Matisyahu on New LP: "Music and Politics Is Two Different Things"

Rolling Stone caught up with Matisyahu in the shadow of the Port-A-Potties at last weekend's Pemberton and asked everyone's favorite Jewish reggae MC about playing big festivals and the progress of his new album. Matisyahu chatted about the kosher food he was served at the remote fest ("I don't know where it came from") and how he keeps politics out of his music — and why. Click above to watch the interview.

For more Pemberton Festival coverage, visit rocknrolldiary.com

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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