SAMUEL Green’s mother, Hazel, wasn’t too pleased when he started listening to rap music. But she is more than happy to support his endeavours to become… a rapper.
Londoner Samuel has reinvented himself as Antithesis – The Jewish Rapper and has just released an eight-track CD called The Israel Question.
Samuel, 20, had been writing short raps since he was 15, but his first serious song, Just Peace, was written three years ago for an FZY song contest.
Just Peace, the lead track on The Israel Question, came third because the judges were looking for a more commercial song.
After leaving school, Samuel took a gap year in Israel on FZY’s Machon L’Madrichei Chul programme. Whilst still in England he heard a talk by Chaim Avraham, the father of one of Israel’s Missing in Action soldiers and, after hearing him speak again in Israel, he wrote Ima Mechaka Babayit (Mother is Waiting at Home).
Samuel entered a talent contest with the track – and won. As a result he was introduced to Mr Avraham who asked him to record the song for charity.
”I became Antithesis in 2001,” Samuel said. ”It was a bit of fun. I had dreams of being famous. A friend came up with the name because rappers are normally black and from the ghettoes, whilst I’m a middle class white Jewish boy.”
Ima Mechaka Babayit was recorded with guitarist Neil Levene and Teddy Leifer on bongos.
Samuel said: ”The CD sold well without much marketing and no artwork. It gave me inspiration to carry on.”
Profits from the new CD are being split between the campaign to secure the release of Israel’s Missing in Action Soldiers and the UJIA Terror Victims Support Fund.
Samuel, who is currently reading Oriental Studies at the University of Cambridge, is hoping in the future to collaborate with Wu Tan Clan member Remedy, who recently visited Israel.
”We had a brief email correspondence over the summer,” he said, ”and a friend of mine is trying to bring him over to England. I’d also like to work with Israeli rapper Subliminal, although at the moment I’m concentrating on my degree.”
Last month, Japanese and Hebrew-speaking Samuel performed at the Limmud conference whilst he has also rapped for J-Socs and opened Yom Ha’atzmaut celebrations in Tzfat.
Samuel, whose grandfather is from Salford, has a sister Hannah, currently on tour in Israel with FZY.
The Israel Question is available from www.antithesismc.com