Ari Goldwag on Music, Faith, Aliyah & the Times of Mashiach - Living Inspired

[music] Welcome to this podcast from Hidab Brut. I'm here with my special honored guest uh Ari Goldwag. For those who don't know, he is an accomplished songwriter, composer, singer who lives in Raape Chameish. Rabbi Ari Goldwag, welcome. >> Thank you, Arin. How you doing? >> I'm doing great. Bashem, so I'm excited to have you on. I chased you for probably three or four months to get you and you just got back from America. So, I'm very grateful that you were able to find this time to do this interview. Um, if there's probably nobody in the Jewish religious world who hasn't heard of you, who hasn't listened to your songs, myself personally, not a Shabas goes by where I don't sing your karibone. And a lot of our listeners perhaps don't know where you came from. So perhaps you could share with us who is Ari Goldwag. Take it away. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. Uh first of all, thanks for having me. I'm honored [snorts] that you I'm honored that you chased me for that long. >> I I admire your persistence. Um and uh um as far as my background, okay, so so I grew up I was born in upstate New York. uh grew up in Ellenville to the age of five. Ellenville, New York and uh my parents moved to West Hemstead on the it was kind of on the uh on the way to Erit Israel. That was how they viewed it. They you know West Hemstead in Long Island, New York is a uh community of people who at the time could be still today are interested in Arts Israel. they're Zionistic. They headed towards Israel and um my parents had made aliyah actually for nine months in in 1981 when I was a very little kid which I don't directly recall but it definitely implanted in me uh a powerful desire to want to be here and as a little kid I said to remember uh it's I have a an a yearbook from my nursery school and they asked each kid if you could go anywhere in the world where would you want to go? So, most of the little 5-year-olds said Disneyland, uh, Florida, uh, you know, and I said I wanted to go to Israel. So, that was something that, yeah, my parents did something, you know, right, [snorts] uh, from but, but as I'll explain a little bit, you know, it goes back really to my grandparents and my great-grandparents. Um, but I'll give you a little forward history and then a little back history. So I lived in uh Long Island for the next 15 years. Uh I went to the Hebrew Academy of Nassau County, Hank, and I went to Yeshua Farakaway in 10th grade through 30 race me. Uh 3 years post high school and um all the while I was making music. I started making music from a very young age, composing from the age of 10. I was in a choir, Miami Boy Choir, which uh recently got some acclaim with their song Shalim. And uh yeah, so I was in that choir till the age of almost 15 and I was making up songs, creating music and uh made up a song called Kibo which she mentioned which today is sung in sh people don't even know where the song is from. Some people say that the person who wrote Karibon was actually from Aza. He was a a great rabbi, >> right? The the lyrics of the song of Karibon. Yes. Written by Ris Jara who was buried in Aza. And um so I was za to team up with Gaza to to make up this. >> Exactly. There we got our political uh message inside of our our our uh life story video. I love it. >> Yeah, for sure. Right away. you got to get it in. Um, but really it's it was my my grandparents had uh moved actually to Palestine in the 30s before the establishment of the state. Um, and my great-grandparents. My my Saba Yoseph, my great-grandfather, his name is Yose Vietkand. So, he's actually buried, him and his wife Raul are buried in Caraba, which is in the north, uh, near Kyifa. And uh so they they were also strong Zionists. It was like very much in my in my blood. And uh my Bubby and Zadi had made aliyah. They actually ended up moving to America in the ' 40s. And uh but there was always this very strong uh Zionistic sense. My I have an uncle my uncle Mish uh he's in his 80s. He he lives in Stro actually. And he uh he moved here in the '60s and uh my parents were visiting in the 70s and in the 80s and I came actually with the Miami Boys Choir in the '90s. uh did did some shows singing here in Israel been in other places and um ultimately I I think that there was just a sense like um partly partly like just in my guts but I've always had a sense like we're in a major um turning point in history we are you know people talk about Msiah is coming the footsteps of the Messiah I don't know I was just talking to somebody about I said I don't think that are in the footsteps. I think we're actually in the age already. I think we're already I'm saying 100 years ago there was maybe 30,000 Jews in Israel. People don't know the this kind of information. Um today there's over 7.7 million Jews in Israel. You know, people if you kind of take a little bit of a look at a purview of what's going on, kind of hard to I mean, you have to really lie to yourself to not see that something's going on. And um you know, very much because of that. And um in in 2000 we we I came to learn in Israel but I I discussed with my parents about buying a one-way ticket. I didn't but um you know that