Jewish artist Matisyahu will perform at Penn

Matisyahu, the Jewish alternative rocker and reggae artist, is coming to campus.

Matisyahu will play at the Blockley, a music venue and bar on 38th Street, as part of One Day, a Hillel initiative inspired by Matisyahu’s hit song of the same title.

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One Day will take place on Dec. 4 — the final night of Hanukkah. Throughout the day, Hillel is partnering with a variety of student groups as well as fraternities and sororities to hold events to celebrate and engage with different aspects of Judaism. The final event of the night will be the Matisyahu concert.

The day’s festivities and concert are intended to help students “connect with their Judaism,” Engineering junior Alon Krifcher, who is part of the organizing committee, said.

The organizing committee chose Matisyahu because they felt he embodied the Jewish self-awareness and community spirit they are trying to encourage on campus. Matisyahu is known for his Hasidic background and musical style that blends hip hop, reggae and thoughts on the Jewish faith.

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“He’s the only mainstream artist who sings about and is about Judaism,” College senior Susan Finch, who is also helping organize One Day, said. ”He was the person to do it.”

“Judaism is a really deep religion with a lot of meaning to it in so many ways. Everyone connects to in a different way,” Krifcher said. “We’re hoping that you can plan an event that will hit your constituents, your friends, your community … we’re trying to reach as many types of Jews as possible.”

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Tickets are currently on sale online, and Penn students can get a discount with a Penn email address and the promo code “PennHillel12413”. The show will begin at 8:30 p.m.

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