2 Live Jews
| 2 Live Jews | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Comedy hip hop |
| Years active | 1990–1998 |
| Labels |
Hot Productions Empire Musicwerks/VI Music/Universal Records |
| Members |
Moisha MC Easy Irving |
2 Live Jews was a comedy hip hop duo composed of MC Moisha (Eric Lambert) and Easy Irving (Joe Stone). Their name is a parody of 2 Live Crew. It is known for songs that mix and spoof hip hop culture and Jewish American stereotypes, and the fact that the "members" were purportedly two elderly Jewish men who had recently discovered their rhyming ability. In reality, Eric Lambert and Joe Stone were young men who were raised in the Jewish tradition.
Style
2 Live Jews' original rhyming style involves hip hop lyrics typical of Golden Age hip hop of the early 1990s but includes sung and non-hip-hop tunes. Its lyrics tend to be about clichéd or stereotypical Ashkenazi Jewish topics. In keeping with Jewish stereotypes, the duo’s lyrics are full of Yiddish words, often unknown to most non-Yiddish speakers. Because of Moisha and Irving's old age, they rhyme with haggard voices.
History
Created in 1990, 2 Live Jews released its debut album, As Kosher as They Wanna Be. The name of the group and the album were spoofs of 2 Live Crew's 1989 hit As Nasty as They Wanna Be. With hits like "Oy! It's So Humid," "Young Jews be Proud," and "Shake Your Tuchas," the album was a success and launched 2 Live Jews into the spotlight.
As Kosher as They Wanna Be was the duo's most successful and popular album, and afterward, 2 Live Jews released 4 more albums. Fiddling With Tradition was released in 1991 as a hip-hop reworking of the 1964 musical Fiddler on the Roof; it got only minor attention and was not a successful novelty album. 2 Live Jews went on to create Disco Jews in 1994 and Christmas Jews in 1998. On VH1 the duo guest-starred as talking heads for the special "40 Least Hip Hop Moments." Moisha and Irving released a greatest-hits album, The Worst of 2 Live Jews...the Best of the Shticks, in 2005.
Discography
- As Kosher As They Wanna Be (1990), Hot Productions
- Fiddling With Tradition (1991), Hot Productions
- Disco Jews (1994), Hot Productions
- Christmas Jews (1998), Hot Productions
- The Worst of 2 Live Jews...the Best of the Shticks (2005), Empire Musicwerks/VI Music/Universal Records