01 Apr Shwekey, Gerstner & YBC at the Newly Renovated Kings Theater An Exclusive Interview with Yaakov Shwekey

VUES: Are you of Ashkenaz or Sephardic descent?

YAAKOV SHWEKEY: I’m “Sfashkanaz” My mother is Ashkenaz and my father is Sephardic. For music purposes, this is really telling. I do a lot of different types of music. One of my missions was for my music to become part of the Ashkenaz world, which I think was very successful, and I think everyone is doing it now. I put Mizrachi, Middle-Eastern sounds into my music. It’s good for the unity of Am Yisrael. I take pride in doing it all. Separdic, Ashkenaz, Yiddish. Whatever I do, I try to do it in an authentic way. My mother being Ashkenaz with some Chassidish background and my father really from the Syrian community, has really helped me out in terms of widening my customer base. It also gave me a taste of all worlds. It makes me really happy that Chassidim can be seen dancing to Sephardic, Israeli sounds.

VUES: What’s the largest venue you ever performed in?

YS: I did a Chol Hamoed concert outdoors in Kfar Chabad, Israel. The security was so tight, that even I couldn’t get in to sing for a half hour. There were approximately 80,000 people at that concert. But really, as a performer, I really enjoy smaller venues. Otherwise it’s not as personal. The larger venues aren’t always the better concerts.

VUES: What’s your most popular CD?

YS: I don’t know. Thank G-d, the last one, “Kolot,” has sold very well. But “Cry No More” was also very popular.

VUES: What’s your favorite song to sing?

YS: They’re all my favorite. They’re all different sounds. That’s like asking, “Who’s your favorite child?” It’s very hard to answer that.

VUES: What do you do when you are not working on music?

YS: I learn in kollel which is two blocks away from my house and I am involved with my wife Jenine’s organization, The Special Children’s Center. We have many different programs for special children. The homes take kids after school from 2 in the afternoon until 8 pm. They bathe the children, feed them, and even take them to Disney World. She does it as a chesed. This takes up a lot of our lives, so we are very busy people.

VUES: What do you prefer, concerts or simchas?

YS: The truth is, I look at a concert as a simcha too. There are many people who have told me that a concert, the music, has changed their lives, so there is obvious simcha in that. I love both, though I think they are very different, A simcha is when you are part of a person’s most important day of his or her life.

VUES: How has the music industry changed in the last 20 years?

YS: It’s changed a lot. A lot of people now do things digitally. CD sales are not the same. Then again, the live shows have expanded because of the internet. A lot has changed, some for the good, some for the bad. At the end of the day, I don’t do it for the CD sales. You have to have music in your veins and in your blood;  you have to love it dearly. It might look easy, but a lot of it is hard- the travel, being away from your family… so you have to love it -and I do. Things have changed a lot, but BH I can’t complain. I have the great zechus to be m’sameach a lot of Am Yisrael. I look at it that way and I thank Hashem for that. I always want to go further and to create new things.

VUES: Do you like the era of YouTube? Do you like making videos?

YS: I do think it takes a lot of time to make a good video. I am working on a couple right now. It’s very tedious, especially when I try to be a perfectionist and it doesn’t come out exactly the way I want it, so I need to do it again. I love that it attracts people to the Jewish music industry who otherwise wouldn’t listen to Jewish music. It also gives kids good, quality, kosher entertainment. It makes a Kiddush Hashem. “Cry No More” and all the videos that have come out, have really made a huge Kiddush Hashem. It’s tedious and hard, but it really can do great things.

VUES: How many concerts do you perform at per year on average?

YS: I don’t know. I take each one as it comes. But I’ve been all over. I’ve probably been to 90 percent of the world where Jewish people live.

VUES: How do concerts around the world differ?

YS: Every place is different. Going back to Eretz Yisrael and to historic Caesarea is very special. Performing in Europe, especially during a time of tremendous anti-semitism, is very meaningful.  In Paris, the crowd is electric! In America, Jewish music is more readily available, but is also very special and exciting.

VUES: In which language do you prefer to sing?

YS: Hebrew and English suit me much better. Yiddish is harder for me.

VUES: What do you have planned for your Chol Hamoed concert at the newly remodeled Kings Theater with Eli Gerstner and the Yeshiva Boys Choir?

YS: We have a great concert planned for Chol Hamoed with great energy. Chol Hamoed is a time that people can get out and really enjoy the Yom Tov through music. Eli Gerstner has been a good friend of mine for many years. It’s great to be a part of this with him and all his energy. He’s going to be taking care of the music & production, which is his expertise. The Yeshiva Boys Choir has been very popular for many years and I respect Eli as a musician. The shiluv, the connection, between the children, the singing, and then what I will bring is going make this a very special concert.  I’m going to try to do different songs, some from the past, some from the Kolot album. I’m really looking forward to it. The Kings Theater is a beautiful venue and I’m looking forward to singing in it for the first time.

VUES: This past month, Klal Yisrael mourned the loss of seven  young, innocent angels, the seven Sassoon children.  During Shiva, it came out that the children sang “Cry No More,” which was co-written and sung by

you. What was your reaction to this?

YS: I spoke to the father this week. I heard the song, but honestly I cried so much, I couldn’t listen to the whole thing. I told the father that his angels sang it much better than the artist. I wrote this song with Yitzy when a dear friend, a Rebbe of mine, who was also my shadchan, passed away. Through this sadness, I wanted to write a simple song about hope for a day when we will cry no more. This past week was a brutal week. It was heart-wrenching. My daughter went to camp with one of the girls. My wife knows the mother. When they sang this song that I created, hearing them singing it, knowing how they passed away… there are no words to say how it hurts. I remember where I wrote this song. I was sitting on the stone near my fireplace and I was so emotional when I wrote it. We wrote it as a message of hope. The father [Mr. Sassoon] told me he wants the song to unify Am Yisrael. He told me that his only consolation is that Klal Yisrael should change, be more unified, and try to be better people. That is the only way we will see mashiach and these children back, by changing ourselves and by being better people. We need to really love each other and to show every single person that we care. These children are our family. I am looking forward to singing “Cry No More” at the Chol Hamoed concert in unity.

VUES: Do you have any special plans for the summer yet?

YS: After Tisha B’av I always go to Israel for a week and do concerts there. I have a very busy June. I haven’t been in the Catskills for a while. During the 3 weeks I do concerts for Camp Simcha and Camp HASC, but I haven’t done big concerts upstate. It might happen this year, but it’s a matter of scheduling. I am still tinkering with a lot of ideas for August.

VUES: What are you working on now?

YS: I am currently working on a special English song for the Special Children’s Center coming out at the end of the school year. I have other ideas and projects in the works, as well. I’m starting to work on a new album with no timetable.

VUES: Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

YS: Come dance and join us as we insert simcha in the air, and unify Klal Yisrael through music. This year Klal Yisrael has had many difficult times, but let’s be b’simcha on Yom Tov. It’s my greatest nachas to have everyone join together, no matter who you are and where you come from. I’m looking forward to a great Chol Hamoed concert!