Nissim Black | Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Takeaways
Nissim Black was born Damian Black and raised in Seattle.
He studied for more than two years before his Jewish conversion.
"Nissim" is Hebrew for miracles.
His family made aliyah to Israel in 2016.
His songs work like personal prayers set to a beat.
Picture a kid walking to school in Seattle's Seward Park neighborhood. Every morning he passes a synagogue, glances at it, and keeps going. He has no idea that building is a preview of his whole future.
Decades later, that same kid is a rapper living in Israel, and he tells the story with a grin. Fair warning, it's a good one.
A Seattle Childhood With a Beat
Damian Jamohl Black grew up with music in the background of everything. His parents performed with the Emerald Street Boys and Girls, one of the city's earliest hip-hop groups. The family also had ties to legends like Quincy Jones and Ray Charles. That's quite a pedigree for one household.
Underneath the music, a young man was searching for something steadier. He kept looking.
A Young Man Who Kept Seeking God
At 13, Nissim found a youth program that offered safety, friendship, and his first real introduction to faith. He has spoken warmly about how those years helped him step away from street life and feel that God was personally looking out for him.
Meanwhile, he was rapping as D. Black and turning heads in Seattle's hip-hop scene. As he studied the Bible more deeply, he felt pulled toward the roots of Jewish tradition.
What He Found in Torah
Three things drew him in, and they're worth listing:
The roots of Scripture and its ancient story
The discipline of a life shaped by learning and prayer
The closeness of a relationship with God
He and his wife, Adina, studied with Rabbi Simon Benzaquen at Seattle's Sephardic Bikur Holim Congregation. The process took more than two years of learning, prayer, and personal growth. That's longer than most people keep a gym membership, and he embraced every day of it.
In 2013, Nissim and Adina remarried in a Jewish ceremony.
A Name That Means Miracles
In 2011, Nissim paused his music to focus on his studies. When he returned, he performed as Nissim, Hebrew for "miracles." You can't script a better stage name.
In 2016, he, Adina, and their children made aliyah. They began in Jerusalem, and today they live in Beit Shemesh. He connects especially with Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, whose teachings celebrate personal prayer, joy, and a heartfelt bond with God.
His songs, including "Fly Away" and "Mothaland Bounce," blend hip-hop, Jewish themes, and African-American heritage. In the "Mothaland Bounce" video, different dancers come together as shalom, peace, joins the parts of his identity. Every piece of his story gets a seat at the table.
Back to the Synagogue Door
Go back to that kid in Seattle. He's still walking. The road turned out to be longer, wider, and far more musical than anyone could have guessed.
Nissim Black's story is about seeking God sincerely and being changed by the search. Anyone who has ever wondered where they belong can hear themselves in it.
So the next time you pass a door you've walked by a hundred times, slow down. You never know what's inside, and sometimes it's a miracle with a beat.
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