Rapper Kosha Dillz, born Rami Matan Even-Esh, is heading to Boulder, Colorado, this Sunday for a solidarity event, just one week after an antisemitic attack left 15 people injured. The suspect, a 45-year-old Egyptian national, allegedly hurled Molotov cocktails — described by authorities as a makeshift flamethrower — at a group of Jewish demonstrators. Among those targeted were members of Run For Their Lives, a running group advocating for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza.
FBI Director Kash Patel described the incident as “a targeted act of terror.” According to CBS News, the attacker, who was caught on video yelling phrases like “End Zionist” and “Free Palestine,” now faces multiple counts of attempted murder and federal hate crime charges.
Speaking to Unpacked, Dillz said he was deeply disturbed by the incident, especially because of his connection to the running community.
“People in Boulder messaged me, so I knew I had to come to Colorado,” Kosha Dillz told Unpacked. “These are peaceful gatherings, and it’s terrible that they were attacked. I felt I should be there, speaking to people. This is actually a place that got firebombed. It’s absurd that in 2025, people are trying to burn Jews.”
Read more: Rapper Kosha Dillz is embracing Jewish identity through hip-hop and ‘Bald Hashana’
That such a brazen, violent attack could happen in broad daylight is deeply alarming, Dillz said — especially in the wake of the recent murders of Sarah Milgram and Yaron Lichinsky, a Jewish couple killed in Washington, D.C., just weeks ago.
“Terrorists want people to hide,” he said.
Kosha Dillz’s Oct. 7 movie was canceled by theaters twice
In the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, Kosha Dillz traveled to Israel multiple times, meeting with survivors and families of hostages. From those experiences came “Bring The Family Home” — a documentary and song both aimed at raising awareness and demanding the release of Israeli hostages.
The film includes stories from victims’ relatives, including a family member of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was murdered by Hamas. It also captures viral moments of Dillz engaging with anti-Israel protesters, most notably, a tense encounter on a college campus where he tried to have a dialogue but was drowned out by noisemakers and chants.
But what shocked Dillz even more was the resistance the film faced not from political opponents, but from a film venue.
The Chicago-based theater Facets initially agreed to screen the documentary but canceled the event, citing “security issues.” After speaking with the staff, Dillz said he was relieved to hear they were open to rescheduling. Multiple Zoom meetings followed, and a new date was set — only for Facets to cancel a second time.
“It was surprising and very upsetting,” he told Unpacked. “They said there was a comment online that someone would pay a bounty to firebomb the place. They said it was our followers. It could have been someone randomly commenting on the Internet, and the precedent you set is that you shut down a Jewish film because a random person makes a comment. They never showed evidence of who this person was. We discussed things in detail over multiple Zoom calls, so it makes no sense for them to then cancel it a second time. It has nothing to do with the film, so they claim, it has to do with a random person making a threat or a person sending e-mails complaining, which they claim was harassment. But they basically got bullied into caving and not screening the film.”
Facets did not respond to Unpacked’s requests for comment. However, in a prior public statement, the theater said it received over 2,500 messages, including social media backlash and one post offering a bounty “to anyone willing to burn down” the venue. The statement also alleged that supporters of Dillz had flooded the theater with emails, which it categorized as harassment.
Dillz strongly denies encouraging any kind of intimidation.
“I never told anyone to harass the theater,” he said. “I just wanted people to care about the film and what it stands for.”
Fighting for social justice and standing up for Jewish pride
Dillz is among many Jews who say they’ve felt abandoned by progressive allies during the surge in antisemitism. Comedian Michael Rapaport has echoed that sentiment, pointing out that Jews showed up for causes like Black Lives Matter, but haven’t seen the same solidarity in return.
Dillz said he has marched in past BLM rallies alongside his friends in the hip-hop community.
“For me, I always look at it that if I am showing up for someone, that’s a part of me, and if showing up is the right thing to do, by showing up for a friend, I’m showing up for myself as well. I can only control myself. I can’t control whether others decide to show up for me.”
Despite the fear and frustration, Dillz said he remains committed to Jewish visibility and resilience.
“I think it is important to continue to show Jewish pride,” he said. “It’s definitely crazy times. For me, it’s important to go out and speak to people and let them know that we care and nobody is alone.”
Originally Published Jun 7, 2025 08:50AM EDT