was that was on the table. Um and ultimately I did I met my wife here. My wife's originally from Seattle but she also had a strong uh background of wanting to live in Israel. And um we've had all of our kids here. I have seven kids and uh we've they've all grown up here. They're American Israelis and uh you know we're here. Thank God we love it. Wouldn't Wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Well, for the past 15 years um I've got to know you since we did I think the last video we did together actually got 1.9 million views. And it wasn't because of me. I was fixing your car in [laughter] video. Hashem loves you. Right. >> Yeah. Yes. You called me up one day and you said, "Aaron, you got you got a few cars. We're gonna we're gonna do it. We're gonna do Hashem loves you video." And I remember I got out of work, but I got to know you. I was your neighbor for probably 8 to 10 years when we lived on Les and we ded in the same show. You >> even you even bought a car for me if we if and and picked it up if you remember the black Prius. >> Oh yeah. The That's right. And that car is actually by my parents in the old city. My parents live in the old city. And when I got my next car, I decided I'm going to take that car. I'm going to give it to my mother. And uh it's just sits in the parking lot, but it's [laughter] okay. >> I still never parted from your car. I totally forgot about that. That's correct. >> But I can't I can never forget seeing you on Arab Shabas or even on Shabas just walking down the center of the street singing on the top of your lungs without a care in the world. Um, and it's always brought joy to me to see how much joy you have living in Eritis and you if you're like you're an inspiration. You know, a good part of the year is when we can only play acap ac cappella music. Is it ac capella or ac capella? I don't I'm not sure. And for those of you who don't know, um, >> Ari is probably or for sure makes the most amount the most the the best music and the most amount of music for ac cappella. >> So basically we have the these two time periods in on the Jewish calendar which are times of mourning or sadness. One for the students of Rebika who died and one for the time when the the Bamish the temple was destroyed. And uh so we like kind of step back from the regular music that makes us joyous and happy and and we kind of get a little bit laidback with what we call vocal music, which is just voices. And um actually the that Hashem loves you video that we did together, Aaron, was was vocal. It was all uh it was all just voices. >> How did we miss that? >> Yeah, I I'll have to go back after the video. I'm going to take a look at Hashem loves you. I I I honestly don't believe you, but I I'm sure you're correct. Yes. But it's just so powerful. >> And basically for the last 13 well, it was since 2012, that was the first year I put out an ac capella album. So basically almost every year I put out one if not two ac capella albums uh for that for that Kufa and for that time period. And and then basically the the it plays on the radio a lot. I mean, every third or fourth song on the Israeli radio on the religious stations, uh, is going to be a song that I've done. Um, I'll often cover popular songs, do some of my own songs, and, um, but it's but it's a it's a nice little niche that, uh, Hashem was able to fill when I'm doing a capella track. So what I'm doing is I'm I am creating a a kind of fundamental uh foundation of the of the sound of the music which is going to be reminiscent of the original track. Let's say like if the if there's an introduction to a track let's say Ishtikva uh it's a song of mine that I I composed for for Benny Freeman. So I did an a capella version of that song. So the song starts. So you're going to hear hear a lot of elements that are going to be, you know, reminiscent of the original. That's the melody. That's that's the tune that you hear at the beginning of the song in the original. So you'll hear uh it's more of a synthesizer, like a keyboard that's making those sounds. And in the in the vocal version, so you're going to hear my voice singing that sound. Uh there's a bass going. So in the original, it's it's a bass. That's the guitar that's being played by a musician. And then in my version, I'm actually singing it like I just did. Um, [snorts] so we're going to we're going to lay down stuff that sounds similar to music, but it's not really. Um, it's it's nice. It's good, but it's not. You know what I'm saying? I wouldn't personally I don't prefer to listen to the vocal stuff during the year. I like the the full sound of the different instruments and the strings, the guitars and the and the trumpets or the saxophones, the flutes, whatever, you know, whichever. or the synthesizers if it's more of a an electronic arrangement, but uh but yeah, you could confuse them, but not really. [gasps] >> Okay. So, uh I guess I won't be your music teacher, but maybe tell us who your music teacher was and uh how you I mean became one of the most accomplished composers today in Jewish music. >> Okay. So, I definitely learned a lot from Yra Bean. Rakh was the is the leader of the choir of Mammy boy choir and uh you know he was he was a person who not only for me uh taught