He became famous as a Hasidic Jewish reggae artist who brought spiritual Jewish themes into mainstream American music, particularly through his 2005 hit single "King Without a Crown."

Matthew Paul Miller, known by his stage name Matisyahu (pronounced mah-tis-YAH-hoo), was born June 30, 1979, making him a Cancer zodiac sign. The American singer, rapper, and beatboxer carved a unique niche blending reggae, rock, and hip-hop with spiritual Jewish themes. His 2005 single "King Without a Crown" became a Top 40 hit in the United States, and he has since released seven studio albums, five live albums, and appeared in films including The Possession (2012).

Matisyahu is from West Chester, Pennsylvania, but grew up in White Plains, New York, in a Reconstructionist Jewish household. As a teenager, he rebelled against his upbringing, dropped out of high school, and followed the band Phish on tour while experimenting with drugs. After a rehabilitation stint and attending a wilderness school in Bend, Oregon, he returned to New York and underwent a profound spiritual transformation, studying Torah with Chabad rabbis and eventually joining the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Crown Heights by 2002, adopting traditional Hasidic dress, a full beard, and strict Orthodox observance that would define his early musical persona.

Matisyahu married Tahlia in 2004 and they had three children together before divorcing in 2014. In 2011, he underwent a significant transformation when he shaved his beard and publicly stated he was no longer a "Hasidic reggae superstar," explaining it as a process of "religious maturation" rather than abandoning Judaism. He is still religious and maintains his Jewish identity, but practices differently than during his early Hasidic years; he is Jewish, not Christian, despite some online confusion. He remarried on May 20, 2019, and has maintained a vegetarian lifestyle since 2010.