From left: Itsik Shamly, Booskills, Subliminal and Sivan.

Being a journalism student, I got the chance to join an elite group of students for an interview with Subliminal. I have been a fan of Subliminal for as long as I can remember, so this experience was amazing.

The Israel 60 celebrations took place in a well-known London club called the Ministry of Sound, which was transformed into “mini Israel.” We had a room called “Tel Aviv,” where members of the TACT Entertainment Group performed, a room called “Jerusalem,” which included a marketplace and bar-lounge area, the “Galilee,” which was transformed into a casino, a BBQ and nargila (hookah) outside, plus Bedouin tents, where the interview took place.

Ya’akov “Kobi” Shimoni, also known as Subliminal, walked into the room looking the part of a hip-hop artist in baggy clothes, a cap to the side and a lot of bling—including a huge Star of David dangling from his neck. Unlike my stereotypical expectation of hip-hop artists, Subliminal proved to be one of the most down-to-earth people I’ve ever met. Subliminal spoke about what being Israeli means to him and said: “I am Jewish, Israeli, Zionist ... that’s who I am and that’s the most important thing to me. Our religion and our tradition for me, and for a lot of Israelis, are mixed into one thing. There are a lot of stigmas about us Israelis; most of them are true. I’ve got to say, I love Israelis because we’re all family. The way we see the world, our reality, is very different to any other place in the world. Knowing what my family went through, I could never take Israel for granted.”

Subliminal spoke about one of his most memorable experiences in his singing career. “Hip hop is the biggest thing in France,” he said. “Ninety-nine percent of the rappers there are Muslim, so many Jews in France are afraid to mention that they are Jewish. There have been many horrifying situations. Once, a group of anti-Israeli kids came to our show. After the show, many of them came up to me and told me how we had opened their eyes. From what I understood, this was the first time in their life that they saw Jewish people as human beings.”

Subliminal has collaborated with some amazing artists. He told us about his concert with Senegalese-American hip-hop star Akon and their trip around the ancient city.

Another member of the TACT family is Guy Bouskilla, also known as Booskills. His presence is enough to make any girl’s heart beat faster! Booskills was raised in L.A. but recently made aliyah to Israel.

Booskills said: “Israel is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. It has nothing to do with Judaism, it’s just like that. If you come to Israel, even if you’re not a Jew, you instantly fall in love with the place, whether it’s Israel’s history, the beaches or the modern city.”

Booskills says making aliyah is one of the best decisions he’s ever made.

Mandy Cohen is 18 and a member of the JVibe Teen Advisory Board. She is at university studying journalism and psychology. She loves fashion, traveling, learning new languages and going to the movies.