Raphael Nathan (February 27, 1990), known professionally as DJ Raphi is an Israeli content creator, recording artist, DJ, dancer and beatboxer based in Jerusalem.[2][3]
DJ Raphi | |||||||
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| Born | Raphael Nathan February 27, 1990 | ||||||
| Other names | DJ Four Eyez | ||||||
| Alma mater | Ono Academic College | ||||||
| Occupations |
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YouTube information | |||||||
| Channel | |||||||
| Years active | 2015–present | ||||||
| Genres |
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| Subscribers | 617.0000[1] | ||||||
| Total views | 283 million[1] | ||||||
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Last updated: April 30, 2024 | |||||||
He has achieved popularity on YouTube, where his dance tutorials exceed 280 million views.[4][5][2]
Early life
editRaphael Nathan was born in Johannesburg, South Africa,[4] son of Mickey Nathan, musician,[6] and Naomi, educator and editor.[7] He immigrated to Israel with his family in 1998.[6] They settled in Ra'anana.[8] His mother passed away in a traffic accident in 2022.[7][9] Nathan had difficulties with learning the language and suffered from bullying at school.[8] He began taking drum lessons at the age of 10. Since he did not have his own drum kit to practice on at the time, he started developing his rhythmic ability by doing beatboxing.[6]
Since the age of 16, he also trained as a breakdancer. He then went on to win the Israeli National Beatboxing Championship in 2007.[10]
In 2010, during his service in the army, he participated in a breakdance video broadcast by the official account of the Israeli Defense Forces, on the occasion of the celebration of Purim.[11][12]
Career
editNathan co-founded the Kosher Flava crew which went on to win the Israeli Street Festival breakdance competition in 2011 and 2012.[13][14] The Kosher Flava crew represented Israel at the Battle of the Year in France,[15] at Notorious IBE festival in the Netherlands, and at the DOYOBE International Hip Hop Festival in Salzburg.[16]
In 2013, Nathan co-founded Kippalive, an acappella group. The group appeared on The X Factor Israel reality show.[17] Kippalive went on to achieve online popularity with a series of viral videos that feature versions of pop songs reworked to reference Jewish themes.[18]
In 2015, Nathan began creating content on YouTube under the name DJ Raphi. In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, his video "The Cha Cha Slide Dance" had an extraordinary impact, surpassing 40 million plays.[19]
In the year 2021, DJ Raphi was featured in the Jewish Festival Tzama, where he introduced his dance instruction videos to the orthodox Jewish community.[20] Tzama is known as the biggest Jewish Music festival with singers such Ishay Ribo, Avraham Fried and Nathan Goshen.[21][22]
In 2023, his video celebrating the 75th anniversary of Israel's Independence became the focus of antisemitic comments.[5] His activity as a DJ was momentarily interrupted in during the Israel–Hamas war[4]
In September 2024, he produced and released a new dance video to the song “Nekudot” alongside musician Shmuel Perednik, who wrote the song, presenting it as "a moment of light in the context of the war".[23]
He currently resides in Jerusalem, with his wife and two children.[8]
References
edit- ^ a b "About DJ Raphi". YouTube.
- ^ a b "Who is DJ Raphi?". Fun In Jerusalem. December 18, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ "Un nuevo "Jerusalema" pero para Hanuka". Israel Económico (in Spanish). December 14, 2020. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
- ^ a b c Matan, Aviva (May 10, 2024). "How an Award-Winning Breakdancer Broke into YouTube Kids". Thought Leaders. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ a b Stern, Asher. "Confronting antisemitism in the digital age". Jewish News Sindicate. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ a b c David, Barry (January 27, 2022). "Meet DJ Raphi, the man transforming the religious dancing scene". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ a b Feinberg, Tali (October 27, 2022). "Bus accident victim leaves legacy of love and language". Jewish Report. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ a b c "DJ Raphi, the Israeli influencer whose dances are a sensation worldwide". Aurora (in Spanish). May 12, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ Linde, Steve (November 11, 2022). "Why do Israeli drivers, pedestrians have right-of-way at the same time?". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ Dennen, Sydney (August 1, 2019). "Four men come together to form Israel's newest beatboxing group". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ "How Does the IDF Celebrate Purim?". Jewish Humour Central. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ "Dancing to a different tune". Israel21c. 2010-07-29. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
- ^ Blondy, Brian (16 March 2010). "Breaking the mould". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ Tress, Luke (2 January 2012). "Breakdancing Spins Tel Aviv on Its Head". Haaretz. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ Gur-Arieh, Norah (6 August 2012). "Israel and the world". Jewish Journal. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ "Doyobe 2013: Breakdance-Wettbewerb". Salzburg 24. 3 November 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ "Acapella group Kippalive rock The X-Factor Israel". The Jerusalem Post. 29 October 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ Ziv, Stav (12 December 2015). "One for Each Night: Eight Hanukkah Songs from 2015". Newsweek. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
- ^ "How DJ Raphi Got To 700 Thousand Daily Views With Dance and A Positive Message". Youtube Creators Hub. April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ "This Niggun Comes With Dancing Instructions". Col Live. November 10, 2021. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ Hershenson, Sarah (March 19, 2019). "Meet DJ Raphi, the man transforming the religious dancing scene". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ "Tzama Jewish Music Festival travels from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv". AJN (in Spanish). March 18, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
- ^ Tusak, Corey (September 15, 2024). "'Nekudot' dance by DJ Raphi spreads light amid darkness of war". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved September 18, 2024.