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Jews -- Hoisted on their own petard

Thread ID: 10045 | Posts: 6 | Started: 2003-09-26

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Bardamu [OP]

2003-09-26 01:42 | User Profile

Former rapper MC Serch finds a new home at urban radio station WJLB.

by KenNath Marie Watkins Special to the Jewish News

[url]http://www.detroitjewishnews.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=813[/url]

[hit the link and check out the photo. It's worth it. :punk:

Growing up in the mostly Orthodox enclave of Far Rockaway, Queens, Michael Berrin always stood out as “different” from his fellow Jewish neighbors. Now, living in the metro Detroit area, he stands out as MC Serch, representing a change in the airwaves as the first non-African-American radio personality on Clear Channel’s urban format station WJLB-FM 98 since Casey Kasem’s run in the mid-1950s.

Chantel and Michael Berrin at the microphone of his morning radio show on WJLB-FM 98. “We happen to be very traditional when it comes to Judaism,” he says.

Berrin, left, with fellow 3rd Bass members Prime Minister Pete Nice and DJ Richie Rich.

The Details

Hear Michael Berrin (MC Serch) 5:30-10 a.m. Mondays-Fridays on WJLB-FM 98.

“K.J. Holiday, the program director of WJLB, had a lot of vision and a lot of courage to bring me here,” says Berrin. “He saw that I had history in hip-hop, knew the right people and had the personality for it.” The 36-year-old former rapper had been a member of the now-defunct 3rd Bass, the second white act signed by Def Jam Records after the Beastie Boys and one of the few white U.S. rap groups to maintain any degree of credibility in the mostly African-American world of hip-hop.

But Berrin had worked in radio for only a short time, as a Saturday-night host in Virginia, before the opportunity at WJLB became available in November of last year.

Now, featuring local African-American comedians Co-Co and Foolish, Berrin’s morning show aims to create a sense of unity within the city and the hip-hop culture.

“I think there should be mutual levels of cultural acceptance,” says Berrin, married to Chantel Berrin, who is of African-American and Puerto Rican decent. “People need to embrace hip-hop culture and understand its true meaning. It is not just about rap music.

“It’s about the love of God, the love of community, loving the nature of the beat, the love of the streets and believing in the family unit. That’s what hip-hop has evolved into,” he says.

Berrin, set to become the “new city spokesman” for D.O.C. optical centers, admits to making sacrifices to become part of the “new Detroit” movement. He took a pay cut, moved his family away from their East Coast home and sold his successful promotion company, Serchlight Entertainment.

“It was just a risk I was willing to take,” he explains. “Now my focus is to be the No. 1 morning show in Detroit. Everything else will follow after that,” he says.

The future rapper and radio star was raised with two siblings in a traditional Jewish family, but more often than not, his friendships crossed racial and cultural boundaries.

“I grew up in a very religious area, but I was not ‘Jewish enough’ to hang out with the Jews,” he explains. “I did not have a Hebrew name. I had to go to public school because my parents could not afford to send me to a yeshiva, and the little Jewish kids on the block would not play with me. So, I hung out with the Puerto Ricans and the blacks.”

Seeking fun and friendships, Berrin immersed himself into the new and evolving hip-hop culture. “I was not as lucky to be born into hip-hop like the younger generation,” he says. “I had to go out and discover it.”

While attending the High School of Music and Art in Manhattan, Berrin was surrounded by soon to be hip-hop legends Slick Rick, Dougy Fresh, Dana Dane and many others.

“In the lunchroom, they would all be there hanging out with the Kango Crew: Lance, Omega and the Original Peter Dunn, the first white boy rapper I ever saw. That was it for me. At that point, there was no other music,” he reminisces.

Deciding on a career in rap was a bit of a stretch for a Jewish teenager. However, Berrin’s parents did not object to their son’s radical aspirations as long as he continued to hold a job after high school.

Following graduation, Berrin worked three jobs daily, while earning respect for his clever rhymes and the name MC Serch from friends. Defying expectations, the young lyricist demonstrated talent that eventually propelled him up the ranks in the rap music world, where he met hip-hop pioneer Russell Simmons.

That acquaintance led to the formation of 3rd Bass, a rap group founded by MC Serch (Berrin) and Prime Minister Pete Nice (b. Peter Nash), both white, along with DJ Richie Rich (b. Richard Lawson), an African American.

“Our biggest challenge was hoping that people who loved hip-hop would see us as credible and get past our skin color,” says Berrin.

The group’s 1989 Def Jam debut, The Cactus Album (aka Cee/D), earned mostly enthusiastic reviews, as singles like “The Gas Face,” “Steppin’ to the A.M.” and “Brooklyn-Queens” solidified the group’s reputation in the hip-hop underground. A follow-up album, 1991’s Derelicts of Dialect, featured the very successful “Pop Goes the Weasel,” a viciously funny jab at white rapper Vanilla Ice.

Despite its success, 3rd Bass disbanded in 1992, when Berrin decided to go it alone; later that year, he recorded Return of the Product, the sole effort of his solo career. Berrin went on to develop new talent as A&R vice president of the now-defunct Wild Pitch Records and to form his own label, Serchlight Productions.

