If there is one thing more interesting than Jewish-produced art it's art with Jewish themes produced by 'The Other.' The likes of Jorge Borges wrote about the Kabbalah and Zora Neale Hurston wrote a novel about 'Moses: the Man of the Mountain.' Works like these make for a robust debate over what is Jewish, Judeo-Christian, universal, and so on.
However, I'd like to look at hip-hop. Rap lyrics are, to some extent, a record of how Jews and Judaism are perceived in the African-American community. Killah Priest of the Wu Tang Clan provides a syncrestic view of the Tanach, the 'New Testament' mideval mythology, and today's streets. Despite being an Afrocentrist and part of the Five Percent Nation, he uses terms like 'Masada' and 'Maccabeez.' (Perhaps one day there will be a Killah Priest-John Zorn-Alpha Blondy 'Masada' mash-up.) Here are a few excerpts from the Aggadah-like 'Fall of Solomon.'
"Portraits of Saint Mary, with Mona Lisa. The Queen of Sheba, strokin' a cheetah. Other mid-wives sayin 'I don't like the way he treats her.' Pass the reefer, bad cheeba, Solomon judge wisely. Wisdom spoken of highly, hair knotty, ask God 'Why me?" Solomon's gold, swallow them whole. He said 'F*ck you!', make me another Pagan God. Usin brass poles, spies layin up in the closet. They open the door, they spray holes through the prophets. Solomon whispers, a man reaches in his zipper, the king killed by his own bishop."
If you Google 'Pyrex' and 'Jewish', most sites will relate to Kashrut. This is likely to change as Virginia-based rap group Clipse's hit 'Wamp Wamp' becomes increasingly popular. It, like most other songs from the group refer to the production and sale of drugs, like cocaine. A noted line is "Mildew-ish when I heat it, it turn bluish. It cools to a tight wad, the Pyrex is Jewish. I get paper, it seems I get foolish. Take it to Jacob and play "Which hues the bluest?" I wouldn't call the ADL; to be stingy in a song about conspicous consumption doesn't seem like such a bad thing. Plus 'Jacob' is a well-known jeweler, who is a Bukharian Jew. Plus the Tutsi are really insulted. Viewers of 'Hotel Rwanda', which included African-Jewish actress Sophie Okendo know what I'm writing about. Finally, rap mogul Master P never was criticized (to my knowledge) for being part of a group called the Concentration Camp Click and releasing a CD called 'Da Halocaust.'
On a visit to Office Depot, I found myself browsing the moribund music section. To my surprise I saw an International edition of The Idan Raichel Project, taking from Bo'i and Mima'makim, now for resale here in Israel. Certain concessions have been made to World Music audience, translating song titles in a pretentious way (e.g "If Thou Wisheth.') Raichel has been performing around the world and he and his crew of collaborators seem on their way to becoming a star of 'World Music.' (Can you name any of them? They include singers Kabra Kasai and Ortal Ofek.) I wonder if they will ever release solo work or become recognized names. There is some irony that many Israelis showed little interest in the local Ethiopian music that can be found in local stores, but flock to Raichel's shows. Meanwhile Ethiopians such as Teddy Afro, who is not Jewish is singing about
Jerusalem in Amharic. Such is nature of 'World Music'-a rant I will save for another time...
P.S: There is a very good chance there will be a Mima'amakim gig in Jerusalem this Chanukah. Details to follow ASAP...
