Rav Shmuel (musician)
| Rav Shmuel | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Shmuel Skaist |
| Born |
December 8, 1964 Brooklyn, New York |
| Genres | Jewish rock, alternative rock, anti-folk |
| Instruments | Guitar, vocals |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Labels | Jewish Music Group, My Friend Steve |
| Associated acts | Phish, The Groggers |
| Website | ravshmuel |
Shmuel Skaist (born December 8, 1964), known professionally as Rav Shmuel, is an American Orthodox rabbi, speaker, and musician from Brooklyn, New York. Initially gaining recognition for his Jewish outreach programs aimed at Phish concertgoers, Skaist taught in yeshivot in New York and Israel for several years before deciding to pursue a music career. His debut studio album, , was released in 2006 by the Jewish Music Group label.
Shmuel Skaist was born on December 8, 1964 to a devoutly Orthodox family in Brooklyn, New York's Crown Heights neighborhood. He is descended from a long line of prominent rabbis.
Although forbidden from listening to secular music, Skaist heard his first secular song, "Dream Weaver" by Gary Wright, at age 12, and subsequently began listening to bands like The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, and Led Zeppelin. As a teenager growing up in Queens and Baltimore, he hung out at arcades and pool halls and smoked marijuana recreationally (though he quit the habit by age 20).
He studied at the Sh'or Yoshuv Yeshiva, where he became close with the rosh yeshiva, Rabbi Shlomo Freifeld. After his ordination, he became a rebbe at a yeshiva high school in New York, where he would often get his student's attention by playing his guitar in class. He also oversaw youth outreach programs for the Orthodox Union , taught at Stern College for Women, and recorded a Jewish-themed grunge album.
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