a lot of music but also was a very a from person a religious person a spiritual person who always was trying to incorporate into his music good messages something inspiring something spiritual so I got from him first a certain musicality someone actually said to me I don't remember who it was someone said oh you know your music reminds me of Miami Boys Choir. And I said, "That's that's probably the best compliment you could possibly give me because I absolutely, you know, I love his style and his uh his type of melody." >> How many years were you with Miami? You were five, six years. >> Yeah. So, I came into the choir in 1988 when I was 9 years old. Now, you know how old I am. And uh and I left the choir in early '94. I was almost 15. So, I was there for 5 and a half years. And um and I was really immersed. I was really immersed in that music and his in his songs and performing. >> Was your There was a viral soloist that you had. There was one song. I can't remember it. As soon as you start, I'll know exactly what it is. What was >> Yeah. I mean, there was a few there was a few. I mean, I sang there was a bunch of At that time there was no uh Jewish music videos. There was no uh YouTube. Uh but what there was and he basically innovated it was the was these Jewish videos that VHS videos uh that people had in their homes and it was called the Miami Experience and there were five big shows. I was in three of them basically as a as a singer. And in the second show I did the song and uh I did that song [snorts] and there was a bunch of other solos. It's >> remember that song look recognition. That was you when everybody when you heard that song it's minim was >> wow >> no that was a lot of the the music in my in my guts was was beun I loved in my parents house we loved m David we listened to him when I became a teenager I was listening to freed and to I mean the regular uh music yasi green his the you know his compositions and AB rottenberg we always loved you know Journeys and Vegas and all that kind of uh emotive uh beautiful deep music and um I wouldn't say there was anyone that specifically taught me music but I I I got into my guts all that stuff and I was I was copying stuff. I was like playing with a keyboard and I was re re trying to figure out the parts and the pieces and the arrangements like which instrument was doing which thing when I was a teenager. So, I got a lot of that like foundation just from just from taking stuff apart, figuring stuff out. And then when it came to making music, it was just like it was pouring out of me. Especially when I was a bucker, when I was young, before I was married, I was just like making I have tapes and tapes and tapes of songs. Just making up songs, making up songs. Curry was one of those songs on the tape next to two other songs that are just terrible. There was there was good songs and there was [snorts] you know you got to make I always say you have to make up a hundred songs to find one really good song. But uh >> wow the song yushim and I'm not a singer so I'm not going to pretend to sing it but maybe you could tell us it's the one that you say yushim like six times on a different tones and then >> exactly that's the song. I don't want to embarrass myself by singing because I'm not sing. [laughter] >> But maybe please tell us about that song because that song affected and touched many many people. Jerusalem is on everybody's hearts especially >> today more than ever since October 7th. The whole hearts of the Jewish nation has turned and of the world. the whole world started looking like we say in Isaiah uh Isaiah 52:10 that God slowly reveals his arm uh and in front of all all the Gim and all the nations of the world see God and witness the miracles. So tell us what inspired you to write that song and where you wrote it and what it means to us and to you. Thank you. >> Okay, sure. So Balim is a very precious song to me. It's a very special song to me. Um, you know, one of the things I struggle with as a composer is like you you want to make something that's it's it's an art. You know, you want to make something that's artistic and you want to make something that's beautiful. And I mean, Curry Bon is a prime example of a song that I made up that was very simple and so simple and beautiful and it just caught on. [snorts] And so this is kind of like a struggle between making something that's commercial, something that people just like kind of ear candy, something that people will pick up very quickly versus making up a song that's a little bit more complicated or a little bit more in this song is like an example of a song where I did something very simple that section which you mentioned. It's like that part is very simple, but then there's other parts of the song which are are more like um complicated and more u uh you know just different and and I mean the story behind the song really is that I I had at at that time I haven't really been so much connected to him recently with the Yanuka. So >> right. >> Yeah. Uh no. >> Oh. Okay. >> So So he had So I I was I became interested in him. I had a friend who was going to see him and I heard that he also does a lot of he does music himself and he's a tremendous knows crazy amounts of Tyra. He makes sum all