From the streets of Baltimore to the streets of Jerusalem, Y-Love (aka Yitz Jordan) has experienced it all. Having spent time at several yeshivas, Y-Love knows the Hebrew Scriptures like the back of his hand. Straight from God’s lips to his ears, he uses his interpretations to create some of the hottest Jewish hip hop around. Y-Love’s unique blend of English, Hebrew and Aramaic make for some of the most intense tracks. Y-Love says, “I write hip hop to elevate, not to tranquilize minds.” Through the universal language of music, Y-Love urges listeners to help unify the world, rather than be part of the problem by hating one another. Be part of the solution and listen to This is Babylon, Y-Love’s newest creation, due in stores this spring. And enter to win one of five copies.

How was growing up on the streets of Baltimore?
I was raised in East Baltimore during a time when Baltimore had the highest murder rate in the nation. My mother’s philosophy was to keep me occupied after school so I would stay off the streets, so I was sheltered from a lot of things I could have gotten into. We had gangs operating about four blocks from me, but I never got involved.

What music did you listen to as a teen?
I was into hard rock, heavy metal and punk rock more than anything, but I listened to hip hop on the radio a bit. In Baltimore there’s a unique kind of music called “club music.” This was a huge staple of my musical diet—every day after school I listened to DJs spin.

You slowly gravitated toward Judaism and ended up at a yeshiva. How did hip hop music fit in?
I began rhyming while learning at Ohr Somayach yeshiva in Jerusalem in 2000. It took 13 months to convert [to Chasidism]. The first study partner I had was an MC from Long Island, and we would freestyle the Talmud back and forth. When we came back from yeshiva, we rhymed at open mics in New York, and the rest is history. I signed to Modular Moods Records in 2005.

Why did you choose hip hop as your genre of choice?
Hip hop kind of chose me! I was always into writing poetry. I had a collection of about 100 poems by the time I finished high school, and I have always been a student of language. Hip hop is the poor man’s art form, created by kids in the Bronx, many of whom couldn’t afford musical instruments. It was the way for kids with no voice to express themselves, and it’s an art form that can bring people together in a unique way.

You create a unique sound with English, Hebrew and Aramaic. Where did you pick all the languages up?
From yeshiva and the Orthodox community. Many Orthodox people speak a type of slang called “frumspeak” or “yeshivish,” a mix of English, Hebrew and Yiddish phrases that originate from yeshiva learning. Speaking and hearing this every day made learning the languages easier than if I had been learning only from books or tapes. Yiddish I actually learned by eavesdropping on Chasidic people’s conversations when I was converting; I used to listen to people talking and ask a few hours later, “What does this word mean?” so they wouldn’t know I was listening in! I learned Aramaic because the Talmud and kabbalistic writings are written in it.

Does it take a long time for you to complete a track?
No. I can usually finish writing a song in a day or two once I put pen to paper. But I’m easily distracted when it comes to writing. This happens a lot when I’m writing a religiously themed song: I’ll look up something in the Torah, which makes me think of another question, and so I look that answer up, and another and another. Four hours later I have six books open and understand a deep question of the universe, but still have nothing written!

Can we expect something big in the future from Y-Love?
God willing, the album should blow up like what! But I hope to be able to do more than just make phat hip-hop tracks. I hope to touch and change lives for the better because we all know music has the power to reach the heart and soul. I hope I help unite people and do my part to destroy hatred and build bridges between people instead of walls. What could be bigger than that?

Isaac Gealer, aka “Muscles,” is 17 years old and lives in Phoenix, Ariz. He spends most of his time playing and making music, longboarding and hanging out with his friends. He’s also a member of the JVibe Teen Advisory Board.