Jewish musicians

John Cale, Sterling Morrison and Lou Reed from archival photography in the new documentary 'The Velvet Underground' by filmmaker Todd Haynes (Courtesy Apple TV+)

October 14, 2021, 1:43 am

Velvet Underground documentary omits band’s Jewish roots, but is still very cool

Out on Apple TV+ October 15, ‘The Velvet Underground’ dives into the countercultural phenomenon started by queer Jewish musician Lou Reed and rocketed to fame by Andy Warhol

By Jordan Hoffman

A screenshot from video of singer Gil Ofarim posted to his Instagram account, on October 5, 2021. (Screenshot/Instagram)

October 5, 2021, 11:20 pm

German Jewish group condemns hotel for turning away singer wearing Star of David

Central Council of Jews in Germany slams ‘antisemitic hostility’ toward German-Israeli musician Gil Ofarim, who alleges he was told to remove his pendant if he wanted to check in

By Kirsten Grieshaber

David Lee Roth speaks onstage at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Sept. 12, 2021. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for MTV/ViacomCBS)

October 3, 2021, 4:43 pm

Van Halen’s proudly Jewish ex-frontman retires from music

‘I am throwing in the shoes,’ says 66-year-old David Lee Roth, best known for fronting influential band during its heyday in the 1970s and ’80s

By Gabe Friedman

Maxim Mirel, aka Max, succeeded in gaining a wildcard spot in the Grand Beatbox Battle in Warsaw, Poland, in October 2021. (Courtesy)

September 23, 2021, 4:45 am

Beatbox champ drums up energy at home as 1st Israeli to compete for world title

Underdog Max Mirel represents growing talent from a local scene overlooked until recently, as he gears up to perform in the international Grand Beatbox Battle in Warsaw next month

By Tani Levitt

George Wein plays with a jazz band in New Orleans at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, December 16, 2008. (AP Photo, File)

September 14, 2021, 5:38 pm

George Wein, Newport Jazz Festival co-founder, dies at 95

Jewish impresario of 20th century music set the template for jazz and rock festivals the world over

By Hillel Italie

Ezra Furman performs at the O2 Forum, Kentish Town on November 14, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Robin Little/Redferns/ via JTA)

September 13, 2021, 3:31 am

Indie rocker Ezra Furman sings about God – now she’s going to rabbinical school

The ‘transfeminine psalmist’ strives to combine music and spirituality. With a to-do list including religious study and a year of cryptic ‘musical activity,’ she’s doing just that

By Ella Rockart

Mark Ronson arrives at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, February 24, 2019. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

September 5, 2021, 10:49 am

Music producer Mark Ronson ties knot with Meryl Streep’s daughter

Award-winning musician posts photo of the couple in front of the traditional chuppah canopy as he dons a white yarmulke

By TOI staff

At the unveiling of gravestone for Thomas LaRue Jones aka 'The Black Cantor' at Rosehill Cemetery in Linden, New Jersey, on August 29, 2021. Henry Sapoznik (in hat) is at center with hand on the monument. (David Sperling)

September 1, 2021, 4:18 pm

Headstone for long-forgotten Black cantor unveiled in NJ cemetery

With support of friends and interested strangers, researcher Henry Sapoznik dedicates memorial for lauded Yiddish performer Thomas LaRue Jones, who was buried in a potter’s field

By Renee Ghert-Zand

Avishai and Naomi Weinberger sing 'The Anti-Vaxxer's Lament,' a satirical response to activists comparing COVID restrictions to the Holocaust. (YouTube screenshot)

August 29, 2021, 3:53 pm

New Yorkers fight anti-vaccine Holocaust comparisons via song

Fed up with activists defiling the memory of 6 million murdered Jews, musicians pen a ‘deeply Jewish’ satirical response they say is more about catharsis than convincing opponents

By PHILISSA CRAMER

Barbra Streisand speaks onstage during the 91st Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on February 24, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

August 23, 2021, 7:48 am

Barbra Streisand makes history with latest top 20 album

New release, featuring archival recordings and duets with Willie Nelson and Kermit, makes her 1st woman with album in Billboard top 20 in every decade from the 1960s to the 2020s

By Ben Sales

Bob Dylan performs in Los Angeles, January 12, 2012. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

July 19, 2021, 8:25 am

Ending 18-month hiatus, Bob Dylan returns to the (online) stage

After pandemic concluded his so-called Neverending Tour, fans pay $25 to watch a video of the 80-year-old singer-songwriter playing mostly earlier hits to an audience of actors

By David Bauder

Doni Zasloff and Eric Lindberg are Nefesh Mountain. (Lawrence Rickford/via JTA)

June 10, 2021, 9:59 am

Anne Frank’s famous optimism gets a bluegrass twang

New Jersey duo Nefesh Mountain’s new song ‘Piece Of The Sun (For Anne Frank)’ debuts just ahead of what would have been the Holocaust diarist’s 92nd birthday on June 12

By Gabe Friedman

Alix Dobkin poses in a t-shirt that reads 'The Future'is Female" in Preston Hollow, NY in 1975. Dobkin, the lesbian singer and feminist activist, died in her home from a brain aneurysm and stroke. She was 80. (Liza Cowen via AP)

May 22, 2021, 7:33 pm

Singer and pioneering lesbian activist Alix Dobkin dies at 80

The Jewish musician often played Yiddish songs during performances for all-women audiences

By THALIA BEATY

Assucena Assucena is a Jewish trans musician who says the country's Jewish community is not as homogeneous as most Brazilians might think. (Photo courtesy of Assucena Assucena; background via Getty Images/ via Alma and JTA)

May 18, 2021, 3:03 am

Brazilian musician shines a light on the intersection of sexuality and Judaism

Trans singer Assucena Assucena is proud to showcase the country’s Jewish diversity, breaking stereotypes held by many Brazilians – including some inside the local community itself

By CALEB A. GUEDES-REED

Violinist Lili Haydn wrote the single 'More Love' as a sign of her appreciation for life. Her album of the same name drops March 26, 2021. (Courtesy)

March 29, 2021, 6:01 am

Life is a miracle: Eclectic LA musician belts thankful song after COVID struggle

Classically-trained violinist Lili Haydn won a Grammy last year with band Opium Moon; her new album ‘More Love,’ named for its title song, drops March 26

By Dave Gordon