Maccabeats release new Hanukkah song
Young fan inspires Jewish acapella group’s latest Festival of Lights-themed music video entitled 'Burn,' based on Ellie Goulding’s hit song
The music video affected millions of people around the world. Since being released just under three years ago, "Candlelight" has amassed over 8.5 million views on YouTube only.
As The Maccabeats explain in a recent press release, "In the weeks and months following the explosion of 'Candlelight,' we received a remarkable variety of correspondence from fans all around the world. But one young man’s email stood out.”
That young man is the inspiration behind the Jewish acapella group’s latest Hanukkah-theme music video entitled "Burn," based on Ellie Goulding’s hit song.
“This young man explained that, of the three thousand students in his rural community's public school, he was the only Jew. And until he saw our video, he had never told anyone that he was Jewish.
"However, after seeing our video and seeing that there was nothing wrong with being proud of your religion and heritage in a public setting, all that changed. He wore his kippa to school for the first time, and was not afraid to be proud of his tradition and who he was," the band explains in the press release.
"The video tells the story of how one young man draws inspiration from his Hanukkah experience to stand up to his modern-day 'Greek' bullies. In a way, his family's observance fulfills pirsumei nisa (publicizing the Hanukkah miracles, a term the Talmud uses to describe the function of the Hanukkah candles), as our protagonist channels the flames of Hanukkah to feed the fire of his Jewish pride."
Reprinted with permission from Shalom Life
