DAMOJO Spotlight: Yaakov Shwekey

Hello everyone. I'm privileged today to be sitting with the one and only Yakob Schweki who was gracious enough to open up his home to discuss his recent book that came out through Art Scroll. I'm sure by now you've heard of it. It's been a bestseller for the past few months. Um, >> thank you so much. >> There's really so much to talk about, so much to really discuss, but just in a in a simple nutshell, how did this book come about? You've been singing for 20 25 years and now why now to first write a book specifically on >> I wish everything was as simple and in a nutshell but there's so many so many different journeys of life that takes you to so many different things especially in music you have certain inspirations that happen as you go through life and as you see what the community needs as you see what the nation needs and as I got through music through the years I realized first of all a tremendous responsibility and that we're not so much in the quote unquote entertainment business. That's not where I wanted to be in life. I wanted to be in a situation where the music really has an effect and inspires people. Of course, the dancing, the happiness, the joy is the key. But with that comes great messages and great inspiration within the music. And I saw that people connect to it in our community of course and also around the world connect to music in a way that they rely on you to be the source of inspiration in their religion and in their connect. A lot of people didn't grow up religious and a lot of people feel that even a song like that they sing at the is something that's a lot more spiritual and something that really connects them to and connects them to you know real happiness of life in general. So as I went on in the years and after my parents passed away recently I said I want to do a project that Israel really needs. What do they really need? We did songs about so many different topics as you know we are a miracle and cry no more which by the way was done in this room in my house in the living room as you see the beautiful white snow and everything is is peaceful around here hashem and we did all those songs and I said what does and I realized even through my own children that ziro Shabbat and singing on Shabbat is such a crucial it's such a crucial aspect of our connection and the tranquility of Shabbat that I want to do something for the entire nation and I decided to embark with my friend Israel Besser with arts growd lots and his great team I'm friendly brother Gdali for a bunch of years now I said you know what the book we should be writing is a book that not only translates the songs that we sing but also gives a background of the inspiration behind Shabbat and what we're doing also obviously the stories I write in there it's called reflections where I write my my personal reflections through the years. So I feel that this book and this entire music, we did medley's throughout the whole Shabbat. Of course, we got to pmon, so not to worry. So the SY community that's watching now, >> I know it says the music of Shabas, but I meant Shabbat. >> They're waiting for part two to come out. >> Part two, we got to hear Shabbat. [laughter] But I got to tell you, Joe, when I came out with with Herzog wines when we did the song, I said for sure, truth is the Syrians say Shabbat. I'm not sure if this is a song for them. Meanwhile, the Syrians were the first ones to ask me in concerts why I'm not singing that song. So, I realize that they know what we're saying when we say Shabas. But Shabas is for the entire world. But also, Shabbat is is a place where you want to connect through Shabbat. And how do you do that? You read about it. You understand it. What are we saying shalom? Who are we saying shalom to the angels? What kind of angels are in our house? What is the what is >> was phenomenal. The k pieces he had on it. It was excellent. >> My father love he used to do for my mother at the table. What does it mean? There's so many different things that we say and we do. Myself included. When I got when I delved into it, I realized there's so much depth behind it and you have to present it in a simple way today. As you know with media, you have to be simple with your targeted message. And I realize now that it was such a bit of to have the the thought that Hashem gave me to put out this project because throughout the world, even on Wall Street recently, people, the big business people, they all want to connect to the tranquility and the blessing of Shabbat. By the way, we were the first ones in the world who invented the weekends. It used to be work, work, work, work. Finally, they realize, hey, the Jews have it right. We have Shabbat. You sit, you're you connect. The family is around you. I have a story in the book where where I go into the cleaners and the Goya is telling me he doesn't see his family and he's getting all emotional, right? All these stories, but it's incredible how everybody wants to connect to Shabbat. So, it's it's been an amazing amazing journey. I was with Ruven Feinstein in the summer and uh we was my wife and I to have a sit down discussion with him just to ask for advice on on our children and uh my wife asked the rabbi the great what does the rabbi recommend as advice just a way to uh to inspire your children the ways of the