The popular Israeli hip hop duo, Static and Ben-El is making headlines all over the US with their first English-language song, “Further Up,” featuring American rapper Pit Bull. The YouTube video for the newly-released song already had a lucky 18 million views — and counting — at press time. These young pop stars even got a spot on the television show, Good Morning America, to promote their new tune. The GMA host Michael Stachan introduced the musicians by noting that altogether their songs have nearly half a billion views on YouTube and said, “You guys are big stars in your country.” Asked how it felt to collaborate with a major rapper like Pitbull, the Israeli duo responded that it was, “A dream come true.” Pitbull explained that Israeli-American media mogul Haim Saban, on whose record label he records, brought the three together. The song is inspired by “Here Comes the Hotstepper.” While Hebrew-language hip hop and rap is popular in Israel, this is the biggest international crossover hit so far.
Israel's pop duo Static & Ben El Tavori(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)