Episode 361: Raw and Real: Matisyahu on Music, Meditation, and Marching to His Own Beat

Habits and Hustle

Jen Cohen

Self-improvement, Education, Entrepreneurship, Health & Fitness, Business

4.5 • 820 Ratings

🗓️ 9 July 2024

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Have you ever felt pressure to present a perfect image to the world, hiding your flaws and struggles? In today’s Habits & Hustle episode, I chat with reggae/hip-hop artist Matisyahu for a remarkably candid conversation. The former Hasidic Jewish rapper opens up about his journey of self-discovery, addiction struggles, and finding balance in life. Matisyahu's honesty is refreshing as he discusses his daily cannabis use, past cocaine addiction, and the challenges of maintaining sobriety. Rather than striving for an idealized version of himself, he's learned to accept his imperfections while still pursuing growth. As he puts it, he's traded in the "race car version" of himself for a more balanced "family station wagon" approach to life. This conversation reminds us that authenticity and self-acceptance are far more valuable than presenting a facade of perfection. Matthew Paul Miller known by his stage name Matisyahu is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer, and musician. Known for blending spiritual themes with reggae, rock and hip hop beatboxing sounds, Matisyahu's 2005 single "King Without a Crown" was a Top 40 hit in the United States. Since 2004, he has released seven studio albums as well as five live albums, two remix CDs and two DVDs featuring live concerts. What We Discuss: Matisyahu's journey from Orthodox Judaism to a balanced spiritual approach The impact of October 7th on Jewish identity and unity Challenges facing Jewish artists in the current political climate Balancing family life with a music career Struggles with addiction and the path to recovery The use of cannabis and its role in Matisyahu's life Finding authenticity in the music industry Reflections on fame, success, and personal growth The creation of the song "Ascent" and its powerful message The importance of self-acceptance and embracing imperfections Navigating career challenges and adapting to industry changes …and more! Thank you to our sponsors: Magic Mind: Head over to www.magicmind.com/jen and use code Jen at checkout. Find more from Jen: Website: https://www.jennifercohen.com/ Instagram: @therealjencohen Books: https://www.jennifercohen.com/books Speaking: https://www.jennifercohen.com/speaking-engagement Find more from Matisyahu: Website: https://matisyahuworld.com/ Instagram: @matisyahu Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matisyahu YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@matisyahu

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, guys. It's Tony Robbins. You're listening to Habits and Hustle. Crush it.
0:07.0	You're very special, Montessau, because we never do it like this. We never really do Zoom.
0:12.4	Yeah. Thank you for doing that. I appreciate it.
0:16.1	No, it's my pleasure. It's my pleasure. I think you're fantastic. fantastic i love your music i'm a big fan of yours
0:22.1	and i went to see you in l.a i think it was a few i guess by now probably a month ago
0:27.7	right right and you are so good thank you're so welcome do you do podcasts a lot because i was like
0:35.6	when i was googling around to see you know some stuff some stuff on you, there hasn't been very many. No, I've only done a few. You've only done a few. Okay. So I feel very honored to have you. So thank you for joining us today. Sure. Well, where to begin? Let's start with like, you know, maybe a lot of my audience may or may not be very familiar with you. So let's just start with just
0:55.2	saying who you are. You are an exceptional artist who blends reggae, hip hop, rock, and very inspiring
1:04.0	music, very spiritual, exceptionally talented. Your name is obviously Matasjahou. Where did you even
1:10.6	get that name? Was that like a nickname when you were a child? What was how did that kind of even start? That's been, that was my name in Hebrew school because my English name is Matthew. And so that's just what they, you know, said like, okay, Matthew is Matzegu. Are you, can I just ask you? Because I know that you were an Orthodox Jew and you, did you leave it and come back?
1:31.1	Are you still an Orthodox Jew?
1:32.8	Yeah, I wasn't raised Orthodox.
1:34.7	And then I became Orthodox when I was like 20 or 21 and was like Hasidic for maybe 10, 12 years.
1:41.5	And then kind of like became, I guess, not religious. And yeah, so I'm no
1:47.7	longer religious. You're not at all. Not like, maybe it becomes like, you know, question of what is
1:53.3	religious, what is religion and all of those things. But with just, just, you know, just like pretty,
1:58.5	like, I don't like believe that, I don't believe
2:02.4	in, like, any dogmas. And I like, I love aspects of tradition and spirituality and blah, blah,
2:07.6	and Judaism and all of that. But I don't, I don't ascribe to the idea that, like, that there's, like,
2:13.9	something that, like, specific that God really wants from us.
2:18.3	That's so interesting because like you said,
2:20.2	you weren't born an Orthodox Jew,
	...

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