PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST

The Jerusalem Post Israeli & Iranian rap about life BY JOELLE FISS 13/02/2010The son of a decorated IDF sniper and the nephew of an Iranian general team up in New York to rap. NEW YORK – There’s a long, docile line of people waiting for over an hour in the biting December frost to slip into the jam-packed orbit of the Nuyorican Poets cafe in Alphabet City, New York. They are here to watch a show where two male rappers, one Israeli and one Iranian, team up with two female poets, one Palestinian and the other Jewish, to discuss Middle East politics, religion, identity, racism and terrorism. The crowd is a curious assortment of hip hop amateurs, ladies smothered in glossy lipstick and bundled in headscarves, young hipsters, Jewish mamas with stars of David dangling from their turtleneck sweaters, and startled low-key regulars, stepping into their favorite club for a night out of spoken word.But beyond the genuine thirst of the crowd to delve into such topics – and perhaps a nagging need to witness some insubordinate scenes – there is a sense of excitement to view the premiere of a show which is the first in its kind. This is just the beginning of the launch of a tour that will hit US campuses in 2010 – as well as a preview into the tracks of an uncommon duo rap album on Muslim and Jewish identities, a hip hop interfaith jam of sorts, scheduled to come out later in the year. The gig stems from the collaboration of the two hip hop artists, Yoni Ben-Yehuda (aka Sneakas) and Mazzi Behi (aka Mazzi), who decided to add an extra layer of political content by weaving in the verses of two poets Vanessa Hidary (Jewish) and Tahani Salah (Palestinian) between their tracks. Upcoming performances include a show on February 16th at the Nuyorican Poets cafe, as well as for students on campus at SUNY Albany on February 22nd.All four artists turn their backs on the cliché of epitomizing Jews and Muslims who can only join hands in a message of peace by temporarily agreeing to downplay their origins. “It would be far easier to mirror that idealism, but the aim is to get down in the mud, and express our clashing viewpoints, because that’s where it gets interesting,” says Sneakas. Instead, the artists celebrate their diversity to prove to the crowd that their contrasting views can come together to challenge the commonly made mental representations of the conflict. “The moral of the story, if there is one, is that we are gloriously imperfect. No one is purely a victim nor entirely innocent. Our truth is raw and unfiltered, so it strikes an authentic chord.” Such an approach is novel and refreshing because it urges audience members to recognize each side’s narrative in its quest for peace.LYRICALLY, PERHAPS the most striking track is from the fictional story of an Israeli soldier who comes face to face with a suicide bomber in an Israeli market. (“You have no idea what it’s like to protect your family from terrorism every night / While other teenagers have fun to pass the time / I serve on the border of Israel and Palestine.”) Homesick and weary, with a seemingly heavy-hearted conscience, the fighter spots a guy who “looks strange” and starts to follow him through the crowd, M-16 in hand. Dripping in sweat, the alleged terrorist is distressed, wrestling with his live-or-die decision. The Muslim rapper plunges into the psychological state of the character: “This is harder than I thought, and I’m having second ones / I’m a man and if I stop, will I be a lesser one?” Finally, the opponents’ eyes meet and the “world [goes] silent.” Did the Israeli soldier shoot the suspect or did the suicide bomber blow up into pieces? The listener is left to soak up the scene of confusion. Both artists claim that writing the song flowed naturally; each author scribbled his own paragraphs, delving into the character that he wished to represent.Another song tackles the issue of racism, but with a comic twist to ridicule hate speech. Instead of preaching against stereotyping, the MCs blast out dogmatic comments. “By making people laugh about clichés, we’re taking the sting away from insults. It’s the same approach as with African-American rappers who flipped the N-word to remove its stigma,” notes Sneakas. He jokes to the Muslim about the money-grabbing stereotype of Jews (‘We’re not that different…you follow the prophet and I follow the profit’) whereas Mazzi portrays a culturally backward image of the Muslim migrant (‘My uncle works at a 7-11 and drives a taxi cab…he might be busy all up in his harem trizzing (editors note: messing around) with many wives’). The audience bursts into laughter – here its eclectic members can let off steam together, away from traditional, cozy communitarian havens.In another track, Mazzi blurts “I’m talented, Persian, Shi’ite and educated.” Why? “People usually assume I am a Puerto Rican kid from Harlem or the Lower East Side,” he says. “They don’t grasp the difference between Persian and Arab, and they don’t expect me to converse with clarity.”Sneakas firmly believes that you can change people’s mental representations in one night and “succeed where politicians can’t”. The bluntness of the show is admittedly “scary – you’re standing in front of a crowd, not