Ori Murray
| Ori Murray | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Rory Murray |
| Also known as | Ori M'Ori |
| Born |
September 2, 1983 Seattle, Washington |
| Origin | Beit Shemesh, Israel |
| Genres | Alternative hip hop, Jewish rock, Jewish hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper, songwriter |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Associated acts | Shtar |
| Website | shtarmusic |
Ori Murray (born Rory Murray; September 2, 1983; Seattle, Washington) is an American-born Israeli rapper, best known as the co-founder and rap vocalist of the band Shtar.
Murray was born in Seattle, Washington to an Irish father and a Jewish mother, although he was raised with little connection to Judaism. His father, Rod Murray, was a high-ranking martial arts instructor with a school in Seattle. Ori himself actively trained and competed in karate and other disciplines from a young age, including several years as a collegiate wrestler. He was introduced to hip hop through albums like Jurassic 5's Quality Control and the Rawkus Records compilation Lyricist Lounge 2, and was further influenced by his high school poetry class.
As a teenager, he would often get into fights at house parties in the city's South Side. One such fight left him so badly injured that he required metal plates in one leg and was unable to walk on it for a year. As part of his recovery, he worked with personal trainer and family friend Yaakov Lunen, an African American who had converted to Orthodox Judaism. Lunen's influence inspired Murray and his entire family to pursue a deeper relationship to Judaism. Murray began attending a weekly class at a local yeshivah; there, he encountered two rabbis from Aish HaTorah who persuaded him to come study at their yeshivah in Israel, where he ended up settling.
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