Orthodox Miami Boys Choir Becomes Pop Culture Phenomenon on Tik Tok

The latest TikTok viral sensation is a group of choir boys singing Yerushalayim, a song that was recorded 14 years ago. The group, the Miami Boys Choir, was founded in 1977 in Miami by Yerachmiel Begun, an Orthodox composer and musical director. It moved to New York City in 1980 but kept the Miami name.

As reported by Jackie Hajdenberg in JTA News, 

The Begun family also comes from a legacy of musicians and performers, including MBC composer Yerachmiel Begun’s father, the former vaudeville actor Chaim Begun. Yerachmiel Begun’s wife Shoshana, a classical pianist, wrote many of the group’s English songs, such as “Sunshine” from the 1995 album, “One by One.”

Now, the Miami Boys Choir, which Yerachmiel Begun still leads, albeit with a totally new cohort of boys than the video, will be returning to the stage with their annual Sukkot tour of the tri-state area. (Dates and locations for the tour have not been set yet, but the group’s website shows that it held auditions last spring in two places: Miami and Lakewood, New Jersey, which has a large Orthodox community.)

When he first started posting the videos two months ago, engagement was moderate. But six weeks ago, the “Yerushalayim” video started blowing up. Since then, web traffic has increased, people have been buying albums and subscriptions to MBC’s music, and Spotify listens have tripled, Chananya Begun said. Even TV studios and documentary producers have been reaching out to the Beguns.

“We’ve seen incredible reactions and it’s been absolutely wild to watch,” Begun said. “Absolutely crazy.”

Beyond MBC’s popularity with the Orthodox Jewish world, Begun has been impressed by the group resonating with non-Jews and people who haven’t identified much with Judaism in recent years. Tweets and comments left on their videos often refer to people not understanding a word of the music but listening to the songs on repeat.

The YouTube version of the full Yerushalayim song, which was uploaded Sept. 11, well into the frenzy, has more than 1 million views. “I’m not Jewish but I’ve listened to this so many times I’ve memorized the words,” one user commented. Another wrote, “I would give away my first born child to go back in time to watch this concert live.”

Enjoy!

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