having the faintest idea who your audience is.” He believes it’s vital to be consistent in the message, to overcome the urge to adapt it to the crowd’s temperament or views. The tone must be invariable, whether the show is playing in “New York, Alabama, Teheran, Jerusalem or Paris.”SNEAKAS AND Mazzi met through a musical project in which DJ Waleed Coyote, of Lebanese descent, and rapper MC Serch, who is Jewish, are developing a compilation featuring Jewish and Muslim/Arab hip hop artists. Serch executive-produced the first two albums of US rapper Nas, Illmatic and It Was Written, which are among the most critically acclaimed rap albums of the 1990s. Coyote and Serch plan to bring celebrities on board for the record. The project aims to advance a message of peace and donate all of the proceeds to orphanages caring for both Palestinian and Israeli children.While the compilation CD is still a work in progress, Sneakas and Mazzi have already hit it off and started writing a range of tracks – they have seventeen so far – on themes ranging from religion to racism, peace to terrorism, to produce their own album. In the meanwhile, they have added a new element to their gigs, and a deeper dimension to their message, by including poetry recitals between the songs. “These initiatives are organically growing in all directions,” says Mazzi, adding that no one has yet pulled together ties that connect the hip hop industry with Middle East identity politics. This was more than tempting for both rappers; in fact, it was a dream that each had separately craved for a long time.Despite being friends on and off the stage, Mazzi and Sneakas clearly disagree on everything, “from food to politics, women and basketball,” the Israeli laughs. But they have striking similarities, albeit from opposing sides: Sneakas’s father is a decorated IDF sniper while Mazzi’s uncle is an Iranian general. They were born in Israel and Iran, respectively, but have both lived most of their lives in New York. They both express deep loyalty to their communities, but each refuses to define themselves as either “Jewish” or “Muslim” artists. Theirs is first and foremost an artistic journey, aimed at enriching the quality of the music. What clearly motivates them is to reach a higher creative level, although “I have no choice but to be driven by the political causes – it is part of me,” Mazzi says. “If I don’t do this, I won’t be complete as an artist.”SIPPING ON tea at a Starbucks in Chelsea, Sneakas muses jokingly that he’s an “East Coast college kid and a white Jewish rapper who wasn’t broke growing up.” But that tale reveals an important point: “I represent a minority voice in the hip hop world that doesn’t exist. Generally, the African Americans identify with the Palestinian cause because they see it as a struggle similar to theirs.”Mazzi also sips tea as he sits in a Dunkin’ Donuts in Midtown, munching on chocolate cake. He agrees that Muslim rappers are indeed more visible on the hip-hop scene than their Jewish counterparts, but in his view they lack the skillful beats and catching tunes that could attract a demanding audience. Therefore, “their political message generally overshadows their art.” He believes that he “can’t sit here and constantly point fingers at the Israeli population” because he himself “lives on a stolen land that the US took from Native Americans.” He considers that “Hamas controlling Gaza is similar to the militiamen who guarded towns and villages in the US during the American revolutionary war in the 1770’s.”Politically, Mazzi defines himself as a “peacenik theocrat.” He once believed in the Khomeiny revolution, attended a private speech given by Ahmedinejad for 200 selected Iranians living in the US, and now works with charities to help alleviate the poverty of Gaza’s children. Sneakas lives at least three months every year in Israel, believes that Israel “gets a lot of unnecessary criticism” and vehemently objects to the statement that “Zionism is a dirty word.”Obviously, it takes more than good intentions to transform a political landscape where both sides are sorely fighting for the same land. The show and upcoming interfaith album may not trigger a new peace summit, but the idea is to impact each individual in the audience. “We want to challenge anger” says Sneakas. Mazzi, who recently visited the West Bank, Gaza and Tel Aviv recently, saw with his own eyes how “hip hop can bring together Israeli and Palestinian rappers” who know nothing of each other “apart from their music.”Perhaps in music, as in peace negotiations, there is an intrinsic value to talking – or rapping – after all.MC Serch, Arab DJ Waleed Coyote Work On ‘Peace in the Middle East’By Alexis Jeffries and Nolan Strong September 12, 2006 AllHipHop.comMichael “MC Serch” Berrin and Greensboro, North Carolina DJ Waleed Coyote will collaborate on a compilation titled Peace in the Middle East, a new album made up of Arab and Jewish artists.Serch, a Jewish rapper and member of famed ’90s rap group 3rd Bass and DJ Waleed Coyote, an Arab DJ on Greensboro’s 102 Jamz and Othaz Records executive, announced the project, which aims to bring awareness to issues in the Middle East and to begin a peace process between the two cultures utilizing Hip-Hop music.