Orthodox hip-hop: Niz rsquo;s raps are 100% kosher

And don rsquo;t call Niz a copycat. While he and Matisyahu infuse their rhymes with spirituality, Niz is pure hip-hop, Matisyahu a reggae icon.Niz rsquo;s first CD is slated to debut this summer, and he recently returned from Los Angeles where he was given the lead role in a short film about, what else, a Jewish rapper.

Record execs say Niz is fresh. Yet his style recalls the early rsquo;90s New York sound, with biting, witty lyrics like those of Nas and Wu-Tang. ldquo;Stuck between wrong and right like I rsquo;m walking the tightrope, rdquo; he raps in ldquo;Desert Song, ldquo;I cope in cold times and in the dark of the night I put a flame to the game and brought a spark of the light.

rdquo;

Some of Niz rsquo;s lyrics also reflect his religious beliefs. But five years ago, before he kept kosher or wore a yarmulke, he never would have guessed that he rsquo;d be rapping about Judaism. After graduating from Clark University in 1994 with a degree in French, Niz flew to Paris, where he made friends with a brother and sister, both orthodox Lubavitch Hasidic Jews and huge hip-hop fans.

They inspired Niz spiritually and musically.

ldquo;It rsquo;s all divine providence, rdquo; he said. ldquo;God found me.

I fully admired and wanted to be part of their way of life at a time when I really didn rsquo;t know what it was about. rdquo;

As Niz strengthened his faith, his music changed. His lyrics became more spiritual and he stopped swearing.

And he became a regular performer at a Paris nightclub, La Villa, where he found that people really loved his music.

He returned to the United States in 2005 and became involved in the Kenmore Square Chabad House. His rabbi introduced him to Matisyahu, who asked Niz to perform with him at his Boston show last December.

He raved about Niz rsquo;s mix CD to Dan Seliger, co-founder of Jewish hipster label 12 Tribe Sound.