Making it as a musician is a lot of work.
For most, it truly is a journey from the bottom up, having to work small gigs and shows to (hopefully) become recognized on the scene.
Struggling musicians all have different stories, backgrounds, and names, but they also have one thing in common: they’re all waiting for that one big break, the moment that will finally catapult them into fame. For musician Clint “Kekoa” Alama, this may have been his moment.
In this video, you see Kekoa playing in a coffee shop in Maui.
He stands near an empty table, his ukulele case open at his feet. He’s singing the reggae song “One Day.”
To Kekoa’s left stands a man in flip, flops, shorts, an open flannel shirt, and a backward hat. He seems to be enjoying the show, offering the camera sly smiles before joining in and harmonizing with Kekoa for a few lines.
Little does Kekoa know, the man is Matisyahu, the artist of the song.
In an interview with Billboard, Matisyahu recalled: “I was there for a couple of shows and we went out on the day of the Maui show, and dude was in there playing and he started to play ‘One Day’, so I thought, ‘Cool, he noticed me and is playing my song.'”
“I’m standing right next to him and then I realize he doesn’t know it’s me, and my bass player was like, ‘You should sing with him.”
At first, Matisyahu was concerned about offending the musician. “If he doesn’t know it’s me, he’ll think I’m some random dude trying to steal his thunder and I didn’t want to mess up his game,” he explained. Eventually, however, the celebrity just couldn’t resist.
Afterward, Matisyahu asks Kekoa if he knows who wrote the song before finally revealing his identity.
Kekoa’s eyes immediately widen.
Matisyahu said: “I was like, ‘Hey, you know who wrote that song, right?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, Matis.’ I told him, ‘I wrote it.'”
Kekoa’s clearly a bit embarrassed, but his confusion isn’t totally unfair. Matisyahu started out as a Hasidic rapper with a look that included a long beard and yarmulke.
In the video, he looks more like your average-day surfer— a style Kekoa clearly wasn’t expecting.
After their meeting, Matisyahu invited Kekoa to perform at a live show in Los Angeles, California.
Together, they performed “One Day” for the crowd— the same song they’d originally sang at the cafe. You can see a clip of their performance below.
Since being uploaded, Matisyahu and Kekoa’s meeting has been viewed more than 2 million times.
Comments on the video read:
“One of those special spontaneous moments only music can bring. Thanks for capturing this and posting for us to enjoy.”
“I never heard of Matisyahu before seeing this viral video and I’ve watched it numerous times since. It makes me smile every time I watch it!”
“Can’t help but smile throughout the video! So amazing to watch every time!”
Watch the video below!
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