“I am very excited about this project,” MC Serch told AllHipHop.com. “I am very proud of all of the artists that are involving their time and energy to talk about peace, talk about the importance of living together, being peaceful together, and coexisting together. Hopefully through hip-hop, our word and our music, we can spread a positive message that will be heard.”Rappers already attached to the project include Ill Bill, Yatty, Noose, Abnormal, Moxberg, whuthisname and others. DJ Waleed Coyote compared to album to 1990’s Stop The Violence Movement’s historic recording “Self Destruction.”According to DJ Waleed Coyote, a portion of the proceeds will go toward benefiting millions of children refugees in Palestine, Iraq and Israel and Lebanon, where millions more were recently displaced during a war between Israel and Lebanon-based political/religious group Hezbollah.DJ Waleed Coyote, born Waleed Hanhan, is particularly close to the situation because his father is Palestinian and his mother is Lebanese. The DJ lived in Lebanon until he was eight-years-old, when he moved to the United States.“I was a fan of 3rd Bass since I saw them as I was watching Yo! MTV Raps!” DJ Waleed Coyote told AllHipHop.com. “Their videos would play and I was a real fan. I always knew he was just like me, but he belongs to another religion and culture. And that religion and culture that I’m supposed to beef with. But there wasn’t any, it was like meeting a cousin, because we both love Hip-Hop. For me to be able to work with him was a big look and it’s something people really need. My father is still in Beirut to this day, and he [Serch] has people in Israel so with the situation going on it’s a big look.”Peace in the Middle East is scheduled to hit stores in 2007. For more information visit www.othaz.com.January 7, 2007 (Press Release) -- The EZ Peace Foundation has released the first track of the highly anticipated collaboration album --Peace in The Middle East--. The brainchild of Michael --MC Serch-- Berrin and Greensboro, North Carolina DJ Waleed Coyote. The song --Hung By The Noose-- was recorded by Walled Coyote and New Jersey based artist Noose. Noose a Sunni Muslim was outraged, as much of the world with the timing, raucous and sometimes out of control proceedings that resulted in Saddam's execution. A close member of the foundation stated --This is not a song so much about a protest to the execution of Saddam Hussein but the necessity of the Bush administration to use this event as a stepping stone against all tyrants across the globe--. The EZ Peace Foundation founders Waleed Coyote and Mazzi of Soul Purpose intend to promote world peace and dismantle crippling myths that revolve around Arab and Jewish relationships for peace in the middle east. By recording Jewish and Arab rappers from around the world the founders hope to ignite a humanitarian hip hop movement as oppose to another political front. Even at the time of this release Mazzi: a Shiite Muslim and international rap star Sneakas: a platinum selling Jewish rapper from Israel, are working on tracks for --The Peace in The Middle East-- collaboration cd. MC Serch has blessed the project with several hot tracks including --They Just Bombed Lebanon--, --God--s Will-- and --Time Will Tell--. Waleed stated --I am so excited and emotionally moved by the tremendous response to --Hung By The Noose-- and the discussions for peace it has initiated across the world wide web.-- Walled is not only an ambassador for peace but also the CEO of OTHAZ Records and will be releasing the album --2.3-- including the hit single --Bubble Gum-- featuring the smooth crooner Ricco Barrino and rapper Fabo of D4L. MC Serch also stated --The song is really dope-- and he too is busy getting ready for the premiere of his new show on VH1 called Ego Trip--s The (white) Rapper Show! on Monday January 8.
Myspace Layouts Sixshot Spinners: DJ E-Sudd Article by: Black widow At the young age of twenty years old High Point, North Carolina’s DJ E-Sudd is on his grind. Making a strong presence in the industry, DJ E-Sudd has already been featured on BET’s Rap City, has a rep as on of the main DJ’s in the state of North Carolina, and has great buzz and the streets always aware for his stellar mixtape series On My Grind. DJ E-Sudd has some major goals in his rise to being a premier DJ. One is to show the hip-hop world what the state of North Carolina has to offer in hip-hop. E-Sudd will definitely play his part in making that happen as he feels N.C. has next to current dominating southern states Florida, Georgia, Texas, and others below the Mason Dixon Line. It’s a saying that goes in the industry “It’s all about who you know”, but that has some exceptions as you can know somebody but it’s more of what they do for you too. In the case of DJ E-Sudd, he knew some people and while that was good he had to show and prove himself before anyone gave him a chance. DJ E-Sudd, you’re an upcoming DJ and the thing about it you’re an upcoming DJ out of the south and knowing that the south has the hip-hop scene on lock right now. How does it feel to be a DJ in your region having the game on lock? It feels good man, it’s just feels good knowing that you are a part of something. It’s feel good to be a part of this music