path of Torah and he says I'm going to give you two words table don't underestimate the power of what you could accomplish >> at that at at Shabbat table the the things you shouldn't be talking about the things you should be talking about and doing and singing is one of them of course so there's so much that goes in and I wanted to ask you today more than ever before you said like you were on Wall Street yesterday you met with people that you were telling me earlier that that need Shabbat more than ever more than ever before question is today in our generation technology play such a big role today more than the previous generations when we disconnect we really disconnect I mean that feeling of I want to talk about the importance of Shabbat and how we elevate Shabbat and how much we need it this generation. I mean, I go to my drawer right before I go to Shul, everything gets unplugged. The iPad, the iPhone, the the the the AirPods, everything goes in. What a feeling that is. >> And how do we go from that to now elevating Shabbat through song and through through everything else we could bring to Shabbat. So one of the things that I meant before that Hashem gave me the thought right now in my 25 years, but Hashem looking back, why did I think about it now is exactly that point? Because the world needs it more than ever. The world needs Shabbat and needs to understand what Shabbat is. And that's not just laying down in bed and just resting, which is great, too. You need to rest and we need to go to bed. But the you say, it has to give you The tranquility has to it's not just resting, it's rejuvenation. It's it's understanding the blessing of what that rest is going to bring me to. And I feel like today with all the technology and everybody knows this even the people like this guy who just died who was everybody was sad about this guy Charlie Kirk who actually they mentioned on Wall Street uh when I was with all these guys in the stock exchange New York uh stock exchange said even a guy like Charlie Kirk even the guy the guy was mentioning Elvis Presley which I I didn't I heard him I heard of him as a singer but I had no idea that he wanted to keep Shabbat also which is [laughter] a interesting thing but I'm just bringing up uh the the They look at us and they real it. So we ourselves have to realize the blessing in it. technology today is moving so fast. Everything is so quick and and I know even in music you put out something and already the following week I worked on it for two years and following week somebody comes over to me and tell what are you coming out with next week and I try to tell them it's not I wish it was just corn muffins that I can just keep you know putting it in the oven and bringing it out for you and this I wish I can but it takes thought it takes sitting in this room and and thinking about messages writing the lyrics correctly bringing it to the right music producer this journey of Shabbat took me two years in terms of the music. I took the greatest arrangers in Jewish music, arrangers that have done plenty in their life for over 30 years. And I told him, I want to go through the schedule of Shabbat in the music of Shabbat, Shalom, you know, all the things that we do in kadouch, all the songs that we sing at night, and go through the schedule and putting it out once a week, you know, and that's what we did. Now it's already pismim of course as the s community you know plenty people reached out and said finally you did some pism which uh by the way I grew up with those songs so in my house my father is spartic my mother's ashkanaz and people want to know where that ashkanaz comes from is my mom shalom >> comes from righta family and so we had we had that combination growing up I went to ashkanaz is yeshivot and we sang all ashkan songs. My father said, "Hey, we have to sing pis mo." So we had every type of song, every type of nigun around our table. And you should know the memories that I have of my own family growing up. You talked about the children. You talked about education. You talked about Rabbi Feinstein. It's a great story that I write in the beginning of my introduction in in this book about Ramos Shapiro. Shapiro was a Gdul, tremendous great man who was a very very big deep thinker. Rabbi Diamond even mentioned him a few times, you know, seeing him in the cottail. He was a he was he was fire. Really really fire. Tremendous stories with him. But one story that I thought was unbelievable. I wrote it in my introduction is that somebody came over to him. somebody who was dealing with a lot of the youth and a lot of the children who were not some of them even grew up religious but they weren't connecting so much to the religion they were just not there and he was very bothered by it this man and he saw Shapiro going into a car in Israel and he said it's a good time because it's very hard to get him I'm going to stop him in the middle while he's trying to get into the car I'm going to ask him this question so he sees him going into a car he says oh moa could you answer me this fire question that I have. Um, I deal with a lot of the youth. Why are they not appreciating what they have? Why are they not appreciating Shabbat? Why are they not appreciating the songs that we have? And he was bothered by it because he was dealing with it on an everyday basis. And