Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on November 6, 2014

Published: Thursday, November 6, 2014 at 8:00 a.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, November 5, 2014 at 4:24 p.m.

Aside from ZZ Top, probably no other music artist could cause more of a commotion by shaving a beard than Matisyahu.

While ZZ Tops Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill have not taken a razor to their signature facial hair, Matisyahu went clean shaven and trimmed his hair in December 2011. It radically altered his appearance, but registered on a much deeper level because of what the whisker whacking represented to an entire population.

As musics leading Hasidic Jewish artist, Matisyahu had inspired a legion of people who also followed his religion in ways that went beyond his music. Matisyahu set an example for how to follow the Orthodox Jewish religion, yet also assimilate into society as a whole and enjoy such secular pursuits as going to concerts and clubs or partying.

Although he tried to explain that he had not rejected his Jewish faith and had only decided he could not live by certain specific rules that are part of the religion, the change in Matisyahus appearance, as well as the absence of a Yarmulke as part of Matisyahus clothing, caused plenty of consternation and questions.

Three years and two albums (2012s Spark Seeker and the new release Akeda) later, Maitsyahu (Matt Miller is his secular name) says he has yet to get a good read on how going clean-shaven has impacted his image.

There are some people who get it and there are some people that dont, and thats what it is, said Matisyahu, who performs Nov. 10 at the Phillips Center.

And I try not to spend too much time really thinking, or worrying or even reading comments about it. Im busy kind of living my life. There was a time when I was really affected by all of the stuff I was reading online and I just stopped reading that stuff.

Up until he revealed his new look, Matisyahu hadnt had to deal with much in the way of criticism. Now 35, he started to get on the music scene radar with his independently released 2004 debut album, Shake Off the Dust ... Arise. That was followed in 2006 by the concert CD, Live At Stubbs, which was picked up for release by Epic Records and gained the attention of the mainstream media.

He was praised for his sound, a blend of reggae, hip-hop and rock, and for the spiritual, uplifting messages in his lyrics. He ended 2006 riding a wave of popularity, as his second studio album, Youth, had debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard album chart, and a single from the album, King Without a Crown, had gone top 10 on Billboards Modern Rock chart.

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Matisyahu brings his blend of music to Phillips Center

Category: Hasidic
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