Inspiring Jewish Pride Around the Globe
THE MACCABEATS A Capella group founded at YU in 2007
L ast November, the Maccabeats looked out from the stage at the March for Israel rally in Washington, D.C. and faced an audience nearly 300,000 strong. As is customary, the all-male a cappella group huddled for inspiration and focus before starting its set. To say they were nervous would be an understatement. Just then, group member Ari Lewis was embraced by a fam- ily friend, a parent of one of the Oct. 7 hostages. As the pair hugged, tears ran down Lewis’ face, and the other Maccabeats, witnessing the emotional exchange, felt their anxiety being re- placed by a deep sense of shared purpose. This was a much big- ger moment for everyone. The crowd roared with approval as the group began performing at what was to be the biggest show of the singers’ lives. “I believe everything we’ve done in these past 16 years was leading up to that moment, representing the Jewish people through music and bringing them together,” said Lewis, who is also an associate director of admissions at Yeshiva University. It is hard to believe that this group, singing before the largest pro-Israel gathering ever in the U.S., started performing as stu- dents at Yeshiva University. As the Maccabeats are fond of say- ing, Yeshiva University is part of their DNA. “Before every show, we introduce ourselves as the Mac- cabeats of Yeshiva University,” said Julian Horowitz, one of the group’s founding members and music manager. “YU trains the next generation of software engineers and rabbis, but it also trains musicians and artists. I think it’s a great place to go to find like-minded Jewish musicians, some of whom may someday be our competition.” The group was established at YU in 2007 as a university- sponsored student ensemble called the Yeshiva University A Cappella Group. Initially, they debated whether to hone their skills in private or perform live. They decided on the latter and started singing at Hanukkah candle lightings and Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) and Yom HaZikaron (Israeli Memorial Day) events at YU’s Wilf Campus. They chose the name The Maccabeats, cleverly riffing on YU’s sports teams’ name, The Maccabees. The group’s 12 members are YU grads, and Yeshiva Universi- ty is still close to their hearts. YU provided the group with funds
to get started and paid for their first album. It was during the creation of that album in 2010 that the Maccabeats got their big break. Deciding to record a holiday video as a fun surprise for friends and family, they produced the song “Candlelight,” a Ha- nukkah-inspired transformation of Mike Tompkins’ cover of Taio Cruz’s song “Dynamite.” “Candlelight” immediately went viral, racking up millions of views on YouTube in its first few weeks and currently standing at 17 million views in total. The Maccabeats’ newfound success drew invitations to numerous TV shows, including “Good Morning America,” and eventually the group became one of the most popular acts in Jewish music. More than worldly success, the Maccabeats claim that their biggest achievement is bringing together Jews from all back- grounds and denominations. During the holidays, their music has become a beloved fixture in many Jewish households around the world. Their emphasis on Jewish pride, a value in- stilled at Yeshiva University, along with the integration of Jew- ish spirituality, prayer and biblical references into their music, has helped inspire many young Jews to embrace their identity. “We got this beautiful message from someone who said he was the only Jewish student in his high school of 3,000, and he felt like he couldn’t wear his yarmulke to school,” said Noey Jacobson, Maccabeats member and MBA candidate at NYU. “But after listening to ‘Candlelight,’ the Hanukkah song, he felt he could. I feel that Jewish music has always been a part of what helps us move through difficult moments.” The Israel-Gaza war and the March for Israel rally took this sense of Jewish pride and perseverance, expressed through mu- sic, to new heights. Usually, the group releases a Hanukkah song that is playful and riffs on a popular song on the charts. Not this last Hanukkah. Instead, the Maccabeats recorded an original song, written by Jacobson, called “We’re Still Here,” which is about the Jewish ability to overcome every obstacle and not only survive but also return to and thrive in their ancestral homeland, Israel. Looking ahead, as the initial inspiration they found at YU continues to grow, the Maccabeats are committed to producing new music that inspires joy and Jewish pride around the globe.
Opposite, L–R: Chanina Abramowitz, ’11YC; George Rubin, ’16YC; Ari Lewis, ’11SB; Mordy Prus, ’11YC; Buri Rosenberg, ’11YC; Nachum Joel, ’11YC; Josh Jay, ’11YC; Yonatan Shefa, ’09YC; Michael Greenberg, ’09YC; Meir Shapiro, ’11YC; Julian Horowitz, ’10YC. Not pictured: Noah (Noey) Jacobson, ’12YC
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YU Today : Education and Leadership to Empower Our Next Generation
YU Today | Education and Leadership to Empower Our Next Generation
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