1000’s Attend Avenue J Music Festival Headlining Alex Clare
The full moon shone over Barnacle State Park as thousands of people gatheredon Sunday night for the annual Avenue J Music Festival, an event created and organized by Chabad at the Grove and Rabbi Getzy Fellig.
The Coconut Grove event celebrated its third successful year, boasting an impressive line of diverse Jewish musicians that included Alex Clare, an orthodox Jewish musician who rose to fame when his hit song “Too Close” reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart, number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and was nominated for Best British Single at the 2013 BRIT Awards.
Fellig gathered Clare, as well as Zusha and the Moshav, to headline an event that attracts a younger Jewish audience in South Florida, and exposes various diverse styles of Jewish music. Zusha, a neo-Chasidic hipster soul band, has recently busted into the Jewish music scene, by borrowing lyrics from ancient liturgy and blending jazz, reggae, folk, ska, gypsy swing, and traditional Jewish soul, into one beautiful and soulful act.
Alternatively, the American/Israeli rock band, Moshav, has been internationally acclaimed since they were discovered in the late 1990’s by American tourists in Israel, who then raised money to bring them on a tour of college campuses around America. “While it is certainly Jewish music, this isn’t your grandfather’s Klezmer fest,” says Fellig.
Rabbi Fellig also noted the uniqueness of this year’s event coming during the Jewish year of Hakhel. “This year is a Jewish year of Hakhel that commemorates the gathering that would happen in Jerusalem during the time of the Temple. Until this day, every seven years Jews celebrate and focus on unity and bringing people together. I am therefore so happy to see that our event was able to do just that, even here in South Florida.”
The event attracted considerable buzz from local media, with articles about the event appearing in news outlets like the Miami New Times. Of particular interest was Alex Clare’s fascinating story that led him to become an orthodox Jew. The stories highlight the many sacrifices he has had to make because of his devotion to Judaism, specifically his decision to pass up on an opportunity to tour with Adele because of it coinciding with Pesach.
The event was also attended by 200 marathon runners, still wearing their medals, who had ran earlier in the day in order to raise funds for “Young Jewish Professionals”, and Friendship Circle, a national organization for children with special needs. Security for the event was organized by community member Eli Shochet of Airborne Security, who worked with local and state police to keep the crowd safe.
