Musician Matthew Paul Miller also known as Matisyahu is a great example of how music allows one to claim citizenship. Miller is a Jewish American who is a reggae musician who is best known for Known for mixing Jewish themes with Reggae, Rock, and hip hop sounds.
Miller was born in West Chester, PA and later moved to White Plains New York with his family. New York is where he found his passion for music initially from following the rock band “Phish”. Miller has released over three albums and travel globally to places such as United States, Canada and Europe.
Miller songs are mostly in English however he does manage to include a few words of Hebrew and Yiddish in his song. He also mixes in contemporary styles of rap and beat-boxing as well as the traditional Hazzan style. His music is closely compared early dancehall reggae stars such as Barrington Levy.
Why is it that a Jewish American man from Pennsylvania can mix three distinct genres of music and make it globally acceptable? Why is it acceptable for him to perform these genres without any cultural connection? Does the fact that he is not white, Jamaican or black make his music any less authentic. Is this flexible citizenship at its best? Ong would argue this is flexible citizenship at its best here you have Jewish man blending different cultures and styles while being socially accepted.
Here is a link to Miller’s myspace page so you can get idea of what he sounds like.
http://www.myspace.com/matisyahu
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ReplyDeleteWhile reading Ong, I was trying to understand who has access to flexibility and to what point flexible practices are conditioned and possible by capital? Ong criticizes Appadurai for letting behind notions of equal advantage for mobilization. But I think Ong does too, because mobility and flexibility might be accessible for an elite too.
ReplyDelete----
In Matisyahu the case is complicated, the way he constructs his music and identity does not necessary favors flexibility. In other words he may gain visibility by his mixture of Jewish identity blended with reggae and hip hop, (because he is famous) but at the same time his music has raised questions about authenticity and ownership...
I remember that the concert he offered couple of years ago in Puerto Rico didn't have the same response from the audience as with other Latin reggae bands, or Caribbean. Followers of reggae music weren't convinced by his music, for being "inauthentic".
Matisyahu is a great example of hybridity, the problem may relay in the lack of ambiguity. Since he is very straight forward about his believes, identity and use of specific music genres to convey his message... Audiences that look for authentic are most likely to reject him, and audiences that accept hybridity sometimes need more ambiguity.
Of course he has a lot of fans around the world, he must be creating something relevant...
HE CAME LAST SEMESTER TO THE UNIVERSITY... did somebody go?
Again, this posting is related to authenticity. I guess nobody can really determine whether Miller’s music genre is authentic or not, unless the word “authenticity” becomes clearly defined and everybody has the same ideology on authentic music. According to Hernandez’ article, “authenticity enhances the appeal of selected cultural commodities and has become an important element in the mechanism of the mode of racialisation necessary to making non-European and non-American musics acceptable items in an expanded pop market. The discourse of authenticity has been a notable presence in the mass marketing of successive black folk-cultural forms to white audiences”. But how can we categorize Miller’s music genre? Due to Miller’s hybrid identity, his music also becomes something that hard to tell its origin. Since it’s like a mixture of Jewish themes with Reggae, Rock, and hip hop sounds, it’s not fair for us to say his music style belongs to any of these genres. Instead, his music elements intertwine with the other genres and create a new music style which is independent from the other three distinct genres. And this new style can be “true” and “origin” considering that it is the first “invention” of its kind, representing and SPECIFICALLY representing Miller’s music style.
ReplyDeleteYes I would argue that this maybe flexible citizenship at its best! Is it authentic, his style yes, but if he is authentic in relation to the different genres he relates to then I don't know. I feel originality mixed with cultural some hows allow the individual to be a flexible citizen because no one can really argue he isnt authentic. So instead of arguing if it is authentic, people can challenge how it relates to their culture.
ReplyDeleteIt seems hes engaging in a transcultural production of music since hes borrowing from so many styles. Lipsitz's article seems to make sense of this artist's work by pointing out that the mixing of genres here gain's his work a larger audience by connecting to people's various political identities.
