Draft:Yidi Bialostozky

Yidi Bialostozky (Hebrew: יודי ביאלוסטוצקי), born Yehuda Aryeh Leib Bialostozky in 1998, is a contemporary Jewish singer, songwriter, and entertainer.

Early life
Bialostozky was born in 1998 in Jerusalem, Israel, and grew up in the Gerrer community in Toronto, Canada. His music is inspired by the liturgical music of the famous Gerrer composer Yankel Talmud, which Bialostozky was exposed to as a child in the Gerrer Shtieble.

Musical career
Bialostozky began singing at the age of 20. He released his first music video, "Meine Tefillin," written by Lipa Schmeltzer (and originally performed by Avraham Fried), in December 2019.

In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 quarantine, Bialostozky received critical acclaim for his first original composition "Shabbos Hee" where he reflects hope in the face of the empty streets caused by the pandemic. The Jewish Insight reported that Bialostozky spontaneously composed and recorded the song on a Friday afternoon as he was preparing for a shabbos in quarantine, and uploaded it to social media where it "went viral becoming an instant hit." In light of the positive public response, Bialostozky collaborated with other quarantined musicians who each recorded themselves from their home and released "Shabbos Hee" as an official single. Bialostozky was praised by critics both for overcoming the challenges of recording multiple musicians individually from their home, and for completing the project and releasing the single within a week, in time for the next Shabbos!. Later in the pandemic, Bialostozky participated in yet another quarantine collaboration with several Jewish musicians, including Avraham Fried, Mordechai Shapiro, Gad Elbaz, and others, to sing "Someday" by Mordechai Ben David in support of Chai Lifeline.

In 2024, by now considered a "popular wedding and event singer and songwriter," Bialostozky released his first Album Shishi. The album is comprised of 11 original songs and a twelfth song composed in collaboration with Yitzi Waldner. Bialostozky also wrote all of the lyrics. Shishi was received well by critics in both the United States and Israel. Riki Goldstein, writing for Mishpacha magazine, describes the compositions as having "an aura of originality . . . (while still maintaining the) . . . warm, heimishe feel that carries the day." Israel Groveis, chief editor of Kulmus magazine, deputy chief editor of Hebrew Mishpacha magazine, and former chief editor of Hebrew Bakehila magazine, describes some of Bialostozky's new music as emblematic of a new trend. In his column in Hebrew Mishpacha, Groveis posits that sad music actually makes as feel good, due to release of hormones. He proceeds to praise the song "Pyjama'lech" from Shishi for its riveting narration of Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau's Buchenwald camp story over dramatic music. Groveis concludes that the narrated songs like the ones in Shishi represent what he sees as contemporary American Hasidic music shifting away from overused verses from traditional sources; a trend that he welcomes and considers more refined.

Personal life
Bialostozky is the grandson of former Israeli Knesset member Rabbi Menachem Eliezer Moses, a former member of the Israeli Knesset. He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife and two children, and serves as a chazzan (cantor) during the high holidays in Jewish communities in Miami and New York.

Albums

 * Shishi (2024)

Singles

 * "Shabbos Hee" (2020)
 * "Lechtig" (2020, with Moishy Schwartz)
 * "Yoim Zeh Leyisroel" (2020)
 * "Echad Mi Yodea" (2020, with Motty Ilowitz)
 * "Achoseini" (2022, with Mendy Hershkowitz Band)
 * "Èmes" (2023)
 * "Yivneh Beiso" (2023, with Mendy Weiss)
 * "De Rebbe Is Gezunt" (2023, with Kalmey Schwartz, Shmaya Fischer, Sruly Altman, Bentzy Weberman, and Chaim Brown)