When the Palestinian extremist organization Hamas carried out its terrorist attack in Israel at the beginning of October, Israeli radio stations did what they always do at the time of tragedy. They started playing sad, nostalgic music.
– This went on for months, says a historian who follows Israeli popular culture Shayna Weiss Yelle in a video interview.
Professor Weiss works at Brandeis University in the United States. During the Gaza war, he has especially followed the playlist of Galgalatz, the most listened-to radio channel in Israel.
Galgalatz is the radio channel of the Israel Defense Forces, whose program consists of pop and rock music, news and traffic information. The channel also publishes Israel’s official music list.
At the beginning of November, another emotion appeared in music to express the feelings of the nation alongside sadness: anger, even hatred.
Hate to the top of the list
A good month after the Hamas attacks, the hip-hop duo Ness and Still released the song Harbu Darbu. Soon it was number one on the playlists and sales charts.
– There are problematic elements in Harbu Darbu, but it expresses anger really strongly, says Professor Weiss.
Harbu Darbu comes from Syrian Arabia and means “swords and blows”. In Hebrew slang, it means to unleash hell against the enemy.
The song can be regarded as an encouragement song for the Israeli Defense Forces units in the war against Hamas. It threatens how mercilessly the soldiers destroy their opponents in Gaza.
Critics have named the genre “genocide hip-hop”.
“Satan’s rat pack coming out of the tunnels like thugs.
You idiots, I swear there is no mercy.
What do you come here to shout about free Palestine?
Phyi, you sons of Amalek!
Whoop, bomb squad!”
Stilla’s rapping from Hamas to Amalek is a parallel to the biblical enemy of the tribes of Israel, which must be completely destroyed.
Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu has used the same analogy. In the genocide lawsuit filed by South Africa, it has been considered as one example of inciting the genocide of the Palestinians, which the prime minister denies that he means.
A receptive youth
Harbu Darbu quickly found its way to social media. On Tiktok and other platforms, soldiers used Harbu Darbu as a background to their war experiences, which names several military units in its lyrics.
– The army generally plays a big role in Israeli popular culture, describes Professor Weiss.
Many of Israel’s stars do their military service in the music corps. In a geographically small country, it is easy for them to perform for the soldiers after completing their military service.
It has also been the case during the Gaza war.
Harbu Darbu is related to the dance music that was played at the Supernova festival that was attacked by Hamas. Dissolving the feeling of hatred in hip-hop is a spiritual connection to the events of the festival.
The researcher has an idea anyway, why the song sinks into the audience.
– The young generation in Israel is much more right-wing than their parents, says Professor Shayna Weiss.
According to the 2022 democracy index published by the Israeli Democracy Research Institute, 73 percent of 18-24-year-olds considered themselves politically right-wing.
Hand in hand with this, the sense of nationalism of the Jewish population is high. 85.9 percent of the Jewish respondents felt pride in being Israeli.
– The second Palestinian uprising has changed the young generation, which became familiar with violence and bombs in buses, Weiss states.
The song also aims at those who understand Palestinians
According to Professor Shayna Weiss, there are certainly people in Israel who resent Harbu Darbu’s message, but mostly it is accepted.
– I don’t think that the message of the song is a problem for the average Israeli Jew. Its anger is considered justified, says Weiss.
When Harbu Darbu had become number one in Israel’s charts, attention was also paid to it outside of Israel.
The world has paid attention especially to the final part of Harbu Darbu, where not only the leadership of Hamas, but also celebrities who support the Palestinians are threatened with destruction.
The end of the dog is threatened for the international model For Bella Hadida pop star Dua for Lipa and for a media personality, a former adult entertainment star For Mia Khalifa.
“Bella Hadid, Dua Lipa, Mia Khalifa
Every dog gets what it deserves.
The Israeli army is unleashing hell on them.”
The success of Harbu Darbu has spawned some followers. One of them is the viral hit Shagar, in which Gaza is threatened to be turned into an amusement park.
Hatred has been expressed on both sides
According to Professor Shayna Weiss, anger was already heard during the second Palestinian uprising at the beginning of the millennium.
– Then the rapper Subliminal his partner HaTzel’s made rap music infused with extreme right-wing anger.
Subliminal’s music was especially called “Zionist hip-hop” by critics.
In the region, anger has also traditionally been channeled in Arabic-language music.
The now deceased Egyptian singer of Shaabolla the song Hate Israel was popular in the Middle East during the second Palestinian uprising.
Before the Gaza war, due to pressure from Jewish interest organizations, the music streaming service Spotify removed from its selections, among other things, the song Udrub Udrub Tel Abib, about the destruction of Tel Aviv.
Harbu Darbu can be found on Spotify and other streaming services.
The time is not yet ripe for anti-war songs
During the Gaza war, Israeli soundtracks have also included protest songs performed in support of Hamas hostages.
– Some kind of change is noticeable. It has to do with whether the hope of getting the hostages home is overriding the popularity of the war, Weiss reflects.
So alongside sadness and anger, there has also been a longing for lightness, and maybe even peace.
The number one on the Israeli hit list this week has been the silly pun song Nadi Badi or Naughty Body, which represents an escape from reality. The disputed Eurovision Hurricane has been in third place.
However, one is absent from the ears of the Israelis, the songs of peace.
– Actually, there is only one new song in which Gaza is even mentioned in a way other than in a warlike sense, Shayna Weiss remembers.
It is By Yoni Bloch a song between the river and the sea, where the singer dreams of peace and better times.
According to Weiss, it’s not really anti-war yet.
– It is still very early, Weiss states.
“I don’t know how I could promise,
that we will get through this
relaxed and stronger,
that the sun can continue to shine over Gaza and the sea
and will not count until all are returned.”
Sources: AP, Reuters
In addition to news agencies: Haaretz, The Jerusalem Post, Kveller, Forward, Times of Israel, TRT World, Al Jazeera
The Finnish translations of the songs have been made according to the English translations.