ReplyDelete"The discourse of authenticity has been a notable presence in the mass marketing of successive black folk-cultural forms to white audiences"
ReplyDeleteThis is a quote from Hernandez, one that Quian19 also used. I find it extremely useful and relevant to the discussion here. Though I am not one to question authenticity - for who can be authentic? - it seems that Miller's use of different music styles is very much an economic choice. He has appropriated certain styles, and his music has become very popular with white middle class listeners, after all remember when he was at Lollapalooza? Through Miller, reggae and dancehall styles have become accessible to an otherwise unreceptive demographic. I'm not quite sure what to make of this...whether to say this is a negative thing or not.
On top of that, what does his being a Jewish man from PA say about his identity as a reggae/dancehall/rap artist? Which identity is more legitimate? I'm asking this because 1) I have a penchant for asking questions without answers and 2) because I truly don't know the answer.
"'....passport have been "less and less attestations of citizenship, let alone of loyalty to a protective nation-state, than of claims to participate in labor markets (pg.2)."' This simply says that being consumers from the producers are being shift from consumers to producers because people are trying to gain capital for their culture. Most people who adapt to the Americanized world grips onto knowledge to establish a foundation for their culture and country. In order to do you have to engage your language in the environment you targeting. So, how can people be considered authentic? Their not. A person have to do one thing to make their identity common, by making opportunities and eligible pools broader, which will obtain your flexible citizenship status.
ReplyDeleteMatisyahu is an interesting example of hybridity in music, not just of style but of cultures. It reminded me of Wayne Marshall's analyzation of Daddy Yankee and the Raggaeton stlye of music in "From Musica Negra to Reggaeton Latino: The Cultural Politics of Nation, Migration, and Commercialization." Daddy Yankee appears to be simply a hyper-commercialized fad of Carribean influence to some critics. However, Marshall describes Daddy Yankee's style as a "musical text
ReplyDeleteengaging with a long history of circulating sounds, people, and ideas about self
and other, race and place" (19). Yankee's music is building off of forms of raggae and hip hop that came before. He is also following influential personalities from the past to establish his own identity. The "otherness" that is accentuated in traditional hip hop music and the spirit of rebellion found in traditional raggae combine to form the Daddy Yankee's ideas that he expresses in music. I think that Matiyahu is a parallel to Daddy Yankee except he is in another genre. While he may be white, have a clean record, and grown up not necessarily impoverished, he does have the identity of a group that has been oppressed throughout history. This identity is, of course, being Jewish. He uses ideas of oppression and marginalization found in previous hip hop and combines that with his own unique taste (bands like Phish) to create his own style of music that establish his Jewish identity.
This is a really great posting! especially because you bring up issues of authenticity with such a famous artist Matiyahu who I havent heard many bad things about when it comes to who he is when mixing these different genres of music. I really was never able to categorize his music to one specific genre because I find it so unique. I also thought and agree with Mike when he says that his music connects to a wide range of audiences therefore making him more widely accepted because people can identify with him although having different identities.
ReplyDeleteWow--I listen to Matisyahu, and I haven't ever really thought about his cultural identity or authenticity. I think Matt's right; Matisyahu uses his cultural identity (the oppression of Jewsish peoples) and some musical history (hip hop's relationship to marginalized communities) to create a new genre and a new sound....just like Daddy Yankee did with Reggaeton and hi-hop.
ReplyDeleteIn the Hernandez reading, we talk about the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, especially the Trading with the Enemy Embargo....this prevented Cuban music from entering the United States.....
If a Cuban from within the boundaries of the United States was producing music, would we call it Cuban music? Authentic Cuban music?
To continue the discourse on Cuban oppresesion, must one be Cuban? How much of my cultural identity is based on what I produce? Is Matisyahu a Pennsylvanian Israeli?
Much of the scholarly discussion of musical collages focus a great deal on the use of art and music by displaced people. Art is a complex discourse in which conflicts of identity associated with migration are expressed. Ong's article discusses migration and "multiple passport holders." What's interesting about Matisyahu is his adoption of raggae, despite having grown up in Pennsylvania. This represents to me the non-physical migration of ideas. Globalization is an exchange of culture, and commercialized culture is an important part of this.
