Def Jam Mogul Simmons Makes Rap Call for Mid-East Peace
Hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons has a musical message for those in the Middle East conflict: “Bury the beef.”
The founder of the Def Jam record label uses rap language for ending an argument. He is trying to open hearts and minds on both sides of the Jewish-Muslim divide with a planned CD and concert in Jerusalem.
“To get two Palestinians and two Israelis to rap, to make a video with a holy site in the background, that is a fun thing to do,” Simmons, 54, says in an interview. “Dialogue has to be cultural and music can be very helpful as a great catalyst.”
Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians stalled in Sept. 2010, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to extend a 10-month partial construction freeze in West Bank settlements. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said he will not negotiate while the building continues.
“The politicians have proven they can do one thing, which is stall and not have communications,” Russell says, wearing a white polo shirt and baseball cap.
On a recent visit, he met bankers, Jerusalem’s mayor, the chief rabbi of Haifa, and the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Mohammed Hussein.
“They are willing to work toward tolerance,” he says. “The question is will they work toward a political solution.”
Holiest Site
During his Jerusalem stay, Simmons -- accompanied by his friend Rabbi Marc Schneier -- placed a Yogic mantra in the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site: “May it be the will that people all over the world will be happy and free.” The black American wears a necklace of black beads that bears a Yogi symbol.
They also met Shari Arison, controlling shareholder of the country’s second-largest bank by assets Bank Hapoalim Ltd. (POLI), who Simmons says “really liked the idea of what we are doing.”
Mayor Nir Barkat proposed a hip-hop happening in Jerusalem and Simmons has a few stars in mind. They include Israel’s Kobi Shimoni, best known as Subliminal; DJ Khalif and Shyne, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for attempted murder and is now a devout Jew named Moses.
“He gave me some great raps,” says Simmons of Shyne, a one-time Def Jam artist. The label has also released music by Kanye West and Rihanna. Simmons’s discoveries include the Beastie Boys, LLCoolJ, RunDMC and Public Enemy.
Phat Farm
Simmons is also the founder of the Phat Farm clothing line and has a net worth of $340 million, according to Celebnetwork.org. With Schneier, through the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, he has persuaded Muslim and Jewish religious leaders around the world to meet and even twin congregations. Schneier is the institution’s founder and Simmons is its chairman.
The sensitivities of the conflict were underscored during their visit when Russell responded to a conference moderator who mentioned that Louis Farrakhan, who Russell believes should be part of a dialogue, hadn’t been constructive for the Jewish- Muslim-black relations.
Russell said that Anti-Defamation League leader Abraham Foxman hadn’t been that helpful in building tolerance either, prompting an angry response from the Jewish leader.
“What is disappointing is that someone who has a history of having a blind spot to one of the most vociferous and ugly anti-Semites would be given a platform in Jerusalem,” Foxman said.
Work Respect
Simmons says in response now that he had no desire “to create disharmony in our communities by having a public fight. I respect Abe’s work.”
The encounter left him feeling that Jews and Muslims weren’t irreconcilable.
“It’s all right,” he says. “In the rapper community, they shoot at each other.”
He just intervened in a feud between Chris Brown and Drake after a confrontation at a New York club.
“I settled that rap beef and although I don’t think it is the same as imams and rabbis and their lack of understanding of each others’ scriptures, I do find that in all the beefs you settle, both sides have more in common than not,” Simmons says.
Muse highlights include Scott Reyburn on the art market and James Russell on architecture.
To contact the writer on the story: Gwen Ackerman in Jerusalem at gackerman@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Manuela Hoelterhoff at mhoelterhoff@bloomberg.net.
Shmuel Rabinovitch, Marc Schneier, Russell Simmons
Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, the Rabbi of the kotel, or Western Wall, shakes hands with hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons, as Rabbi Marc Schneier looks on.
Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, the Rabbi of the kotel, or Western Wall, shakes hands with hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons, as Rabbi Marc Schneier looks on. Photographer: Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
July 4 (Bloomberg) -- Russell Simmons, Def Jam record label founder and chairman of Rush Communications, and Rabbi Marc Schneier talk about their efforts to reconcile Israeli Jewish and Muslim communities through hip-hop music. They spoke June 19 with Bloomberg's Gwen Ackerman in Jerusalem. (Source: Bloomberg)
Russell Simmons, Marc Schneier, Schmuel Rabinovitch
Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons slips a note inscribed with a Yogi prayer into the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site. Rabbi Marc Schneier and Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch look on.
Hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons slips a note inscribed with a Yogi prayer into the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site. Rabbi Marc Schneier and Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch look on. Photographer: Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Russell Simmons, Nir Barkat, Marc Schneier
Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons, with Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat, and Rabbi Marc Schneier. Mayor Nir Barkat proposed a hip-hop happening in Jerusalem and Simmons has a few stars in mind, including Kobi Shimoni, also known as Subliminal, DJ Khalif and Shyne.
Hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons, with Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat, and Rabbi Marc Schneier. Mayor Nir Barkat proposed a hip-hop happening in Jerusalem and Simmons has a few stars in mind, including Kobi Shimoni, also known as Subliminal, DJ Khalif and Shyne. Photographer: Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Marc Schneier, Russell Simmons
Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Rabbi Marc Schneier, with hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons at a conference in Jerusalem. Schneier and Simmons were visiting Jewish and Muslim leaders in Israel and east Jerusalem to promote their message of tolerance between the religions.
Rabbi Marc Schneier, with hip-hop and fashion mogul Russell Simmons at a conference in Jerusalem. Schneier and Simmons were visiting Jewish and Muslim leaders in Israel and east Jerusalem to promote their message of tolerance between the religions. Photographer: Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Imam Alatrsh Akel, Marc Schneier, Shaar Yashuv Cohen
Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
Imam Alatrsh Akel of the La-ad Raash village in Israel's Negev, with Rabbi Marc Schneier, president of The Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU), and Rabbi Shaar Yashuv Cohen, the chief rabbi of Haifa.
Imam Alatrsh Akel of the La-ad Raash village in Israel's Negev, with Rabbi Marc Schneier, president of The Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU), and Rabbi Shaar Yashuv Cohen, the chief rabbi of Haifa. Photographer: Sasson Tiram/FFEU via Bloomberg
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