of the Tyra twice a year. He's he's a very special person and he has has a certain power in his braas. And um and I wanted to I just wanted to go see him. I wanted to meet him and um it's a a little bit of a complicated story. The first time I went, I wasn't able to get in. It was a a long a long wait to see him and then the second time that I went so I I um one of the gabo one of the people who uh is is around him. So he I started talking to him and I was like, "Yeah, Mari Goldwag this song, Karimon and whatever." And he's like, "Oh, wow." So this guy was very impressed. He brought me, you know, over to Rev to to the Yanuka to Rav Beer and and uh he because he's also a musical. He's also a musician, I think. I don't know. Yeah. Yeah, he plays. So, so I said, "Give me a braha. I should make up some good songs." You know, he gave me a really nice braha, a nice blessing. And he said, "You should make up lots of good songs." And and it ended up being that I I after that I made up like a whole I just like I don't usually I haven't done it in a long time. or when I was young just like pour out song just like start composing one song after a song after song right at right right at that time this is this is I think when was it two three years ago I don't remember exactly at this point but um so I started making up like tons of songs and then I was sitting what what I would do is I would take my guitar and I go out there right near right near uh where we live in Rape Shamesh so there's uh beautiful hills and um there's lots of scenic locations there's a place called Kurvat Kanut Yes, I I visit there many times. Great place for meditation. It's >> Yeah, it's beautiful there. So, especially in the winter when when everything is green and the and you see these the valleys and the mountains, it's just beautiful. So I went there with the guitar and I went walking and I found a spot which is just overlooking a scenic view and I started making up the song and the song just poured out [singing] and it's just about how uh you know the Jewish people are going to come back at the end of days. We're going to return from Assyria. we're going to return from Egypt, which is really the Mitzim Egypt is a is a reference to all of the Arab countries cuz Yeshal came from uh his mother was Hugger who was an Egyptian woman. We're going to come back from the Arab countries. You're going to come back from the from the west and we're going to come back and we're going to bow down to Hashem. We're going to serve God on the holy mountain in Jerusalem in Ushaleim. And um so not long after that, so I I actually um I had made up the song. It was in my head and I and I ended up back by the Anuka and he was making assume only on like two uh two dorm of shas you know only uh only you know >> only >> yeah by us. So, so and then he was playing the keyboard and I said, "Could I can I sing the Reva a song?" And I started playing the song and he like started playing along with me and he loved the song and he ended up learning the song and actually in the video that I did for the song which is basically in you see you know you see the you see Arabias and you see all these views of Jerusalem. Um but at the very beginning you see and at the end you see him playing the the Anuka playing with me um at that event um playing the song which he he told me later I saw him on some PES in he said that uh the whole time he was there he was just singing that song over and over again so he connected to it and [snorts] it had an impact. >> Okay. So we we're you're in Israel you're producing music and you also started something else. uh you started giving over a shir every week on the para giving over a class and your classes I've don't I don't listen to all of them but when I have the time and and I I I want something sweet and I want something beautiful and I want something deep and I want something meaningful I always can count on you because you know there's there's a lot of different YouTubers there's people who can sell you the par show who could tell you the par show all different things but I've there's your um your delicate, beautiful way, loving way. I think the the passion in in your message is always always astounds me. So maybe you could tell us how you started giving over weekly portions and like what it means to you and like how has this changed people and tell us tell us about this project. >> Sure. Sure. So I started doing it a little over 18 years ago. Um it was 2006. Um and there was this new thing. There was something there was this um platform called iTunes and um maybe you've heard of it. And they had just started this new thing called podcasts. It was like nobody was nobody was no one was doing it yet. Um no one even knew what the word podcast meant, let alone what a podcast was. And [snorts] um but I saw I saw there's like all of these podcasts and they had sections on iTunes for for Christianity, for Islam, and for Judaism, and the stuff that was in the Judaism se section was not very Jewish. Um and I'm like, oh, you know, I I had seen I had opportunities in the in the past to to speak in public and um and I had seen that I was good at it. I could do it. You know, I guess it comes with being a performer. You know, you can sing, you can