Meet Matthew Miller, better known as Matisyahu

In the mid-oughts, Matisyahu stunned hip-hop audiences with his mashup of Hasidic attire and reggae rhythms. The idea of a Jewish rapper – decked out in a long beard and black fedora – was peculiar enough, but Matisyahu was also a gifted performer, spinning rhymes out of his personal life and spiritual ponderances. Born Matthew Miller in 1979, Matisyahu grew up in White Plains, New York. His biography is a patchwork of periods and influences; these days, he’s left the beard and suit behind and embraced his silvering hair, and he’s become a vocal supporter of Israel since the terrorist attacks of Oct. 7, 2023. His new album, “Ancient Child,” dropped this month, sparking a world tour. We caught up with Matisyahu to talk about running, blending cultural traditions and a renewed sense of purpose.

Have you been to Rhode Island before?

Yeah, many times. I’m not very touristy, I don’t like the typical touristy things. I’m from New York, and I’ve never been to the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State. But one of the ways I really have memories from the last 20, 25 years of traveling and touring is the runs I’ve taken. Often, I can’t remember the show, I might not remember the year, but the memories I have mainly are from runs that I take. I don’t know if it’s that you get a runner’s high when you’re running, but I’ll be walking down a street, and then [the memories] will flood back.

How long have you been running?

I didn’t get running at all [when I was young]. Like, in gym, when we had to run, I just didn’t understand. And then I was either in Australia or South Africa, I don’t remember which continent, which country. I was in a park. I made a little bit of money, and I had just purchased a pair of Nike Air 360s. I wasn’t flashy, but if you look at early pictures of me, you’ll see that I always had sneakers. I bought those sneakers, I loved them. And something just made me want to run. I was just running, like the Forrest Gump moment, I literally just started running in the park, and I loved it. And from that point on – you know, when you’re touring, you don’t know where you’re going to be. But one thing you can always count on is you just bring your running shoes. There were times I had security, where they had to follow me. There’s times I got lost with no phone and had to have someone bring me literally to the show. You know, some funny stories from running over the years. But right now, I’m back into it. And I’m loving it.

I don’t think it’s any secret that your Jewish background combined with reggae and hip-hop was pretty novel when you started out. I think a lot of people see you as a sort of bridge between cultural traditions. How do you feel about that characterization now?

I think it’s a part of who I am, at a very essential level. Even just musically speaking – I was listening to Nas and Wu Tang with friends, and I was listening to Nirvana, The Grateful Dead, and Phish, and my parents’ Tracy Chapman albums. There was an influx of great music that I absorbed as a child and a grownup. I guess I am a bridge, right? Like all those different things are like different bricks or pieces of material that are part of the bridge. People were like, “How do you bridge being a Hasidic Jew with reggae music?”

Well, there are these references to the Old Testament in legendary classic reggae songs. Bob Marley sings “Exodus”: “We know where we’re from. We’re leaving Babylon. We’re going to the fatherland.” Where are you going to hear that outside of reggae music? If you’re a 13-year-old Jewish kid growing up in White Plains, New York, and you listen to Bob Marley and you hear that, you’re going to be like, “Whoa, that’s directed to me. I’ve only heard that in Hebrew school, nowhere else.” And when I heard them in Hebrew school, they were not sexy like this. So from a very early age, you know, I listened, I absorbed. What I realized is that Rastafarians and reggae music drew this inspiration from the Old Testament, and there’s obviously a twist in its own direction. I knew from the depth of my core that, me doing this, there’s nothing foreign about it.

You’ve had such a journey in your life, and you’ve had so many chapters. Where is Matisyahu now? What is this chapter about?

It’s an interesting time for me personally, and you know, what’s going on in the world with Jews and where I sit with all of that. [Before Oct. 7th, 2023] I was not in a big period of really going up or down. Working on certain things but not really feeling pushed very much. Kind of comfortable, to some extent, in my life. Being an adult, basically – making sure my taxes are paid, my adults school bills are paid. Watching the Giants and barbecuing and drinking beer.

You know, I’ve climbed the mountaintop. One of the first albums, “Light,” like the light at the beginning of my career, and the religion and family and all of that, and traveling and performing and being kind of a bit of a star. Then after letting go of the major label, taking on my own music. Who do I want to work with? How do I want to make videos? How do I want to present myself? That leads to “Ada,” and that’s a very personal album. The songs are the most close to my heart. There was a wave that I was riding, and it took me to the top of that mountain. Then the question is, what happens after that?

Now, I find myself having moved back from the West Coast. In New York, I’m living in this big, old, haunted Victorian house. Just back home, and back to my natural tendencies. It’s almost like, “Who is Matt Miller?” Eventually, COVID hits. I found a partner, I’m kind of rebuilding my life, picking up a lot of the pieces of things that have fallen apart over the years. I was comfortable just chilling.

And then Oct. 7th happened. I was stepping into a role that’s very natural for me, and I’ve been in before. Fueled with a certain fire that’s unavoidable, unquestionable. I started to realize that responsibility, that I have to be a certain way. I feel like God is calling on me, on all of us, to step into a role and a light. That light comes in balance of the darkness. I feel something special is happening with myself. I’ve really tried to clean up my act a bit.

So with that comes the release of this music, “Ancient Child,” and this new tour. And I have to say, I’m very excited.

ROBERT ISENBERG is a freelance writer and multimedia producer based in Providence. His latest book is “Mile Markers: Essays on Cycling.”