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‘Can You Dig It?’: New podcast traces how a Puerto Rican-Jewish gang leader helped create hip-hop in the Bronx

JL;DR SUMMARY In the backdrop of the 1960s Bronx gang conflicts, the Audible podcast "Can You Dig It?" highlights Benjamin "Yellow Benjy" Melendez, leader of the Ghetto Brothers, a multicultural gang that advocated for peace and indirectly contributed to the birth of hip-hop. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

BronxJewish IdentityNew York1970sHip HopBenjamin MelendezGhetto BrothersChuck DLatino Jews

Places mentioned

Bronx, New York, United States
"In the late 1960s, the Bronx was at war."
Queens, New York, United States
"Voloj, who lives in Queens, spoke with JTA this week about hip-hop history."
New York, United States
"lived as a single mom in the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan."
South Bronx, New York, United States
"Fecher was an art teacher at a school in the South Bronx, and she was such a positive influence on all these kids."
Chelsea, New York, United States
"lived as a single mom in the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan."
Spain
"Melendezs ancestors were crypto-Jews from Spain who practiced Judaism in secret."
Colombia
"my parents are Colombian so we really had a lot in common."

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Cairo Item ID 68382
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-11-25 05:31:55 UTC
Curated 2025-11-25 08:31:55 UTC