American-Israeli artist urges Jewish community to recognize “writing on the wall” and return to the Holy Land
In a blunt appeal that has gained widespread attention, American-Israeli rapper and podcast host Nissim Black has issued an urgent call for American Jews to consider immigration to Israel in response to what he describes as escalating antisemitism in the United States.
Black, whose YouTube channel has garnered over 26 million views worldwide, delivered the message during a recent episode of his podcast, combining his perspective as both an American-born artist and Israeli resident to address what he sees as a critical moment for the Jewish diaspora.
“It’s time for the Yidden (Jews) to come home. It’s time for Jews to wake up and to move back to Israel. It just is what it is,” Black declared. “When you live in a place like America where many of us never thought something like this was possible, never thought something like this would happen—and I’m not talking about this isolated incident, we’re talking about the rise of antisemitism that’s happening in the United States—once you see this, when do we start saying that we recognize the writing is on the wall?”
The Seattle native, who has built a global following through his musical style spanning rap, pop, and world music, referenced biblical prophecy in making his case for Jewish return to Israel. Drawing on eschatological themes, Black pointed to the uncertainty surrounding end-times prophecies about various nations while emphasizing Israel’s assured future.
“When you look at the prophets, even I don’t know what the future is for all these other nations,” Black explained. “We don’t really know who all these other nations are. We don’t know who Gog is. We don’t know who’s coming from Tarshish, and we don’t know who all these other nations are, so we can’t really say that we know for sure.”
Black’s reference to Gog alludes to the biblical prophecy in Ezekiel 38-39, which describes a final apocalyptic battle involving a coalition of nations led by “Gog of the land of Magog” against Israel. Jewish and Christian interpreters have long debated the identity of these nations and the timing of this prophetic confrontation.
“There may be clues, there may be signs, there may be hints, but there’s one thing that we do know, and that the prophets did reveal, is that this land for sure has a future,” Black continued. “And there’s been no shortage of Hashem showing us over and over again that this land will thrive and this land will have a future.”
Disconnect from Hebrew Scripture
Black devoted significant attention to what he sees as a critical educational gap within Jewish religious communities—insufficient study of the Hebrew Bible’s prophetic books. This disconnect, he argues, has weakened Jewish attachment to the land of Israel.
“Very rarely do we learn Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). Do we learn the prophets? Do we learn Navi?” he questioned, using the Hebrew term for the prophetic books. While acknowledging that Torah study—the Five Books of Moses—remains central to Jewish education, Black noted a crucial distinction.
“Torah itself, the Five Books of Moses, the first five books—yes, complete that every year. Every Jew, religious community, if you’re not finishing it yourself, you’re finishing it in the synagogue or in the shul every week, so there’s a connection. But guess what? That took place outside the land of Israel.”
Black emphasized that while the Torah commands reverence as “the highest of all the books according to our religion,” its narratives unfold primarily in Egypt and the wilderness, not in the Promised Land.
“So when it comes to the books that have to deal with being inside of the land of Israel, specifically the prophets, it’s not a major part of our curriculum, not a major part of our reading,” he explained. “And so what I think this has done over the years, over the millennia, it has definitely weakened our love and our desire and our appreciation for the land of Israel.”
This educational emphasis, Black suggested, has created a disconnect between Jewish religious practice and connection to Israel, despite regular prayers referencing the land.
“Even though we pray for it several times throughout the day—not only three times throughout the day do we remember, there’s two things that we for sure remember: leaving Egypt, the Exodus from Egypt, and the other thing is the fact that we want God to return His holy presence to His holy mountain in Jerusalem—so with all of this, we pray about it a lot, but it doesn’t sink in. A lot of times it doesn’t sink in.”
Challenging Messianic Waiting
Black’s call for aliyah—the Hebrew term for Jewish immigration to Israel—directly challenged those who defer immigration until messianic times. His message carried particular urgency given the current antisemitic trends.
“I’ve heard a lot of people over the years tell me, ‘Oh, when the Messiah comes, when Messiah comes, then we’ll go,'” Black recounted. “[But we] may not get to wait that long. God forbid, I hope that Hashem spares and keeps everybody, but under the current circumstances, there’s no signs of this slowing down. There’s only signs of it getting worse.”
“I honestly think that if you have not been considering it, if you have not been thinking about it, it’s time for you to start thinking about packing up your bags and moving back to Israel and building up the Holy Land—being here in this land which God promised to His people, to His children, to our holy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” Black declared.
Black’s platform continues expanding through “The Nissim Black Show,” where he shares insights with a growing community. His dual perspective as an American-born artist and Israeli resident provides a unique insight into the challenges facing Jewish communities in both countries.
His appeal combines immediate concerns about antisemitism with theological convictions about Israel’s prophetic significance, delivered through the lens of contemporary hip-hop culture to reach audiences traditional religious leaders might not encounter.