Now, years after Berrin stepped away from the microphone to pursue behind-the-scene music deals, including producing new artists such as rap prodigy Nas, he has returned to the ears of listeners — sharing his appreciation for his wife, Chantel, and offering her everyday quotes of wisdom on his radio broadcast.

“We have the kind of relationship that I am very proud of, because we actually worked, fought and clawed for it,” he says.

“She’s waited for the 12 years of our marriage for at least a half-decent version of me, and her loyalty has never wavered. She is my partner, and my happiness can really depend on hers and vise versa. We pick each other up when one is down.”

The couple met when Michael was 21 and Chantel just 17, through mutual friends. It wasn’t long after getting to know each other that they realized their connection.

He was once quoted in Vibe magazine about their union, saying, “After the first kiss, I knew she was the one.” A little over a month after their first date, the excited new lovebirds made plans to move in together.

Both had dated interracially before and said they endured no great conflict as a result of their marriage.

“His mom and family did try to test me,” says Chantel, “but [his mom] was mostly concerned that Michael was not ready for such a commitment. Now our joke is, if we ever get a divorce, I would get his family in the settlement.”

Caring for three elementary-age children, two girls and a boy, is a challenge the couple face one day at a time.

Chantel converted to Judaism when they decided to have children. “My husband did not pressure me,” she says. “We could not have a religious wedding because I was not Jewish, and he married me anyway. Marriage is a big deal [in Judaism], so I decided upon [the conversion] for myself,” she explains.

The Berrin family portrait may contain faces of diverse shades, but they always check the “other” or “multicultural” box when asked to denote race.

“It’s not fair for a child to have to choose in claiming one parent or the other, when [a child is] a combination of both,” says Chantel. “When people ask what race my kids are, I say, ‘human,’” says Michael, who says he is happy to be part of a city that is growing to acknowledge that you can no longer categorize people.

However, Chantel, recognizing the desire of many Jews to live among other Jews, says “there is nothing wrong with that. It’s important to preserve your heritage, and the Jewish population is really not as big as that of other cultures.”

The family resides in a northwest suburb (they do not wish to divulge its location), where they are surprised at the small representation of Jews.

“We made the mistake of moving out here,” says Chantel, “because out of 60 kids in three classes last school year, there was not another Jewish child in our kids’ classes.”

The concerned mother expressed disappointment that her children’s school does not close for the High Holy Days, for which she will keep them home.

The couple also spoke disapprovingly of the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield, which they thought would be a helpful resource and guide to what was available in the Jewish community. According to Chantel, they were the recipients of “only vague suggestions and rude remarks.”

“When I first learned that we were relocating, I called the JCC here and asked if they could provide information [about] where we should be looking to live, because I had never been to Michigan,” she says. “The lady on the phone responded, ‘Maybe you should call a realtor.’

“Then, I said, ‘I am planning on consulting with a realtor, but since my family is Jewish, and you are a Jewish community center, I came to you first,’” she recalls.

The encounter was an extreme disappointment to the Berrins, in comparison with the JCC in Atlanta, which they viewed as being “very warm and welcoming” when vacationing in town to visit close family friends.

The Berrins said they want their three children to attend a Hebrew school, but in the 11 months they have been here, it has been a slow process acclimating to their new surroundings.

“We want flexibility. So far, the schools here we have looked into have [some sort of requirement for] Saturday attendance, but we are not trying to overwhelm our children,” says Michael.

With his active work schedule, he treasures the recreational time they have to enjoy each other, playing baseball — a family favorite — and exploring Detroit’s parks and museums. “My wife suggested we go home for the holidays,” he says. “It’s actually quite funny. As contemporary as my family is — being active in hip-hop and in an interracial marriage — we happen to be very traditional when it comes to Judaism.

“We like the three-day Hebrew school with the big brick synagogue and an old wise rabbi,” he says.

His wife agrees. “Yes, I think it will be good for us and the kids to get grounded and relax again in our old synagogue because,” she says, “so far, we have not really found our religious home here.”

Franco

2003-09-26 02:02 | User Profile

Heh, heh, heh....forwarded....

Bardamu

2003-09-26 02:35 | User Profile

[QUOTE=Bardamu]Former rapper MC Serch finds a new home at urban radio station WJLB.

...after the Beastie Boys and one of the few white U.S. rap groups to maintain any degree of credibility in the mostly African-American world of hip-hop.

[/QUOTE]

Nice little dual slap-at-whites/ buttkiss-to-the- boolies. Imagine if our forefathers as they gave their lives on Omaha Beach could have foreseen that their children would be urged to value [I]credibility[/I] from pimps? Shed a tear for our fallen fathers because they died in vain, and then pick up the sword because this is a Holy War.

Chaucer

2003-09-26 18:53 | User Profile

LMFAO!!! Definitely check out the link!!! hehehe.

Also, The Beastie Boys are members of the tribe as well, not white boys.

Chaucer

2003-10-03 19:27 | User Profile

[url]http://www.50shekel.com/[/url]

jesuisfier

2003-10-03 20:40 | User Profile

[QUOTE]However, Chantel, recognizing the desire of many Jews to live among other Jews, says “there is nothing wrong with that. It’s important to preserve your heritage, and the Jewish population is really not as big as that of other cultures.” [/QUOTE]

Oh, then there's nothing wrong with Whites preserving their heritage either?? And what does size (of culture) have to do with it?

This couples' story is too sick to even laugh at.