ReplyDeleteI think that the case of Matisyahu is an interesting one at best. I'm amazed at how easily he has transitioned between these various forms of music and yet still be a member of his initial Jewish culture. Ong made the statement that "... major anthropological accounts of transnationalism have been consumed less with migrants and their reception in host countries and more with issues of cultural flows and the social imaginary in a transnational world." I think it's great that he's so well known and well received but as equivalent to the olympic athletes, he's also bartering with various cultures for monetary gain and recognition.
ReplyDeleteIt's a great that he's in a space where he easily crosses those national and global lines, yet I wonder what is being sacrificed as a result of that lack of culture and understanding relative to lived experiences? I don't believe that the fact that he doesn't identify as Jamaican or black is really the issue so much as the possible compromises made as a result of his possible inability to fully understand cultural relationships. What is really to be said for his social acceptance?
I think all of these postings are going to go back to this issue of authenticity. However, if I am going to be completely honest, I was a little shocked when I saw a post about a Jewish man who not only raps, but raps to a reggae beat. I was not shocked because of his identity, but shocked to see just how music can play such a huge part in how a person identifies themselves.
ReplyDeleteAfter I read the Wayne Marshall reading concerning Daddy Yankee and how reggae influenced his music, if a Puerto Rican can be make music with reggae tunes and be socially accepted by many, then why can't the same be for Matisyahu? However, I do agree with Tichina as to what exactly did he sacrifice as a result of his "freedom" of expression? He is Jewish, which is a complete 360 from what Hip-Hop and Reggae derived from, in terms of the people who are associated with the music.
ATENCION!!!I have to read the article on DADDY YANKEE...(somebody help me with this!) But I have to say Daddy Yankee is in NO WAY a parallel to Matisyahu!!!! no no no
ReplyDeleteDaddy Yankee, in no way expresses in his lyrics any concern for human struggles, or oppressed communities! In any case he places himself in the side of the oppressor... that's the mentality of the colonized!!.. he is oppressed and oppresses without questioning his actions. His name is Daddy Yankee, the "dad of the Yankees" (Americans, gringos, white hegemony)... also "The Big Boss" ujum, his lyrics are not about contesting, or question politics--- this is A HUGE difference from Matisyahu, who manifest awerness of this issues in his music, and his identity.
In what way Daddy Yankee is hybrid???... I think we need to distinguish the regueton as hybrid phenomenon and Daddy Yankee under colonized puppet. Daddy Yankee who is a victim, I will say, and only imitates what he sees. He embodies imperialism, and capitalist system and uses regueton to reproduce discourse of luxury, commodities and pleasure, not to say his lyrics are also misogynic, and super phalocentric!!! (falocentrico en espanol)...he is not at all like Matisyahu...
as Calle 13 (an urban music duo from Puerto Rico, that is often label under regueton, eventhough they do not agree) says of Yankee:
"You say you're part of the people, but you don't longer live in public residency"
-Dices que eres del pueblo, pero ya no vives en el caserío (residencial público)”.-
Related to Yankee's attitude towards money and the showoff and "spectacle" of arriving to concert in "high class" cars, even though he grew up in a "caserio". (Goverment supported residencies)
Get ready, because whats coming is to give it to her, (hard!
ReplyDeleteMamita, I know that you aren't going to take away (hard!)
What I like is that you let yourself get taken away (hard!)
every weekend she goes out to have fun (hard!)
my cat doesn't stop hanging out because
She likes gasoline (give me more gasoline!)
- Yankee's gasolina
one day we'll all be free
and proud to be
under the same sun
singing songs of freedom like
one day
-Matisyahu's One day
None of us have a homogenous identity. We all borrow from other cultures particularaly within the US culture where we are all immigrants (unless you are native american) and some kind of hybrid. Multiculturalism in general is the new black so I am not suprised that this culturally ambigious form is popular.
ReplyDeleteAgain, as far as authenticity goes, i find it hard to argue about what can be considered authentic and what is not.I think in many ways we keep coming back to the same issues and so i dont think i have more to add that has not been said already in previous posts.
I will say though that cultural ambiguity does make for a marketable commodity these days generally speaking. I was actually reading about that in Dr. Valdivia's article on Disney and the Cheetah Girls and Johny Tsunami etc. Perhaps there is a similar thing going on with this artist.