Newsletter
Newsletter Support JNS

Jerusalem choir, with Jews and Arabs, wows US talent show

Jerusalem Youth Chorus earns enthusiastic approval from judges and a standing ovation from the live audience.

The Jerusalem Youth Chorus. Credit: www.kennedy-center.org.
The Jerusalem Youth Chorus. Credit: www.kennedy-center.org.

A youth choir composed of Jews and Arabs has advanced to the second round of “America’s Got Talent” after an impressive audition on Tuesday night’s episode of the NBC show.

The Jerusalem Youth Chorus, made up of singers from east and west Jerusalem, delivered a stirring rendition of Philip Phillips’s song “Home,” earning enthusiastic approval from all four “America’s Got Talent” judges and a standing ovation from the live audience, the Jewish Chronicle reported on Wednesday.

Judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara and Howie Mandel all gave emphatic “yes” votes to the group, praising their performance and message.

One choir member described the group’s mission to the judges, saying, “We believe through music and through working together and talking to each other, we are taking a step forward into building that amazing future where there is justice and there is freedom and there is equality and there is inclusion.”

When asked by Klum about their plans for the $1 million prize money, another member responded, “We will create more spaces just like these choruses so people can meet people who are different from them.”

Cowell commended the group, saying, “You made something very complicated—beautiful through friendship.”

Mandel said that their performance gave him “goosebumps” and called it a “world anthem.”

Vergara described the performance as “heartwarming” and “inspiring.”

Originally published by Israel Hayom.

“I’ve read and seen a lot of what others have had to say in response, and I understand the hurt I caused and am truly sorry,” Rama Duwaji told an online arts magazine.
The legislation would empower the New York City Police Department to set limits on how close demonstrators can gather near schools, as critics warn of free speech infringement.
The move aims to boost long-haul capacity as other airlines scale back routes to and from Israel.
“School districts, like colleges and universities, must take prompt and effective action to address antisemitic harassment,” stated Harmeet Dhillon, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights.
Just one Democratic congressman voted against the measure to require U.S. forces to be withdrawn from the conflict with Iran.
“This tool makes it easier to confront and understand family histories connected to the Nazi era,” Die Zeit stated in its introduction of the database.