Ari Lesser - Hanukkah Hip Hop

Connect with me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arithemc Download this song at: http://arithemc.bandcamp.com/track/hanukkah Happy Hanukkah! Chanukkah Ari Lesser 12/7/12 Chanukkah just ain't what used to be Cause some Jews got jealous of the Christmas Tree Spent all their money on a shopping spree Trying to be like the people they see on TV Don't let yourself forget history Knowledge is key, to set your mind free Just open a book look back and see What a really meant to be a Maccabee Over two thousand years ago it began When the Greeks marched on the Holy Land They demanded the Jews lose their tradition And those who refused were beat to submission They conquered our country from west to east Banned every festival, fast, and feast Burned non-kosher beasts on the altar, the least Righteous man paid a bribe so they made him High Priest Every scroll of the Torah they saw was burned Along with the teachers and students who learned If they found out a circumcision was done They'd slaughter the mother along with her son Back then we could not rest on Shabbat And those kept kosher were killed on the spot Making us break our diet by taking The life of those who would not eat bacon The set up their idols in every town And told all the Jews around to bow down Most people obeyed trying to stay intact But the Maccabees rose up and fought back Chanukkah just ain't what used to be Cause some Jews got jealous of the Christmas Tree Spent all their money on a shopping spree Trying to be like the people they see on TV Don't let yourself forget history Knowledge is key, to set your mind free Just open a book look back and see What a really meant to be a Maccabee When they told a man named Matisiyahu To bow to an idol in public view Not only did he refuse, he slew Some Jew who did what they told him to do Then he fled to the wilderness and led An army of rebels who liked what he said They rose and stood to fight for what's good Waging guerilla warfare in the woods He had five sons named Yochanan Shimon, Yehudah, Elazar, Yonantan When their father passed, they vowed to fight on Until they were dead or the Greeks were gone Like a Hebrew hammer the Maccabees hit Hellenists so hard that their army split Made them run and hide, with G-d on their side Retook the Temple had it purified They only found enough oil to light The Holy Menorah for a single night But then a great miracle changed their fate And the lamps all burned for eight days straight Chanukkah just ain't what used to be Cause some Jews got jealous of the Christmas Tree Spent all their money on a shopping spree Trying to be like the people they see on TV Don't let yourself forget history Knowledge is key, to set your mind free Just open a book look back and see What a really meant to be a Maccabee They risked their lives to fight assimilation But now Chanukkah's just a cheap imitation Of some other foreign nation's celebration That falls on a similar calendar location The hocus pocus made you lose focus You broke all the rules acting like Antiochus Drinking eggnog like a hog till you get sick Making your potato pancakes from Bisquick You light the Menorah, but you don't study Torah Cause your running like Lot after Sodom and Gomorrah No Divine presence all from Walmart So you still feel empty when you fill up your cart If your great granddad saw that Chanukkah bush You would get no gift just pach on the tush Cause this holiday's not about buying stuff It's to teach that a little bit's more than enough Doesn't really matter if you're losing or winning All you need is a dreidel to keep on spinning Fry up feast bring your family near And steer clear of the cashier this year Chanukkah just ain't what used to be Cause some Jews got jealous of the Christmas Tree Spent all their money on a shopping spree Trying to be like the people they see on TV Don't let yourself forget history Knowledge is key, to set your mind free Just open a book look back and see What a really meant to be a Maccabee