“If you have a good voice, it’s a gift from Hashem and a responsibility”

Succos is a time for v’samachta b’chagecha. Can you tell us a bit about how you got started in the music industry?

I’m the youngest of a very musical family. My father served as the chazzan in our town for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and my mother trained as a singer.  As you can imagine, our Shabbosim were filled with beautiful zemiros. When I was eight, I joined the Miami Boys Choir together with my older brother Duvie. This meant a two-hour drive into Brooklyn, a ride my mother undertook with dedication. It was meaningful to her for us to commit to music, and because of that, it became something meaningful to us as well.

The Miami Boys Choir

Joining the Miami Boys Choir brought unforgettable moments and meaningful friendships into my life. We were a diverse group, all coming from different communities and backgrounds. Some boys were Modern Orthodox, some were chassidish, Litvish, Sephardi, and it honestly didn’t matter. We weren’t connected by who we were and what we did. We were connected over what we believed in, and that was the music of Hashem. I still keep in touch with some of those friends, even after 20+ years. We had incredible experiences together, like our trip to Mexico and Universal Studios in LA, that I can’t forget. That being said, it wasn’t always easy. My entire Sunday was reserved for choir practice since it took two hours to travel to Brooklyn, another two hours for the practice itself, and then two hours to get back. While my friends were enjoying Little League or birthday parties, I was either at choir practice or singing at a show.