Hasidic Reggae Star NOT Just a Novelty

[underpants]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/music_hasidic_reggae_star

"Oh, Matisyahu," she says. "Everybody knows who he is."


Well, not yet. But the Hasidic reggae star — yes, reggae star — is gaining fans, respect and attention for his unusual hybrid of music and religion.

But as his band began to play intoxicating rhythms, Matisyahu began to groove with the beat, singing and chanting in a Caribbean lilt so convincing one might think he was island-born. Halfway through the first song, the crowd — which included Jewish kids, Birkenstock-type music fanatics and black faces — was jumping up and down to the beat with Matisyahu, who held his hand to his head so his yarmulke wouldn't fall off.

By the time he was a teen, he was a slacking off in school and squabbling with his parents. At age 17, he left home to follow jambands like Phish and search for a purpose in life. Even then, however, he says he knew there was a spiritual being that guided him: "I would always feel that God was with me."

"His style, you can't put it into a single category. He falls into like three different categories," says Joel Chin, the director of A&R at VP Records, which has made reggae stars out of artists like Sean Paul and Beenie Man. "I would love to hear some more stuff from him to hear how diverse he can be."

[bullwinkle428]

1. I was flipping through channels the other night

and stopped when I saw this guy singing on Jimmy Kimmel's late night show. My first reaction was to burst out laughing, but then I started listening, and realized this guy's actually pretty good! The song he was doing sounded more like rap than reggae, but maybe I just haven't listened to enough reggae...

[ghostsofgiants]

2. It's dancehall reggae

Reggae with heavy hip-hop influence.

[Susang]

3. I saw him on Jimmy Kimmel

I kinda liked him. :D

[asthmaticeog]

4. He's really good.

I've seen some clips and heard some recordings, he's got the goods.