Aspiring singer Dovid Rotberg is fully aware that there are countless other talented young men out there who dream of building a career on their vocal abilities, but for the 22-year-old from Passaic, getting up in front of a microphone isn’t about glitz and glamour. It’s about brightening someone else’s day in the way that he knows best, whether it is singing at a simchat chosson v’kallah, davening for the amud or choosing the next song at a kumzitz.
Rotberg, the oldest of five children, is an alumnus of Yeshiva Ktana of Passaic and Heichal Hatorah high school. After studying at Yeshivat Netiv Aryeh in Jerusalem, he returned home to New Jersey, continuing his learning at Heichal Hatorah Bais Medrash and Yeshiva Gedola Ohr Yitzchok. He is currently interning with Meridian Capital Group while also going for a degree in business at Fairleigh Dickinson University. While he enjoys his work, spending time with friends and family and playing shortstop, there is no doubt that music is Rotberg’s first love.
“Growing up, I always sang,” Rotberg told The Jewish Link. “I did performances for my family and my uncle would call me up saying, ‘Introducing Dovid Rotberg!’ and I would belt out zemiros.”
As a kid, Rotberg sang with Kolainu Boys Choir, which performed locally in nursing homes, and he gave up a spot in Eli Gerstner’s Yeshiva Boys Choir after learning that Yeshiva Ktana wasn’t in favor of his joining the group. With his voice changing after his bar mitzvah, he took a hiatus from singing until he came back from yeshiva and friend Dovid Pearlman invited him to sing a chuppah together.
“I fell in love with weddings and simchas and using the gift Hashem gave me to enhance the simcha of a chosson and kallah,” said Rotberg. “Some people view events as a gig, but I like to come early and meet the family. It’s not a job to me—it is an honor to be part of the simcha and want to make sure when I sing a chuppah to customize it so it is exactly what the chosson and kallah want.”
Since that time, Rotberg has sung at multiple weddings, whether it is doing a chuppah, dinner sets, simchas chosson v’kallah or the entire event. He puts significant effort into every wedding, with an eye towards doing his part to ensure that the chosson and kallah have the most beautiful night of their lives.
Rotberg recalled speaking with composer, producer, singer and arranger Yitzy Waldner and telling him how much he enjoys singing at weddings. “He gave me a bracha that I should always be able to sing at weddings for the right reasons, because it is easy to lose sight of why you are doing this,” said Rotberg.
Even as he dreams of a career as a vocalist, Rotberg understands that making it big isn’t always about being able to hit the notes at either end of the scale. “I realize that this is 100% siyata dishmaya,” he observed. “There are people who are incredibly talented who don’t make it, and it clearly has more to do with Hashem than with talent.”
Rotberg, who also plays piano and is often hired for Shabbat events, is mystified by people in the industry who view singing as a job. He recalled being hired for a Shabbat event along with an a cappella group who got up to leave as soon as the designated time was over. “We were officially done, but my friend and I stayed and kept on singing. We loved singing; people were enjoying; we would never have dreamed of leaving just because the time we were being paid for was up.”
He released an official studio music video last November, creating a mashup of Simcha Leiner’s “Ribono” and Moshe Tischler’s “Tefilas Ha’Neiros,” both of which resonated with him. He looks forward to releasing his first original single in late February, titled “Mi Adir,” which is being produced and arranged by Rafi Barides. Rotberg hopes that people will relate to the song and will appreciate the effort and emotion that it conveys.
Knowing just how many other talented vocalists are hoping to break into the business, Rotberg believes that his ability to be in the moment when he sings works to his advantage. He strives to make every minute of every simcha as beautiful as it can possibly be, and he admits to getting emotional at weddings. “I will cry at a chuppah that isn’t mine, when the wedding is people I don’t even know, because seeing parents giving their daughter away to a chosson is such a powerful moment.”
Asked to name the singer he admires most, the young musician doesn’t hesitate, naming Moshe Tischler as someone whose career trajectory struck a chord with him.
“Moishe Tischler never saw himself as a singer until he started singing at friends’ weddings and started going full speed ahead,” noted Rotberg. “I like how he can bring the energy during dancing and can still bring emotion at the chuppah. I can relate to the idea of a yeshiva guy realizing he loves something just by doing it. He did it, he loved it and went with it—and that really inspires me.”
For more information or bookings, contact Dovid Rotberg via phone, text or WhatsApp at 973-951-3654.
By Sandy Eller
