Matisyahu brings Jewish reggae to Pittsburgh

Singing to a sold-out crowd last Sunday, Jewish reggae singer Matisyahu graced the stage of the Carnegie Library Music Hall in Homestead. The venue was perfect for the performance, as it offered relaxed seating, matching the style of Matisyahu as he played an all-acoustic set.

The Music Hall is like the concert halls of the 1960s. It gives audience members the feeling that they are in a Johnny Cash and June Carter show, or even having an acoustic evening with reggae legend Bob Marley.

“The venue, the music … it was just so chill,” said Connor Smith, a junior art major Carnegie Mellon University. “One of the best environments I’ve had the pleasure of seeing a concert in.”

The night started off with an even more “chill” opening act in folk-rock musician Levi Robin. Robin just released his first EP, and the six songs he played made for a fantastic concert. His personality and music mirrored the calm persona of Trevor Hall, and his lyrics in songs like “No Worries” resonated with those of Jack Johnson.

About an hour into the performance, Matisyahu came on stage with his touring band, the Dub Trio, whose members played the bass guitar, guitar and cello. These instruments, combined with Matisyahu’s voice, created very stripped-down and simple covers of his hits from albums “Youth,” “Light” and, the most recent, “Spark Seeker.”

He opened with the song “Youth,” and from the beginning people swayed and stood up and began dancing in their seats. Darlene Rosenthal, a 30-year-old Squirrel Hill resident and mother of two, said that Matisyahu gives a face to many Jewish Americans.

“He reminds people that we are still here. Most importantly though, he does it well, and he brings the Jewish people great pride,” she said.

In the middle of the concert Matisyahu and the Dub Trio took a 10-minute intermission to have a question-and-answer session with the audience. Anyone who wished to ask a question was given the chance, and one younger member asked the question everyone was waiting for: “Why’d you shave the beard?”

For most of Matisyahu’s career, he constantly wore a shaggy beard and a suit, reflecting his Hasidic Jewish ways — that is, until this summer, when he ditched the suit and beard and now goes for a more modern look. The decision met much criticism, with some calling him a sellout.

He quickly responded to the question with, “You know, it is my body everyone is so concerned about. My body. Do I not have the right to take care of my body how I see fit? To those who still disagree, you try walking around New York City in a suit and beard in July.”

Matisyahu also showcased his beatboxing skills in the middle of most songs, showing that no band needs a drummer, just someone who plays the drums with his mouth. After going through hits such as “Sunshine” and “Jerusalem,” he announced that he was about to play his final song of the night.

Matisyahu ended his set with the reggae-rap song “King Without a Crown,” for which the crowd stood and clapped as he beatboxed in his final minute. At the end of the song, the crowd screamed loudly for an encore.

After walking off the stage without having yet played his biggest hit, “One Day,” the crowd continually cheered until he came back out. As soon as he and the Dub Trio started playing the hit song, the audience members’ lighters went up and the lights went down. A song that addresses many issues with humanity, including war and genocide, “One Day” brought tears to the eyes of many in attendance.

The song resonated with much of the Jewish crowd in attendance, as Israel is in a constant state of conflict with its neighbor Palestine, and Matisyahu’s song completely combats the idea of war in the future with lyrics such as, “There will be no more wars, and our children will play, one day, one day.”

He blended “One Day” with Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” to finish the show. Many in attendance left feeling completely at peace.

Ashley Hartman, a 24-year-old Shadyside resident, said, “It was simply one of the best concerts I have ever been to, and that is just it, it was so great because it was so simple.”