Ramosa looked at him and he started to really he got very uh high-pitched and like I said, he had fire in his eyes when he answered this question. And he started to a little bit raise his voice and he was telling this man, he said, "Do the parents really dance around the table on Shabbat? Do they sing songs like they really mean it on Shabbat? Do they really a feeling? Do they understand Judaism? Do they understand even not even the depth of our religion, but to understand even the simple words what they're saying? How do you expect the kids to really appreciate the songs if the parents don't have that happiness and realize that and with that he says and he basically answered the question and he closed the door and he left and the man was writing afterwards he said he was like very startled because Ramosa got really he says how do you his message was how do you really expect the children to have such uh an inner joy of shalom or when we don't even know half of it of what it means. So to hear now uh let's say Rabbi Diamond speak on Shabbat or to hear Rabbi Yadid have you know 50 classes on you get into what it means >> 50 maybe maybe 200 by now >> maybe 200 you know better than me I see it every now and then I'm on a plane I try to download I try to listen and I try to connect to all all the messages but there's so much to connect to but to at least know the simple meaning to at least know what you're doing my father I love shalom my my cousin when I was a little boy used to tell told me he used to he grew up in my house Michael Mala he's rabbi Mosha Mala who's my first cousin his brother and it was tremendous to meet and he told me the way my father sang when we were younger you know reminded him of just h how to respect the queen of the house he used to look at my mother as he's singing it used to point to her and he used to make all these motions like he knew all every single motion my father did I don't remember it but he said he lived He he he took the words and he he he just was able to translate even through the motions and I never forget all the the times that my father took so much time in singing songs. We sang songs at the meal I would say for a good two and a half hours our meal three hours. It wasn't a >> it wasn't a 40 minute meal and make you know run to here run there. It was about sitting at the table and singing every song basically that came out in Jewish music that that year. You know, I never forget singing a shalom, the new one from Brazil. I told my father, could we sing a new one? I write it in the book and my father was smart enough to say, you know what? Let me hear the new one. Let's see how it sounds. We taught it to him. said, "By the way, it just came out." And we sang it and we were able to to to grow into the religion in a way that made us happy people. I I I was just looking forward to Shabbat because it wasn't just about Why? Because it meant a lot to my father. My father, even when he wasn't doing well at all in business, I didn't feel it at all. I was able to be I I felt like a millionaire because I he got me what I wanted on Shabbat. He says, "Whatever money I spend is coming back anyway." He believed it. He believed we say >> he really believed it. And if you can, you can't fake that. >> And if you really believe it, whether he does good in business, whether he's not doing that great, we we didn't feel that in the house. And he was able to. And that's why I felt that this is Le Lunish, my parents, to really give people a legacy and a meaning. I'm speaking now. I told you we were in Wall Street. We were in people and business people. so many different meetings that I went to of financial people and people in the real estate world talking about Shabbat asking me questions about the book and whatever questions I could answer I answer and I see that people are really hungry no matter what business they're in financial world stock exchange um in Israel now doing also an influencer event in bell works my friend owns Ralph Zucker god bless him he owns bell works he invited me to do a concert in the the uh the theater over there where all the social media influencers and it was tremendous and we have at Epstein uh bring the Thursday night you know Shabbat food and we were able to to through the music understand that this is not just a book and some music. This is a tremendous project that has been hashem really affecting so many homes. It's incredible to see. >> What's next? >> What are we working on? Let's get a little sneak peek. What's happening? There's got to be a part two in something. So, some type of kizook and inspiration. >> So, I'm working on um putting out brand new Shabbat songs, >> right? >> I'm working on that. I'm thinking about another idea um to which actually is working now. We're translating the book into Spanish. Wow. >> Where many people in Spanish language, my friend Andy Meta, who was a banker in Argentina, is sponsoring that. um somebody just called to sponsor maybe the Israeli that's you know translating into Hebrew which is a process every time we translate it's not just a translation >> it's it's the PR aspect of it which you know very well it's making sure that the editors are there to edit it properly >> right >> but he they really feel like it belongs to the entire nation so I'm working on that I'm working on brand new Shabbat