MATISYAHU - LIGHT

Matisyahu emerged in 2004 with his debut album Shake Off the Dust…Rise. With the release of Live at Stubb’s (2005), which reached #1 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart, and Youth (2006), which debuted at #4 on Billboard’s Top 200 and reached #1 on the Reggae Albums chart, Matisyahu gained considerable critical acclaim. Both albums subsequently went Gold and Youth was nominated for a Grammy for Best Reggae Album. Now Matisyahu releases his third studio album Light (Epic Records) and the launch of his “One Day for Change” campaign. Always looking to inspire and positively motivate fans – the socially conscious artist has partnered with Kenneth Cole to create an online movement via Twitter and YouTube encouraging people to share ideas to positively change their communities in one day.

“One Day for Change” asks fans, as well as celebrities and musicians, to tweet “ideas for change” using the #onedaychange.net hash tag. Matisyahu will re-tweet his favorites on his own Twitter feed (@matisyahu, which now has over 720,000 followers!) and award a signed copy of Light to one tweeter each day. Participants are also encouraged to upload videos expressing their ideas for change to the “One Day for Change” YouTube page (www.youtube.com/onedayforchange) between August 25th and September 18th. On September 25th, a grand prize winner from the video uploads will be announced on www.onedaychange.net. The site, built by Republic Project, will feature all of the video submissions, tweets and exclusive content for the initiative and can be visited daily to view the latest entries. The winner will receive a Matisyahu branded camera provided by Flip Cam, and Matisyahu and Kenneth Cole will donate $5,000 towards the charity of the winning entrant’s choice. Other participants who upload videos will have a chance to win 1 of 4 Matisyahu branded cameras provided by Flip Cam.

Matisyahu’s single “One Day” was the inspiration for the “One Day for Change” campaign. “Consciousness and positivity spread like a wave.” Matisyahu explains, “It starts with one person doing one good thing and links like a chain, going from one positive thing to the next.” The video for “One Day” can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as7Y-mCiFaM&feature=channel

Produced by David Kahne (Paul McCartney, Regina Spektor, Sublime), Dave McCracken and the Smeezintons (Depeche Mode, Ian Brown), Light is Matisyahu’s most diverse album to date.