speak. It's not they're not far apart. So, uh, so I was like, hey, why don't I, uh, why don't I give it a whirl and see what happens? And I started just like producing these podcasts. They started off 10, 15 minutes, pretty short. By this time, 18 years later, they're all about a half an hour. But, uh, yeah, I have a lot a lot to say. So, so basically, I started off doing it. A lot of the stuff was actually based originally on like Rav Victor Miller and different like little tidbits of information on the para and then as the years progressed so so I started to just be more interested in deeper ideas like makava and medish and like just different uh sources are more maybe sometimes cabalistic sometimes sometimes just just deeper just like just like uh analyzing the para looking at it uh from a deeper perspective, but not just that, but also like trying to trying to find like a Muser message, like something that what's how's this going to affect my life? Cuz it's very nice to to learn the para is very nice to learn some kind of teaching, but like it's got to change me. Like it's got to it's got to talk to me. It's got to make me a better person. I got to end up as a better husband, as a better father, as a better uh son to my parents, you know, I got it's got to affect me. So that's that's what I'm that's what I've been really trying to do from the beginning and that's what I've been doing, you know. down [snorts] to today. Um I had an opportunity actually in 2018 was it 2017 or 2018 actually took a number of my shirum and and created a book out of them. The book was called perfectly imperfect and kind of stylized in a like a personal growth kind of like how can we take these concepts and incorporate them and and become better people because of it. And and over the years I've just had um a ton I mean so much feedback. People listen I I you can see the stats on your YouTube. I know like my my my D tour get a few hundred uh views a week and it's probably about 100 people watching it till the end on a half an hour podcast. So that's that's like I mean you know Aren what it means to to have people watching how long they watch or whatever. Uh so that's that's >> Yeah. If you're still watching hit that like button, hit the subscribe button, right? You gotta say that. Okay. >> Yeah, for sure. >> Brute podcast. Okay. >> Yeah. Yeah. So, so I've been doing that and and um just just there's been, you know, people have been impacted by people have been changed by people have uh people have become Jewish because of it or have become uh more more religious because of it. I've gotten all kinds of uh interesting feedback from people. Um, and and it's kind of interesting because from my music, you know, people people recognize me for my music. My my music videos have millions of views and u >> 35 million. >> Oh, okay. >> I checked. >> Who's counting? Who's counting? So the the music video, but that includes my Dora videos also. >> Oh, so so then it's only like one million music videos, right? [laughter] >> Yeah. But uh you know when I go to let's say the hotel on a shabas or something people recognize me. They recognize me from the music. But actually the best the best compliments that I get are when people say oh yeah I listen to your deta. They're really inspiring. They really move me. Like that's that's always the best cuz I feel like like for me to communicate something through a song is cool. It's powerful. It can make you happy. Can lift up your day. There's you know there's definitely something to or like which is moving can move you. But like to to get across a message that actually says something that actually communicates something that actually like changes you like that to me is is is even more powerful. So that's that's basically it. It's it's an unbelievable time we live in that we're able to you know sit in and be able to from Zion comes out the Torah and it literally is happening um when you when you talk your your Torah. So I I've heard you say so many times that we need to read the Tanakh. We need to learn learn the Tanakh. The Tanakh is uh the the prophets are not learned enough. And I had on Rabbi Singer and we discussed so many prophecies and actually I spoke with him last night and he he asked you know we talked more about Tanakh in our next upcoming interview with Rabbi Singer and I wanted to know if you could tell us about um your you know how Tanakh uh changed for you once you came to Eritis and relearned Tanakh. Maybe you could tell us uh or maybe it didn't you tell me. Well, I can tell you this. First of all, I'm not like currently actively learning Tanakh. Um, I have I have learned it through. There are there are certain sections that I relate to, especially the prophecies that you're talking about about Msiah and the Messianic Age. That's, you know, one of the podcast series that I've done is a whole series on Msiah. Um, I also have a series on which is faith in God. Um, and I mean all of those sections of of the are just incredible to see because like you see it just unfolding. It's going to be that they're going to be old people and young people in the in the streets of Jerusalem and the children are going to be playing again and it's like it's like two thou two 2500 years ago uh you