- How has hip-hop been a part
of Israeli political music?
(computer dial tones becomes upbeat hip-hop music)
- Hey.
- Hi.
- Hello.
- Let's just take a
minute to give a shout out
to the art of self-expression.
I'm feeling very
heart-eyes-y emoji right now
for Israeli hip-hop.
- Israeli hip-hop, is that even a thing?
- Hell yeah!
(groovy hip-hop music)
- While native Hebrew
hip-hop gained popularity
only during the 1990s, stemming
from global influences,
traces of it can be found
as early as the mid-1980s.
Currently, Israeli hip-hop represents
an impressively increasing market share
of national record sales.
- Not only is it a thing,
but because of the diversity
within Israel, when
Israeli MCs grab the mic,
s*** gets real!
Whether it's the social
justice music of HaDag Nachash,
the nationalism of Subliminal,
or the voice of protest from
Israeli-Arab Tamer Nafar,
Israeli hip-hop artists
tell it like it is.
- Hip-hop is some of the most
political music in Israel.
In comparison with other countries,
a disproportionately large portion
of Israeli rap's lyrical
content is political,
socio-political, or socially
conscious in nature.
- "I got beers, I got vodka,
I got Sprite in the fridge".
Oh yeah, definitely reminds me of MLK.
(poppy hip-hop music)
- Okay, yes.
Sometimes the music is
purely for entertainment,
and that's okay too.
Like Israeli rap group Zoolod
is a combo of Jewish-Ethiopian
rapper Teddy Neguse
and Muslim-Arab Anan Hafaga,
and they're rapping about
girls, friends, and just life.
- Fight for your right to party!
- But music is also a
powerful tool to understand
how people experience
diverse political ideas.
To me, hip-hop is super interesting,
if the artist has something to say.
Let's check out political music in Israel,
courtesy of these three different rappers.
HaDag Nachash, Subliminal, and Nafar.
(heavy hip-hop music with Middle Eastern vibes)
HaDag Nachash, formed in 1996,
was one of the first rap groups
to hit the mainstream in Israel.
Their first studio album,
"HaMechona Shel HaGruv,"
released in 2000, was
considered a benchmark
for Israeli recordings.
Their sound consists of
a mixture of funk, jazz,
world music, and Western pop.
- These guys have shown us constantly
that the music is the message,
and they're probably the most famous
Israeli hip-hop group of all time.
The wildly popular 2004
anthem "Sticker Song"
was actually pinned by left-leaning
Israeli writer David Grossman,
and its unique collage of
opposing political slogans
juxtapose against apolitical slogans,
provide scathing satire,
and creates a bitter irony.
(funky hip-hop music)
- And they're so much more
than a one hit wonder!
HaDag Nachash blends funk
and hip-hop like few others.
- Kind of like if James Brown and Lil' Kim
had an Israeli baby.
- HaDag Nachash's political views
align with a left-leaning peace-knit camp,
that challenges right-wing
political views in Israel.
And while not all of their songs
contain political commentary,
they try to mesh their philosophy
into everything they do.
- Annually, the band organizes a concert
with Israeli and Palestinian performers,
in impoverished neighborhoods,
called the One Shekel Festival,
costing the equivalent of
roughly 27 cents to attend.
- HaDag Nachash literally
means the fish snake,
but is a spoonerism on the phrase
"Nahag Chadash"
("New Driver")
the tag all new Israeli drivers must place
on their back window.
- So basically, they were stoned
when they made up the name.
- Anyway, here's the point.
Rapping about co-existence,
pursuing the peace process,
and ripping on politicians is
HaDag Nachash's calling card.
And agree with them or not,
their political music
is worth listening to
and learning from.
(dramatic hip-hop music)
(music becomes funky and happy)
Having grown up on hip-hop,
let's reflect on what inspires us today.
Kanye, Kendrick Lamar...
- Right on.
- Artists who dive deeply
into self-discovery,
social commentary, and political passion
all rolled into one!
