DISTURBED's DAVID DRAIMAN Explains How His Jewish Identity Has Shaped His Professional Life

In the latest episode of The Brink podcast, DISTURBED frontman David Draiman joins podcast host Andrew Fox a deeply personal conversation about Hamas's October 7, 2023 attacks — which saw more Jews killed in a single day than any time since the Holocaust — antisemitism, Israel and why he has refused to remain silent despite the potential cost to his career. Drawing on his own experiences of antisemitism and his family's history, from grandparents who survived Auschwitz and Dachau to relatives who served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF),Draiman explains why defending the Jewish people has always been central to his identity. He reflects on how October 7, 2023 transformed that fight and why the reaction that followed left him deeply concerned about the future of Jews in the West. Draiman also addresses one of the most controversial moments of his activism: writing "Fuck Hamas" on an Israeli artillery shell. He explains why he has no regrets, while also speaking candidly about Palestinian suffering, his hopes for coexistence, and his belief that Israelis and Palestinians ultimately deserve a future beyond perpetual war. Finally, Draiman reflects on the power of music after DISTURBED's "Hold On To Memories" was played at the funeral of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas, and on his friendship with Yarden Bibas. He explains why, whatever the professional consequences of speaking out, being able to act according to his conscience matters more than becoming "the next METALLICA."

Asked how his Jewish identity has shaped his professional life as a member of DISTURBED, Draiman said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, my mother's side of the family, we're a family of Holocaust survivors. My grandmother on my mother's side was a survivor of Auschwitz, and my grandfather on my mother's side was a survivor of Dachau. So, it's meant a lot for all kinds of reasons, whether on my mother's side, my father's side, for a very long time. And in fact, we wrote a song called 'Never Again'. It's one of our anthems. It's something that every time... I've only been blessed to have played Israel twice, but every time we've played there, it's one of the songs that absolutely must be played live. It's a call to arms for our people. It's a refusal to back down. It's a refusal to cower in the face of adversity and in the face of the most dangerous bullies in existence. So, it's been a part of who I am, and since I am, I would think, a significant part of the band, that it's a part of who we are, truth be told, whether we like it or not. And believe me, in today's environment it would be a lot easier to not have the association. It's a burden to carry that a lot of people don't realize.

"You've seen, I'm sure, or you've read the play or seen the play or seen the movie 'Fiddler On The Roof', yeah? Tevye, the character. There's a breaking point for everybody, and I couldn't bend far enough. I was required to bend too far to try and be vanilla, to try and ignore things," Draiman explained. "I can't be the ostrich. I can't put my head in the sand. I can't pretend that the world isn't on fire around me. I'm, like, 'Oh, no, everything is fine.' I'm not one of those people."

Asked where that pressure not to break came from, Draiman said: "Like I said, it would always be easier if you don't have things that add to the friction of trying to move forward in an already questionable and uncertain road that there is for any artist in their development. But when you throw things like this into the equation, it turns into an entirely different animal. And, truth be told is, the greatest reservation and the greatest guilt that I carry isn't even from my family regarding all of this. It's for my brothers in the band who have to bear a burden that has really little to do with them other than the fact that I am their friend, and I appreciate immensely that they've been as supportive as they have been. And it hasn't been easy, and there have been conversations.

"It comes down to this. It comes down to my son. It comes down to, what do I tell my son?" David explained. "How do I tell him to navigate this world that we're in? He's got the best of both sides of ethnicities that right now in this world are some of the most hated. He's part Asian and part Jewish. And so it's a tough mix for the boy. And thank God where he is in school and in his environment, he's a social dynamo and he thrives, thank God. But it's important for me to impart to him that we do not cower. We do not cower to bullies, that we stand up for those who are weaker than us, that we have honor and integrity and all those things that unfortunately for so many this world are a lost art, are incredibly important to me and incredibly important for me to teach my son. And when I explained that to my guys in the band, I think they had a better understanding of it because on the outside, and unfortunately too many in the space, and this is gonna be something that probably many don't like hearing and they've heard me say it before, and I really… I have the luxury at this point of my career and my life that to not really care if there's backlash to me being truthful about something. And the truth is that too many view the defense of our people as a business, and too many try to profit off of it, and too many go ahead and enjoy having their backs patted in echo chambers everywhere and it reverberates and it leads to higher speaking fees and you name it, and it's just insanity. I am a part of it to an extent, just to the extent that I will do it for absolutely nothing. I never ask for anything. And for me, it's a detriment. It's other people in the space that have kind of taken advantage of it and made it part of their persona and made it part of like... If you are blessed with a platform, if you are blessed to influence and be an influencer, you're given a gift. Use it responsibly, use it honorably, use it without trying to self-enrich, without trying to take advantage of a situation that is dire. And I see a lot of people taking advantage, and they should be ashamed of themselves, with all due respect. I wish people were more centrally focused on the fight and on the defense of our people and less focused on themselves."

For years, Draiman has been a prominent activist for the State Of Israel, constantly emphasizing the importance of dialogue and understanding.

In recent years — and especially since October 7, 2023 — he has become one of the most prominent musicians in the world expressing public, consistent, and articulate support for Israel and the IDF. He has visited the country several times, met with hostage families, connected with Yarden Bibas after his return from captivity and his family’s funeral, published videos in Hebrew, and even signed IDF artillery shells with the inscription "Fuck Hamas".

In addition to the Hebrew-speaking Draiman, who once trained to be a cantor and contemplated becoming a rabbi, DISTURBED includes guitarist/keyboardist Dan Donegan, bassist John Moyer and drummer Mike Wengren.

Draiman's father and grandfather served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and both of the singer's maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors. His grandfather was also a cantor in Israel.

When Draiman walked out onstage at the BLACK SABBATH's "Back To The Beginning" farewell show in July 2025, he was met with a smattering of boos because of his unabashed support for Israel and the Israel Defense Forces. He later told The Jerusalem Post that "the press exaggerated the boos. There was a bit of it walking out there, but I still had the crowd pumping fists, clapping hands and singing along," he said.

In December 2021, Draiman said that he had lost thousands of social media followers since publicizing his trip to Israel in November of that year.

On November 30, 2021, Draiman lit a candle at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Israel at the Old City site of the terror attack that killed South African immigrant Eli Kay. He later claimed that he lost 4,000 followers after sharing photos of his "demonstration" at the Western Wall.

Draiman has spent much of his time on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, sharing pro-Israel content and has often used his fame to speak out against antisemitism.

DISTURBED's song "Never Again", from 2010's "Asylum" album, was written about the Holocaust and calls out people who deny it.

The United States Holocaust Museum has featured Draiman in its "Voices On Anti-Semitism" podcasts.