know statements that were made that 2,000 years ago seemed just impossible and it's just right in front of our eyes. There it is. It's like literally happening and it's my kids and your kids are and playing in the streets of Jerusalem, you know, it's like incredible. It's unbelievable. >> Literally. Yeah. >> And Yeah. And so there's like all these things are unfolding and then >> um I know you talk about Isaiah 52 and 54. I actually one of my favorites is Isaiah 60 which is where it's kumi kumi uh kumi that rise and shine for your light has come. like that chapter is like incredible and there's there's mages there on that and talking about how how Messiah is going to do certain things and he's going to battle with Iran Paras and he's going to and it's going to be they're going to try to destroy the world and it's going to it's like a whole a lot of stuff the the [snorts] light is shining and and uh you know it's all over it's all over the world but it's all over Tanakh and so when you see like these prophecies that are word for word literally occurring unfold folding in our times. It's like it's just mind-blowing. It's like you can't if God said this, it's like it's like said to the when he when he looked out at at the Harab which was destroyed when he saw the temple mount in a state of destruction. He's like they were all crying but he was laughing cuz cuz he could see that if it could go into a state of destruction which had also been prophesied prophesied. So then so so it's going to have that it's going to have that future of being rebuilt and and we can definitely laugh because we're we're like looking at all of these prophecies literally unfolding in front of our eyes. It's incredible. >> This week actually this morning I read from the Torah in synagogue. There was no one else to read. They asked me to read the Torah on Mondays and Thursdays. We read the Torah in synagogue and we read the portion of the following week. So we read over there from Genesis 28:10 uh actually 28:16 where Jacob wakes from his slumber and he says could there have been God in this place and I didn't know and maybe you could close us out. We have four minutes left. If you can close us out with just on that thought like are we asleep? Are we Jacob who's sleeping in the holiest place and not realizing it? Maybe talk about that and lead us out with a braha prayer for everybody. Thank you so much. >> Okay. Sure. Yeah. So actually in that in that um madrish on Isaiah 60. So it says there that and it's it's a song actually David sings a song. So right it says that in the time it's a prediction. Our sages had prophecy as well. 2,000 years ago they wrote this prediction that when the Messiah is going to come. So there's going to be a temple. It's going to be on the mount on the on the harbas on the temple mount and Mashiach himself the Messiah is going to stand on the temple and he's going to he's going to call out to the Jews. Oh humble ones you're the time of your redemption has arrived and if you don't believe me look at the light that's been shining. It's actually past tense. Look at the light that's been shining >> right and and it's like a very it's like almost stunning like what is he saying? He's Messiah the Messiah himself. He's standing on the temple and the Jews are still living in in Kutzares. They're still somewhere in America. They're still in Europe and they haven't yet come like and he's announcing I'm here. Hi, I'm here. If you don't believe me, look at the light that's been shining. But but uh I like to say the I think the is I think it's pushup. I think it's the simple understanding that it could be right in front of you. It could be literally you could be sleeping on the space. You could be you could have fallen asleep at the Western Wall while you're praying and and you wake up and the entire place is full and you suddenly realize, "Oh my god, we're like living already in the times of the Messiah. We're already there. Messiah is right in front of us. The Jewish people have returned 7.7 million strong. It seems impossible, but it's but here it is. Look, the the the angels are going up and they're coming down. They're filling up this space with with Judaism, with life, with spirituality, with a connection to God. It's right here. It's right in front of us. I didn't know. I didn't know. I didn't realize it. I didn't open my eyes. I just got to wake up. There it is. So beautiful. So beautiful. Thank you everybody for watching this Hidabroot podcast. Thank you Ari for taking the time. Uh maybe lead us out with a braha. Uh and um thank you all for watching. >> Sure. I would like to bless you all. Aaron, I bless you. >> Amazing. >> As you bless me, [snorts] Hashem should help us that we should be able indeed to see this light. Hashem should help us. God should help us to to see the amazing light that he's shining down into the world. Sometimes the light comes down with some challenges. And we're all experiencing those challenges. Hashem should help us get through these challenges. God should help us to to experience and feel and sense this light and should just shine out from Jerusalem to the entire world. >> Amen. Thank you so much, Ari. It was fun to do. We have to do this again. >> Um >> and uh until next time.