scene and you know music makes the world go round. I’m just grinding everyday and I’m real hungry man. To be real I ain’t gonna call it on lock though man. I’m a say we in the process I ain’t gonna call it on lock right now, not yet. Your a busy dude, you throw the parties, the mixtapes, so what’s the daily day like for DJ E-Sudd? The daily day is just making moves man. If I’m not working on a mixtape I’m out in the streets grinding CD’s, by night time you can find me in the clubs doing multiple things from everything to the party scene man. I’m working on mixtapes trying to build with people doing my Internet promotions, and if I’m not doing that I’m in the club man. It’s always in music though man. It’s always music in which I’m thinking of ways to better myself and make more money for me. Let’s talk about your early days when you first started DJing, who was your main influence and how did this person help you get to who you are today? The first person would be DJ Smooth, then from DJ Smooth I’m ended up running into Waleed Coyote of 102 Jamz (Radio station in Greensboro, North Carolina). He introduced me to the right people and he got much love at the radio on 102 Jamz. Just linking up with him and he introduced me to the right people, the right DJ’s, the right personalities, club-owners, and everything else. He really helped me a whole lot and played a big role in that. Waleed definitely showed mad love man. You have a lot of upcoming DJ’s and what makes you stand out is that you have a lot of clout in the industry where you know a lot of artist in which they have a lot of love for you. Can you tell a lot of upcoming DJ’s how important it is to build relationships? It’s very important to build relationships and when you build relationships it’s the best thing to do as far as my future. That’s why I stay real humble and it takes me real far. I show the artist love and of course they gotta show the DJ’s love back. I think the artists show me love, because I’m a real humble dude and I’m always about my business at the end of the day. That’s the main thing to definitely be in touch with the artists and definitely make sure the artists know who you are. Make sure the people know who you are, stay humble, and keep grinding. Speaking on your earlier DJing days did you have a hard time working the turn tables? To be real man I had the turn tables and I had the CD player. At first I wouldn’t even consider myself a DJ, I was more like a damn button-pusher one of those cats that just dropped a track. It wasn’t until like two, three years ago I actually realized all the mixing, all the scratching, and that’s when Waleed starting introducing me to the DJ’s. That’s when I started going up to the station and actually seeing the art of DJing. The mixing, the scratching, the personality you gotta have it’s more than just dropping tracks and making sure people have a good time. I wouldn’t say I found it difficult, because I been a musician all my life so it pretty much came natural. I definitely haven’t perfected it yet, it’s gonna take a few years to do that. I’m all about bettering myself and that’s what I’m doing now. A lot of artists don’t realize how important is the DJ, they think a music executive will give them a chance hearing their music before the DJ, so tell the people out there why the DJ is important to hip-hop? It’s pretty much self-explanatory that’s the only way you going to get your records heard. You gotta stay in touch with the DJ’s, the DJ’s maybe the most important people in the game. We in the clubs, we on the mixtapes, we on the radio, we in the streets, we everywhere. Holla at the DJ’s man, the radio can show some love for you, but at the end of the day it’s the DJ’s that run the radio station. The people have some say so, but at the end of the day it’s the DJ’s that run the radio station, the mixtape game, DJ’s run a lot of things. You already know the DJ is very important in the game. You have a lot of big time DJ’s in the game right now in which you are on your way to. You have Khaled, Drama, the list goes on so what it would take for you to get to that level? Consistent grinding man, I respect all those cats to the fullest. I respect them to the fullest, but I can never level myself to say that they gonna be the best forever. It’s a time for everybody and right now it’s their time. It’s a lot of other cats that’s on top that you might not heard about, but right now they doing they thing, they linked up with the right people, they got they city, they state, they got they people behind them. Like I said I respect them to the fullest, but once this North Carolina movement pops off you already know what it is man. Right now Atlanta, Florida, Houston they doing their thing, but North Carolina is coming for them man. Being from North Carolina how would you describe the North Carolina hip-hop scene and why it’s so hard coming out of that state alone? We got some spitters in Carolina first of all, we got some spitters in Carolina, we got some singers, Carolina is full of talent but cats ain’t working together. Atlanta they working together, DJ Khaled like he said he’s all about the unity and them cats is working together. The Teamsterz we all about unity as well, we got Brandon Dee, Tigo