The Creator of “A Yid”
Chayala Neuhaus By Chaya Sara Schlussel
Ask people what their favorite song is, and their answer will largely depend on a combination of factors including age, community, and popular trends. A yeshivish guy in his mid-forties, living in Lakewood, will almost inevitably start waxing poetic about the songs he grew up with – from the vocal power of MBD, to the warm ‘hartz’ of Avremele, to the tear-jerking ballads of Abie Rotenberg. A teenager living in the Five Towns will more likely start belting the high-octane, up-tempo beats of 8th Day or the dance floor hits of Uri Davidi. It’s all about demographics. Which makes it all the more incredible when a single song speaks to an entire generation; from the Bais Yakov schoolgirl to the Holocaust survivor, from black kappel to colorful kipah srugah; from Brooklyn to Belgium to Bnei Brak, the song “A Yid” has captured hearts and uplifted souls without discrimination. It’s both timely and timeless – a classic that’s as relevant today as it would have been half a century ago, and doubtless will continue to be for decades to come. The teenager who’s struggling spiri-
tually hums it right along with the zeide for whom physical pain and loneliness are a daily challenge. “A Yid never breaks, and a Yid never bends, and a Yid never gives up in the night.” Those words strike a chord with Klal Yisroel that is more poignant and pertinent than anyone would have imagined. I caught up with Chayala Neuhaus, the talented composer and lyricist who masterminded the song “A Yid,” to find out what inspired her, and how it feels to know that your song is literally changing the frum world one Yid at a time. “I’ve been composing since I was 11, and I’ve never stopped since.” There’s a smile in her voice as she recounts how she would walk around holding a tape recorder practically everywhere she went. Whenever inspiration struck, she’d sing into the device so as not to forget the tune. Later, she’d tweak it and fine-tune it, molding it into an actual song. By the time she was 18, she was composing and writing professionally for camps, schools and
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