Music

Matisyahu: Former Brooklyn beardy dude now an LA blond!

The new Matisyahu, photo courtesy of Times of Israel.

So Mama Brokelyn has a little confession to make. Sometimes while cruising through Borough Park or Williamsburg, I’ll see a Hasidic guy and play a little game in my head. Subtract the peos and fur hat: hot or not? You know if a man looks good in white tights and pilgrim shoes…

So Matisyahu was always a bit of a Hasidic Hot-or-Not stumper, but now he’s taken away the guessing game. He buzzed his hair back in December and now here’s a photo of the no-longer-Lubavitcher, George-Michael-highlighted pop singer from yesterday’s Times of Israel. (He was on Kimmel last night, but he was wearing a hat.) What do you think?

Matisyahu as the other kind of Brooklyn beardy dude.

The former Crown Heights Hasidic reggae superstar told the paper that he scrapped the beard and got a haircut at an Upper West Side Supercuts (that’s in Manhattan, guys) then moved to LA, where he put out a new album yesterday. Still selectively observant, Matisyahu appears to have dropped the reggae thing and now does pop. Well, all that old-school beatboxing was pretty cool, and I dunno if the world needs another highlighted dude singing Jesus rock without the Jesus, but I also liked Eminem better before he cleaned up. You can see a clip of Matisyahu 2.0 in the video below.

Also of note, he’s starring in an upcoming horror movie with Kyra Sedgwick because “acting is a return to his second love — he reportedly always had a passion for acting and was in plays in college,” the Times writes about Matisyahu. Begging the question: did his old Lubavitcher top hat and tallis come from a prop closet somewhere?

8 Comments

  1. Yeah, he’s no Yossi Piamenta / AKA the Hasidic Hendrix for that matter.

    I have to say, @lordhawhaw, I kind of agree. If the blond Matisyahu of today was an unknown singer peddling that Sunshine song, his future would be bright with barista shifts and part-time mannying.

  2. conaldarcy

    I’m not totally surprised. I saw Matisyahu about a year ago at a benefit show. He was extremely dismissive and rude to the mostly Jewish audience, especially when they earnestly expressed their respect for his faith.

    Is this just the opposite of a drugged-out LA celebrity finding god?

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