Lipa Schmeltzer
| Lipa Schmeltzer | |
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Lipa Schmeltzer
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Lazar Lipa Schmelczer |
| Born | March 17, 1978 |
| Genres | Contemporary Jewish |
| Occupation(s) | Vocalist, composer, singer, performer |
| Years active | 1998 – present |
| Website | www |
Lipa Schmeltzer (Hebrew: ליפא שמלצר), also known as Lazar Schmelczer is an American Jewish singer, entertainer writer, composer and leader of the Airmont Shul. He is a headliner within Hasidic as well as modern Jewish communities worldwide and known as "the Jewish Elvis" and "the Lady Gaga of Hasidic music". Schmeltzer has released 13 solo albums as of 2014.
Schmeltzer grew up in the Hasidic enclave of New Square, New York a village in Rockland County, New York. His grandfather, a Jewish farmer in pre-war Hungary, was murdered during World War II, leaving his father, Reuven, an orphan at the age of 13. Reuven Schmeltzer was one of the 1684 Jews who escaped Nazi-controlled Hungary on the Kastner train and spent time in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp before being released in Switzerland. He and his wife had 12 children of which Lipa is the second-youngest.
Lipa married his wife Miriam also a native of New Square, on August 27, 1998. They have four children.
After his wedding, Schmeltzer tried to find work as a badchen (entertainer) for weddings. Though he had no formal musical training, he began performing at weddings and bar mitzvahs in the Haredi Jewish communities of upstate New York and Brooklyn. He earned a reputation as a natural performer, and began releasing recordings and videos. The first, Nor B'Simcha (Only Be Happy), was released shortly after his wedding. With his thick, round eyeglasses and sidelocks, "outlandish" outfits, and comical YouTube videos, he has rocketed to stardom in the Hasidic music world.
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