu says he disagrees with the withdrawal from the West Bank, and would not describe himself as a Zionist. "I don't think that's the answer." He made his recording debut on the liberal Jewish-American label, JDub. "I didn't find myself having to choose sides."

But every step Matisyahu makes into the mainstream is fraught with risk. You wonder how long he can continue to please both the Hasidic community and a gentile fanbase that doesn't take kindly to proselytising. He is quietly confident. "I try and work out certain questions in my life and I put those concepts into my music for people to take from if they so choose. But I don't claim that I know what's right." The world's first Hasidic reggae phenomenon leans forward, smiling softly. "I'm a pretty regular person".

Matisyahu Lyrics

Youth - Time Of Your Song - lyrics

Youth - What I'm Fighting For - lyrics

Youth - Indestructible - lyrics

Youth - Unique Is My Dove - lyrics

Youth - WP (White Plains) - lyrics

Youth - Fire of Heaven / Altar of Earth - lyrics

Youth - Jerusalem - lyrics

Youth - Late Night In Zion - lyrics

Youth - Dispatch the Troops - lyrics

Youth - Ancient Lullaby - lyrics

Live At Stubbs - Beat Box - lyrics

Live At Stubbs - Close My Eyes - lyrics

Live At Stubbs - Refuge - lyrics

Shake off the Dust...Arise - Exaltation - lyrics

Shake off the Dust...Arise - Chop 'em Down - lyrics

Shake off the Dust...Arise - Aish Tamid - lyrics

More to come.....

Matisyahu - Shake off the Dust...Arise - Chop 'em Down - lyrics

Chorus:
From the forest itself comes the hand for the ax
Split this wilderness listen up this ain't where it's at
Clear a path so that you could find your way back
Chop 'em down, chop 'em down; chop 'em down, chop 'em down

Time flies by like clouds passing in the sky lifetimes hear and gone like the blink of an eye
March through this desert one-step at a time, march through the desert one step at a time

Chorus: From the forest itself comes the handle for the ax,
Drop the staff Moshe rabbainu split the ocean in half,
March through the desert this ain't where it's at
Chop 'em down, Chop 'em down

Patterns engraved not so easily erased, still wandering trying to find your place
Playing the game I see pain on your face now a day's the yiddin like children sold as slaves
Strange ways running through the maze, strange ways always lost in the desert trying to
find to find your place lost in the desert trying to find your place

Chorus

Joseph descended sold as a slave,
thrown into a dungeon cause he wouldn't be swayed
Interpreted pharaoh's dreams and Egypt was saved
stock piled food for seven years of rain
then sold to all the nations when the drought came
Joseph rose to power and the yiddin stayed
They started to build and success was made
Pharos getting worried let's make them pay bound in chains
First born was sent down to their graves
Moshe was saved and a prince he was raised
Hashem spoke to him hears a message to relay
Take my Nation from Mitzrayim (Egypt) I see the suffering
Hard hearts ego breaks take sparks and make way
Trail blaze through the wasteland breaking the chains
Last generation just the ruminants
March through the desert leaving footprints
Peel off the lid this is just plastic, get into it, get into it
Heavy hitter stepping solid never quitter jump into the ocean before it split got a jump into it
Rip through Egypt rip through it,
get into it, 600,000 witnessed it, no you didn't forget
In the spiritual desert things are not what they seem
snakes camouflaged just fit the scene
Put your faith in a mirage it's just a smoke screen
The king is sitting on his thrown of glory.

Matisyahu's King Without A Crown Ringtone

You can go to Jamster.com and get Matisyahu's King Without A Crown Ringtone.

Matisyahu Live At Coachella

Here are some videos of Matisyahu live at Coachella.

Close My Eyes


Time Of Your Song



BeatBox


King Without A Crown

The good influence of Matisyahu

Here is a post I saw on epic records Matisyahu forum, I have no idea if it's real but I can believe it:

I have always been a big time partier, but I often would push it too far. I did alot of drugs throughout highschool but once I went to college I began abusing Heroin. About a year ago I saw Matisyahu perform at All Good Music fest. Being a reggae fan I instantly became amased at the awesome sound of Matisyahu. I soon became a huge fan and I love the music and the lyrics. After listening and reading the lyrics I realised that Matisyahu is all about living a pure sober life while walking the path of righteousness. I connected to Matisyahu unlike I have ever connected to any other music. I knew I had to quit doing the horrible drug known as heroin. Listening to Matisyahu sing about the rewards of being clean and pure was like having an older brother slap the urge to do dope right out of my skull. I checked myself into rehab at the Caron institute in Reading Pa, and today I have 60 days clean. I love my life now and I feel that I owe it to Matisyahu. Thanx M!

(link)
Now, as I said, I have no idea if this guy's story is real, but, I do think Matisyahu has got a positive influence on people. It's like a rapper raps about shooting cops and some people would feel the urge to go and shoot a cop, besides the cop shooting thing :-)

As I have said before, Matisyahu's lyrics are about being true to yourself, being good and feeling good. This is why many people (including myslef) have positive thoughts when listening to Matisyahu and reading his lyrics.

So, be good ....

Videos related to Matisyahu (part 1)

Some videos related to Matisyahu (Things I found on "YouTube")

Matisyahu picture video



Matisyahu dancing



Original Bob Marely Pics with New Matisyahu Tracks

Last chance to get Matisyahu albums for free

May 2006 is the final month for emusic's 50 free downloads promotion.

This is your last chance to download:

"Shake off the Dust...Arise"

and the excellent album

"Live At Subbs"

for free.

So, if you want your free legal copy of the albums All you need to do is register for a free trial at eMusic.

Click on the banner, register for a free trial and download the albums. Notice that both albums have a total of 29 songs, this means you can download 11 more songs of other artists for free.

To be honest, this is how I got the albums. It's free but legal.

Poeple dancing to Matisyahu

just some funny videos of people dancing or singing with matisyahu

Try not to move like this guy when you watch him.


Check out this guy's moves.


This is a very old video (maybe the first one)