B, the list goes on with hot spitters from Carolina. I guess radio plays a part in that, DJ’s play a part in that, Small World (signed with DTP) is doing his thing right now in which his video "Mr. Magnificent" just debuted on 106 & Park two days back. Petey Pablo had people listening, but he ain’t carry it like he could’ve been carrying it. It’s our job now as the new generation and I’m a make sure I play my part that Carolina finally gets heard and puts everybody on the map. I remember when I first heard about you holding it down here at North Carolina A&T State University. I remember hearing about you being that dude that was on “Rap City” so how did you end up on there in the first place? It’s another time to bring up my man Waleed. I definitely showed Waleed love big up to him, Othaz Records, and 102 Jamz. He introduced me to the right people, made things happen, and it was all love. I’ve been on there twice, the first time was when Lil Wayne was in the building and the second time it was me and Q45 on there. It was love both times, but yeah it was Waleed with the right people. They saw the grind, they loved the image, the swag, and everything then it was a done deal. So are we going to look forward to seeing you on Rap City more often? Ya’ll gona look forward to a whole week of DJ E-Sudd on Rap City and that’s coming up real soon. You can look forward to a whole week of DJ E-Sudd and DJ Cuttz, my man from Winston Salem State. He from Charlotte, N.C. 704 stand up. Look forward to a whole week of North Carolina DJ’s coming real soon. I listened to a few of your mixtapes, because you know you showed Street Knowledge Entertainment some love too. One thing I noticed that you represent all the time is The Teamsterz Music Group. Let the readers of Sixshot.com know what that whole movement is and how it started? Teamsterz Music Group started in the New Jersey and Philly area. My man DJ Shizz, DJ Casper, DJ Paperz big shout to all them it’s a lot of DJ’s with it man. Basically what it was is that I had a fall-out with an old DJ squad I was with no love lost, but on my way to bigger and better things I decided to team up with Teamsterz Music Group. We brought the north and the south together on the DJ tip and that’s what it was. That’s all on the strength of my man DJ Paperz I’m sure you heard of him. DJ Paperz introduced me to the people up north he was dealing with his cousin DJ Shizz who originated The Teamsterz. and we doing some things right now man. We definitely doing some things making some noise with Teamsterz Music Group, Teamster DJ’s, and that’s what it is right now man. We got the clubs and everything on lock in the north in Jersey and Philly, and I’m doing my job to get things done in North Carolina. Shout out to Philly that’s my hometown! On the music side of things what does it take for an artist to get DJ E-Sudd to play a certain record. What do you look for? You gotta come with some good material, a good attitude, and show me your grinding. That’s one reason why I show your man Trel Mack and Street Knowledge Entertainment love. He gives me good quality music, on top of that it sounds good with studio quality, and everything on top of that. He spits some hot rhymes and everything so I gotta show him love. He’s been on like maybe 3 or four of my mixtapes and he’s on the upcoming On My Grind Vol. 8 hosted by my man M.O.S. (Money Over Sex). He got a track on there “Heart of Philadelphia”, I definitely show love to him. It’s a lot of unsigned artists that I show love to. That’s all it takes is good quality music and that they are grinding. What made you call yourself DJ E-Sudd? My name is Erik Sudderth so it’s pretty self-explanatory. In summer camp and in school it was a few Erik’s, but to separate me from the rest everybody just called me Sudd and I went ahead then made it DJ E-Sudd. It ain’t a complicated name, but it’s as simple as that. My first name Eric my last name Sudderth, set it up it’s DJ E-Sudd man. You have a lot of mixtape series in the game right now, especially being a DJ because every DJ has their own specific title for their series. What is it about the “On My Grind Series” that’s killing the streets right now? On My Grind is the truth. I’m on my grind so why not put out a CD to let people know I’m on my grind. It just added to the movement, and On My Grind is for all the artists on their grind. It’s for everybody on their grind, I don’t care how far you are, how far you say your are you are on your grind. Any DJ can tell you that if they about their business, any artist can tell you that, anybody. It don’t matter what you doing you grinding. Whatever you out doing to better yourself you grinding. I’m on my grind 24/7 that’s why I got the mixtape “On My Grind”, ya feel me. DJ E-Sudd I appreciate you for showing love on Sixshot.com. Throw out that MySpace and give a shout out to all the readers and fans out there. Shout-out to everybody, www.myspace.com/djesudd. Make sure you add me, add me to ya top. Big shout out to Teamster DJ’s, Street Knowledge Entertainment, North Carolina, South Carolina, the whole east coast and everybody making moves. Look-out for DJ E-Sudd in a club or city near you. This interview was conducted and written for Sixshot.com by Quinton Hatfield.