Yoeli Klein and Shaya Gross Tell

The Chassidic musicians Yoely Klein and Shaya Gross revealed in an interview with 'Kol Chai' radio where the words for their massive hit - 'Afilu Be'hastara' (Even in Concealment) - originated.

Yoely Klein recounts: "In short, Shaya (Gross, his creative partner) finishes the song at 'Afilu Be'hastara'... the song stops there, so what do we do here?"

"We have a friend named Yechezkel Glick, a good friend common to both of us, and he told us that he saw the words: 'Even behind the difficult things that you are going through, I am standing,' he saw it in some pamphlet."

Shaya interrupts the conversation and asks: A pamphlet of what?

Yoely Klein answers with a question: Of the Rabbanit Berland (Rabbanit Tehilla Berland shlit"a)? Really?

Shaya answers: "Yes!"

Yoely: "To this day, he (Yechezkel Glick) hadn't told me."

Shaya: "Yes! A pamphlet of the Rabbanit of Rav Berland! The words are from the pamphlet of the Rabbanit of Rav Berland!"

Yoely Klein returns to the creative process that eventually led to the wonderful words of 'Afilu Be'hastara': "Yes. And then Shaya connected the words and it came out: 'Even behind the difficult things that you are going through, I am standing.' And I say to myself, what is happening here? There is a stew here! There is a cooking process here! There is something good here!"

Shaya: "We didn't understand to what extent!"

The interviewer asks: "You didn't understand?"

Yoely: "Absolutely not."

The interviewer: "I think it is impossible to understand to what extent, even now - there is no secular person, no religious person, there is no person whom the song did not touch and strengthen somewhere in their life."