Kosha Dillz is no stranger to controversy, especially when it involves standing up for his community in an age where anti-Semitism is becoming alarmingly normalized. Last year, he took a stand against Kanye West, and this year, he’s addressing Macklemore.
His latest track, “Time For A Conversation,” is a direct response to Macklemore’s song “Hinds Hall.” Using the same format, Dillz presents an opposing viewpoint while emphasizing the need for dialogue—something that seems to be missing. The music video features Macklemore superimposed onto the face of Abby Martin, who appears in a debate on Piers Morgan with former Hamas member Mosab Hassan Yusef. In the debate, Yusef criticizes Hamas propaganda, and Dillz echoes this sentiment, refuting both obvious and subtle claims within a two-minute span.
The song tackles heavy topics such as anti-Semitism, cultural appropriation, genocide, protests against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Ethiopian hostages, Toomaj Salehi (an Iranian rapper facing the death penalty), and Hersh Goldberg Polen, a Chicagoan-Israeli hostage whose injury was exploited in a Hamas propaganda video. Dillz refers to his work as a “response record” rather than a “diss record.”
Despite the contentious nature of his message, Dillz’s approach has resonated widely, garnering over 400K views across social media platforms in just three days. He has received support from notable figures such as Matisyahu, Selma Blair, and Scooter Braun. While acknowledging the Nakba and the call for a free Palestine, Dillz argues that these goals are unattainable under the current conditions, encapsulated in his line, “Free Palestine, but you gon’ free the hostages first.”
The ultimate aim of Dillz’s track is to initiate a conversation. Can it happen? Is it possible to hold two conflicting truths simultaneously?
He concludes “Time For A Conversation” with a powerful call to action: “If you still don’t believe us, visit Nova Exhibition, it’s on Wall Street. Please call me; we can have a discussion. I’ll buy us two cups of coffee. Seven months in, I think we’re all losing our patience. Leave the echo chamber; it’s time for a conversation.”
In a world increasingly divided by echo chambers, Kosha Dillz’s call for open dialogue is both timely and necessary.