songs from the greatest composers that we have um I'm working on an English project as well Okay. >> So, there are things that are uh in >> I'm fascinated. Everything comes from this room. So, we're in the right room. That was in the right room. Do you feel a little energy here? That's it. I feel it now. I hear it. [laughter] >> There's windows. >> I hear it. You hear it. There. There is a good acoustical. >> Yes. Yes. >> You know, listen, music is feeling. You have to sit and you have to people. It's not a business where you can just say, you know what, I'm going to call this one. I'm going to call that one. I'm going to hustle. I'm going to get It's not It's not like that. It's a business that you have to feel tranquil and connected to to Hashem to give you the right message. A lot of times I would say you know what I don't have anything that I feel is really good. Now I took the I sat on the couch and I said I'm opening it up and if whatever Hashem leads me to that's the message and if I feel obviously I have to get connected to to understand it. I'll never forget a few times but usually it happens where something happened. I spoke to someone. I saw I'm learning you know by Rabbi Diamonds Cole and I'm looking at a seph and says wow didn't have music at his party how could you have the biggest party in the world and the madrash says he didn't have music because he didn't want Israel to do touba do you know that there was a guy in in in right after I did the Wall Street thing a kid told me that he heard a song that we did. It's called Tishua where it's the Ashkanaz song from many years ago. I never thought this kid even knew the song. And he said he converted after he heard this song. He cried to Hashem. He was a He converted to Judaism. He's now doing tremendous in business with companies. And you you see these stories and it inspires you to write songs about them. Kash didn't have the music because music is so powerful, >> right? You could hear a song and you can change your life through understanding what the song means. So it's incredible. This is the room. >> I didn't know I didn't know that he didn't have music. >> How could you not >> I always tell people they call me about parties. I said first of all make sure your music is good. I said I am a little a little biased but making sure that the flowers can be beautiful but if there's no good music howor sacrificed I mean he was he was such a rasha. realize that even if they play Phil, you know, philarmonic classic sounds as Alis is walking in, you know, within every Jew, there is a depth that he wants to do the right thing. He and she, they always want to do the right thing. And if you close your eyes a little bit and listen to the right music, which by the way, Rob Nakman writes that and many others that whatever, and I was telling these kids also, these these business kids that it's not in one ear, out the other. Whatever you hear in life affects your nishama. I didn't realize this growing up. You should know as I got through the stories and as I see different things happening through music and somebody converting and different guys, you know, changing their lives and women lighting candles and so many different stories. I realize, hey, this is not just this is a mission to to to change lives. Of course, we want to enjoy and we dance to it and I'm not saying not to, but there's a depth behind it that's really life-changing and you realize the responsibility of it as you go through the journey and as you see the reactions this kid is is converting and changed his whole this kid now is giving. It's not even a kid. He's like 25. He's giving classes now in Manhattan to many other kids. He's changing many other lives. He heard one time a song. We say it in the in the I took those words. It's a song from and and he's crying out and he it's just incredible and he's changing many many thousands of lives himself. So, it's been an incredible journey. The community is great. You know, we're going to work on some more songs and English. By the way, the community loves the song Shabas. >> We're doing a sequel to that song and the new song. So >> very good. >> So we're working. We're working. >> All right. So if anybody didn't buy the book yet, it's available at artscroll.com. It's a fascinating book. I read it to cover to cover. I can definitely testify and say which is expected from you and Israel Besser. But it really is a very inspirational book and will inspire and enhance your Shabbat table. >> We have other versions which they sold out, but they're making more leather and different types of covers to go into gift packages that people want to do. They asked me about it, so I'm saying it here. And uh it's not just a regular cover. You can get a customized cover as well on the artsgirl.com. So >> all right, >> enjoy it. And the musicofshabas.com. Go on there and give us your reactions. We'd love to hear it. >> And also on behalf of the community and of course Israel, you don't need to hear from me, but I think it's important to say we thank you for everything you've been doing for the last 25 years and we look forward to another hundred years. >> Amen. Amen. Continue to inspire us. >> You too, Joe. Thank you very much. We should hear in our community and all of Israel. We should sing the song of Mashiach. >> Amen. >> Amen. Amen. Thank