Drake wins first Grammy

Published on February 11, 2013

The Jewish Canadian singer Drake won a Grammy Award, his first, for Rap Album of the Year.

French Rapper Booba ‘Cyber-lynched’ for Mentioning Shoah

Published on February 7, 2013

Dozens of anti-Semitic messages were left on the Facebook page of the popular French rapper Booba for vowing in a new song to avenge the victims of the Holocaust. Booba, the son of a Muslim father from Senegal, raps in a song titled “Master Yoda” that was posted Feb. 2 on his Facebook page, “We’ll avenge like victims of slavery and the Shoah.”

No, Adam Yauch wasn’t a yeshiva boy, but we can still claim him

Published on May 7, 2012

As a student at an all-girls day school in Brooklyn, the first thing I learned about the Beastie Boys turned out to be untrue.
According to a yeshiva urban legend, two of the founding members of the Beastie Boys had attended The Marsha Stern Talmudic Academy in upper Manhattan. Some MTA students even claimed to know where the hip-hop pioneers had tagged the school with their handles.

Opinion: On Matisyahu's beard

Published on December 19, 2011

On Tuesday, December 13, Chassidic reggae-star Matisyahu Tweeted: This morning I posted a photo of myself on Twitter. No more Chassidic reggae superstar.

Mac Miller and a generation of Jewish hip-hop

By Danielle Berrin
Published on November 18, 2011

Jewish teen rapper’s album tops Billboard chart [VIDEO]

Published on November 16, 2011

A Jewish teen rapper has had his first album debuted at the top of Billboard 200 chart.

A Letter to My Neighbors…

By Julia Bendis
Published on July 21, 2011

Gangsta rapper Shyne, now an Orthodox Jew, plans comeback

Published on January 3, 2011

It was early on during his difficult, isolated years in prison that the former gangsta rapper known as Shyne decided to formally take on the laws of Judaism as his own. Shyne, who legally changed his name in prison from Jamaal Barrows to Moses Levi -- Moses is one of his favorite biblical heroes, and Levi is for the Levites who were musicians during Temple times -- remembers the initial skepticism he encountered from prison rabbis at New York’s Rikers Island, where he was first incarcerated, and the other prison rabbis that would follow. "In prison culture, everyone is trying to make a scam, everyone is a con artist, so who is this dark-skinned guy they wondered? Does he just want the Jewish food?" asks Levi, now cloaked in the black garb of a Chasidic Jew and living in Jerusalem.

Matisyahu’s ‘Miracle’ Chanukah song [VIDEO]

By JewishJournal.com
Published on November 28, 2010

There’s so many Christmas songs out there, I wanted to give the Jewish kids something to be proud of.

MUSIC: ‘That Yemenite Kid’  Diwon makes a mix tape—in Yiddish

Published on October 7, 2008

Courtesy of Diwon, the artist formerly known as DJ Handler and otherwise known as the executive director of Modular Moods and Shemspeed.com, comes this fresh mix of pop, hip-hop, electronica and . . . Yiddish?

MUSIC VIDEO: Ori Murray—‘Rosh Hashanah Rap’

By The Web Guy
Published on September 30, 2008

The Matrix, the Kotel, the Days of Awe are all linked in this music video from Ori Murray shot in Jerusalem.

Documentary goes behind the music video with Chutzpah

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on September 10, 2008

"My big idea for the CD was, 'Let's give this to our families for Chanukah,'" Hyams said. "I never thought we'd get a record deal, because I figured 'This is stupid and Jewish and no one cares except us.'"

Francky Perez’ hip-hop ‘Hatikvah’ en Français

By JewishJournal.com
Published on April 3, 2008

MUSIC VIDEO: Gad Elbaz and Alon de Loco in ‘Ha layla ze haz’man’—‘Tonight’s the Night’

Published on November 9, 2007

t's not Jets and Sharks, nor Bloods and Crips, but . . .

Two Israeli cliques somehow manage to 'just get along' in this hiphop music video from rappers Gad Elbaz and Alon de Loco

Girlz in the hood

By Dikla Kadosh
Published on November 8, 2007

'Miriam' and 'Shoshana' live in the Pico-Robertson area. They're seniors at a religious girls' school, they study Torah, dress modestly and keep the Sabbath. But Miriam and Shoshana are not your ordinary Orthodox girls. They rap. They use foul language. They fantasize about professional wrestler Bill Goldberg. And they head up a dreidel-rolling gang. The two faux frumsters are the comedic creations of Kara Luiz and Deena Adar.

I Ate the Whole Thing!

Published on August 31, 2006

Circuit News.

The Sabbath Rap

By Gaby Friedman
Published on January 26, 2006

Welcome to Hip Hop Shabbat.

Spectator - It’s Hip to Be Chutzpah

By Gaby Friedman
Published on December 8, 2005

When you think of hip-hop or rap, you don't generally think of jowl-necked septuagenarians or skinny, psyched-out white guys rapping about the tsuris their mother gives them, but then again, you don't generally think of Jews either.

Masi’s Grays

By Michael Aushenker
Published on September 21, 2000

The Borscht Belt has gone way downtown as a crop of young hip-hoppers redefines the shape of Jewish comedy.

Jewish Humor’s New New Rap

By Daniel Balasco
Published on September 14, 2000

Welcome to the next generation of Jewish humor, where beats become borscht in the hip-hop Cuisinart.