Hassan Mohammed, from Camberwell, south London, was stabbed in York Road, Southend-on-Sea on 7 July last year.
Tajwar Alam, 19, of Seaford Road in Tottenham, north London, denied murder but was convicted by a majority verdict at Chelmsford Crown Court in May.
Judge Charles Gratwicke, sentencing him on Friday, said he was a callous young man with a tendency to violence.
He told Alam that he would serve 20 years before parole would be considered.
Mr Mohammed died at Southend Hospital the day after he was stabbed.
Det Ch Insp Simon Werrett said: "The sentence handed down today will ensure the people of Southend are safe from Alam and hopefully give Hassan's family some closure so they can move on with their lives, although nothing will bring their son back."
Five other men who were charged in connection with Mr Mohammed's murder were acquitted and formally dismissed during the trial.
A student has been jailed for life for murdering a 24-year-old man he stabbed twice in an attack at an Essex resort.