After sporting new look, Matisyahu tells 'betrayed' fans 'don't worry'

Jewish reggae star releases new video in which he is seen without a kippah • Move comes six months after singer shaved beard, raising speculations on whether he was leaving Orthodoxy • In letter to fans, he writes, "To those who feel betrayed by my choices or my look, don’t worry, I think they will continue to change and evolve — that is the awesomeness of life."

A few days after Jewish reggae star Matisyahu was seen without a kippah in photo posted on Instagram, and just six months after he made headlines for shaving off his beard in a move that raised speculations about whether he was leaving Orthodoxy, the musician on Wednesday beseeched fans "that before prescribing judgment to some pictures, please wait and listen to my new record 'Spark Seeker' from start to finish."

Matisyahu was a musical curiosity who became a mainstream star after his 2004 debut, "Shake Off The Dust ... Arise." He sported the bushy beard, flat-brimmed black hat, black pants and white shirt worn by Hasidic men. His biggest single, "King Without a Crown," was a crossover hit.

In a new video for his latest single "Sunshine," Matisyahu was seen sporting blond hair and a T-shirt.

On his website on Wednesday, he attempted to clarify his new look to fans, saying, "There was a time when I felt it was necessary to show the world what I believed in through my physical appearance. I think this can be a wonderful thing, but as my faith has evolved I have come to believe there are many other ways to show my spirituality and Judaism. Ways in which our humanity is emphasized over our differences."

Matisyahu added, "During the making of this record I began to feel that I was shedding something, and with that I chose to shave. Just as when I was 18 and I shaved my dreadlocks to let go of my identity, I felt as if I was returning to a time prior to religion or rules or right and wrong. To a place where truth shows itself in beauty and balance and I felt it was time to walk a new path."

The reggae star says he is still figuring out "what that exactly means or looks like," and concluded by telling fans, "To those who feel betrayed by my choices or my look, don’t worry, I think they will continue to change and evolve — that is the awesomeness of life. I think that through patience, in time you will see we are still on the same team. We are ALL on the same team."