๐๐ผ๐ป๐ณ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐ณ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฏ๐ผ๐ ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฐ๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ ๐บ๐๐๐-๐๐ฎ๐๐ฐ๐ต
Jewish Telegraph Facebook, December 2024
If you were writing a drama about a group of young Israelis and Palestinians forming a boy band together, youโd want to include some conflict.
Paramount+ series as1one: The Israeli-Palestinian Pop Music Journey has more conflict than anyone could have imagined . . . and unfortunately it is all real-life.
The makers of this four-part documentary on this unique boy band were probably pretty happy with the footage they had of the search for six Israelis and Palestinians.
Boot camp with 20 hopefuls was interesting and the X-Factor-style phone calls to the successful six were heartwarming.
After heading to England to work with the legend Nile Rodgers at Abbey Road Studios, the sextetโs next stop was Los Angeles where they would live together and plan their world domination . . . so far so The Monkees.
They arrived in LA on October 6, 2023 โ and then everything changed.
The documentary follows Jewish Israelis Nadav Philips, 23, Neta Rozenblat, 22, Niv Lin, 23, and Ohad Attia, 22, Palestinian Christian Aseel Farah, 22, and 21-year-old Bedouin Muslim Sadik Abu Dogosh as they try to come to terms with what happened.
The whole feel and atmosphere of the documentary changes as news of the Hamas attack on Israel filters through.
Itโs particularly hard on Niv, who discovers that one of his best friends, Libby, was murdered at the Nova music festival.
Itโs pretty callous to say that the murder of 1,200 people in Israel followed by the ongoing war in Gaza, which has claimed thousands of lives, elevates this from an interesting experiment into must-watch TV.
There are arguments, tears, anger . . . emotions run high. But they agree to try to remain non-political in order to keep the band together.
Aseel though isnโt happy that they attend a fundraiser for Israel in the aftermath of October 7 as he feels this could alienate him from his community.
But he also points out that they can either let the attack break them up or they could use it to bring them closer. Fortunately, it is the latter.
It also gives them a focus for their lyrics, especially the incredibly moving song Stop The World, written just days after attack.
Social media plays a role too. as1oneโs creators James Diener and Ken Levitan explain to the boys how they need to post a message online, but keep it neutral.
Their message reads: โIn a a world divided, @as1one_official are united through friendship, brotherhood and music. Our hearts break for all the lives lost, the injured, and the grieving.
โWe are singers and musicians. We are Israelis and Palestinians. We come from the same place. Each of us is very different โ yet we are all one. This idea guides our band and we hope and pray, one day, this idea will guide the world.โ
Nadav suggests they post Stop the World online, but other members believe this will be seen as a cynical attempt to cash in on the situation.
I watched the first two episodes of this before going to bed. I had difficulty getting to sleep as it was playing on my mind so much.
Over the last year, the Jewish Telegraph has been full of mugshots of soldiers who have died, many of whom were around the same age of these boys.
This is what they should be doing instead of being sent off to fight wars. As members of as1one keep pointing out, it doesnโt matter if they are Israeli or Palestinian, they are all humans.
After getting a few hours sleep, I woke up early so I could watch the final two episodes before work.
It got even more emotional as the boys formed a bond. When they headed of into the desert, Niv made a shrine to a soldier friend who had died in Gaza. He told Aseel he didnโt know how he would react, and it ended with them embracing.
While they all miss their families in Israel, Sadik seems to be the most homesick, at one point not taking part in a recording session โ so James and Ken decide to take them back to Israel to perform for their loved ones.
What I came away with at the end of the fourth episode was hope for the future. It was such an uplifting message.
These are six very likeable guys who are incredibly talented. They come from different backgrounds, yet they show that no matter what, they have the same interests. All that separates them is the identities that are placed on them.
I really warmed to Aseel early on. I felt for him talking about how no matter where he lived, just being Palestinian meant that some people in Israel would lump him in with the Hamas terrorists (whom he condemned).
I hope that in Israel, as1one are seen as an inspiration to show that co-existence can work.
And I hope that around the world, the protesters see that instead of trying to drive a wedge between us, work on things that unite us.
The singles Stranger and All Eyes On Us are currently available, while they will release a debut EP in January.
All episodes of as1one: The Israeli-Palestinian Pop Music Journey are available to stream on Paramount+.