It makes me think of Subliminal,
way on the other side of the
spectrum from HaDag Nachash,
- Subliminal, born Ya'akov Kobi Shimoni,
started performing music at age 12.
His music struck a chord
with Israeli audiences,
and gained popularity in the early 2000s.
- Subliminal is all about
Jewish and Israeli pride.
It's as simple as that.
(very fast rapping, heavy hip-hop music)
- The early 2000s marked the beginning
of the Second Intifada
where suicide bombings
targeted Jews in the streets of Israel.
This was the social context
Subliminal was rapping about.
Seems like he was more
than a little pissed.
- Similar to the "My Black is Beautiful"
campaign in America in the 70s,
Subliminal's lyrics and image helped turn
the Star of David into
a fashion statement,
and were all about not being afraid
to express Zionist pride.
- I thought that the
Hebrew Hammer did that.
- Subliminal used the term Zionist hip-hop
to form an entirely different genre
of political music in Israel
with a much more
right-leaning political bend.
- A lyrical deconstruction
of the popular song "Biladi",
Arabic for my land,
reveals a strong assertion
of the indigenousness of
Jews to the land of Israel
and the lamentation of
a constant criticism
Israel seems to receive.
(dramatic hip-hop music with distinct Middle Eastern sounds)
- But Subliminal is not just
about anger and frustration.
Dude also loves speaking
about optimism and hope,
an important Zionist ethos.
(inspiring hip-hop music)
- Personified by his 2018
hit "Let the Music Talk",
which contains lyrics
championing acceptance,
tolerance, unity, and the power of music
to transform conflict.
(upbeat reggae hip-hop music)
- Remember when Tupac said,
"Biggie, remember when I used
to let you sleep on my couch?"
But then, they had quite the falling out.
- No, we were three years old!
- Well, they did.
Subliminal, and an Israeli-Arab
rapper named Tamer Nafar,
are kind of like Israel's
Tupac and Biggie.
Kind of.
The right-leaning
Subliminal used to be close
to the Arab rapper Tamer Nafar,
the lead man of the
Arab-Israeli group Dam,
which stands for Da Arab MCs.
- Dam is also a play on words,
meaning persisting in
Arabic and blood in Hebrew.
- When the Palestinian Intifada
and suicide bombings were going on,
it got a bit weird between
Nafar and Subliminal.
- That's a shocker!
Subliminal's a big time patriot,
Nafar an activist in Palestinian circles.
So there's bound to be some
beef when tensions rise.
- Nafar published protest songs,
lamenting inequality
in Israeli-Arab cities.
One song that stands out is
his 2004 piece "Born here",
where he claims discrimination
and unemployment
in the city of Lod is a
catalyst for violence,
overrunning the outskirts of the city,
and making it dangerous for
residents entering and exiting.
(somber hip-hop music, rapping in Arabic)
When he raps about the challenges
of being an Arab citizen in Israel,
as someone who identifies as Palestinian,
he can be a tad harsh.
- No, Palestinian protests
being a tad harsh?
- Subliminal's beef with
him included criticism
that he refused to understand
the Israeli perspective.
- Hold up, Nafar represents
how he sees his experience.
For him, this included having to navigate
a lack of social mobility,
poverty, and discrimination.
- That's right,
and when it comes to
political music in Israel,
everything is fair game to rap about.
Conclusions.
- Hip-hop is a powerful vehicle
of social and political expression.
By probing lyrics, we
can learn and understand
more about these societies
and the experiences of
the communities involved.
We also know that there's a possibility
to unite through music.
Imagine, Subliminal and
Nafar on the same stage!
Biggie and 'Pac would be smiling
from the great hot tub in the sky.
(upbeat music)
So, whether used as an
expression of identity,
social protest, or cultural celebration,
what matters is the limitless
potential of hip-hop
to give people the ability
to speak truth to power
and bring diverse voices together,
even in a place like Israel.
(upbeat music)
