Matisyahu's Rise to the Top

2009 dropped “One Day,” a song that took most people by surprise. A new reggae artist had emerged that broke the stereotype. Instead of rocking natty dreadlocks, a beanie, and a baggie shirt, he wore an orthodox beard, peyos, a yamaka, and a traditional Jewish suit. And the kicker? He’s actually… good. 

Known originally for fusing reggae with a traditional Jewish sound, Matisyahu swept listeners off their feet. In the past four years, Matis practically bulleted to fame, coming from living on the second or third page of Google, to not being able to type the first four letters of “Matisyahu” in Google Search without his name being suggested. 

With a foreign feel, inspiring melodies, and meaningful lyrics about peace, prosperity, and success, Matisyahu is now the face of modern reggae. But something tells me that he isn’t content with his reggae fans alone, and his bullet to fame hasn’t quite reached its destination.

Early 2012 left the singer who looked like he came straight from Israel with a clean-shaven face and a new wardrobe, from suit and yamaka to hoodie and shades. It left everyone in the dust with one simple question: what happened? I couldn’t have been the only one who thought it possible that he sold out to become more appealing, because he soon responded to posts about it via Facebook:

“To all of those who are continuously posting about my "selling out", i.e. loss of beard and change of clothing… Have any of you ever had a beard for a decade? Have you ever worn a black suit in July in NYC? …Please people, I love you. Just chill with all the judgments. My heart aches every time I read this stuff.”

July of that year released "Spark Seeker", Matisyahu’s fourth studio release. The album was a ripple in the water, reflecting the same great stuff – clever lyrics, a reggae feel, and his famous, underlying Jewish theme. But there was one huge difference from his other albums. “Spark Seeker” was strongly influenced by hip-hop. With techno-reggae beats and abundance in featured rappers, “Spark Seeker” had ventured far from the old-school reggae heart that the previous albums had.

With a download and a few run-throughs of the thirteen uniquely-styled songs, it all became clear. Matis is working his way towards a new genre. Don’t get me wrong, he will always have reggae at the base of his songs about peace, prosperity, and success, but he’s realized now that he can only get bigger. He’s headlining in shows he used to open for, he has twice the amount of fans than the bands he started alongside, and his cultural respect is bigger than ever. So what’s next? Pack your bags, boys—he’s moving to the mainstream media.

From “Spark Seeker,” we can only expect that at least a track or two on the next album will reach the top 40 playlist. That is the goal, right? To have your music heard by everybody everywhere?

What do you think about artists who make these great changes? Is it better to spread a message in a different sound to a wider audience, or keep it held by a small-but-strong fan base? Leave us a comment; we’d love to hear your insight!