One Day

Sadly, we live in a world dominated by fear. If you turn on the news, there always seems to be something bad going on in our world. Mass shootings, bombings, and warring nations flood our Snapchat feeds so much that these catastrophic events are beginning to appear normal. With all the evil present on the earth we inhabit, it can be hard to remain optimistic about the course of human nature. When will all the bloodshed in this world finally come to an end? According to music artist, Matisyahu, it will all come to an end “One Day.”

Before analyzing the song “One Day” and its cognitive impact, it is important to first gain an understanding of Matisyahu’s background. Before his rise to fame, Matisyahu was known as Matthew Paul Miller. He was a devout Orthodox Jew and themes of the Jewish faith are sprinkled throughout his work. Even though he lives a religious life, Matisyahu is able to appeal to the masses through his style of reggae, rock, and beatboxing. In his hit “One Day”, Matisyahu employs his Jewish background to address the problem of evil in our world.

The beginning of “One Day” opens as such:

Sometimes I lay under the moon
I thank God I’m breathing
And then I pray don’t take me soon
I am here for a reason

Matisyahu begins the song with a feeling of gratitude. Here, he is showing how he is grateful for his life and for this reason he feels a sense that he needs to give back. This is something that is inherent in all humans, a feeling that we must contribute to the world in order to find meaning.

Matis then begins to build up why he’s here in the following lines:

Sometimes in my tears I drown
But I never let it get me down
So when negativity surrounds
I know some day it’ll all turn around
Because

In our world today, negativity is abundant. Due to constant violence, racism, and political polarity, it has become hard to remain in high spirits. Here, Matis admits to this and he even concedes to crying over it. These lines are powerful for the listener because they show how vulnerable Matis is being with his audience. Because Matisyahu opens up to his listeners, the hook of the song really hits home.

The hook of the song reads:

All my life I’ve been waiting for
I’ve been praying for
For the people to say
That we don’t wanna fight no more
They’ll be no more war
And our children will play
One day One day One day
One day One day One day

These lines are a call for world peace. Matisyahu has been surrounded by violence and evil all of his life and he’s fed up with it. However, what’s interesting here is the line, “For the people to say.” This line is striking because it shows how the problem of evil is in relation with all of us. Humans have the power to act with hatred, but they also have the power to act with love. The line “And our children will play” is also powerful because it calls to listener to mind what impact they will make on generations to come. The people living today have a responsibility to act and to act now. By acting out of love and not hatred, Matis believes one day we can achieve world peace.

So as one can see, songs such as “One Day” by Matisyahu can have a global impact. In the end, “It’s not about win or lose cause we all lose when they feed on the souls of the innocent.” When humans commit acts of violence and hatred, there is no real winner. Once we realize this, we can finally take a step towards creating a safe world for generations to come. This song can make an impact on how we think because if we all put our minds on making the world a better place, it can actually happen. This song gives us hope that one day everything is going to be alright. With hard work and determination, any goal we set our minds to is possible.

See the “One Day” music video here: