Montana Tucker uses her appearance at the 66th Grammys to call attention to plight of Israeli captives.
By Susan Tawil, World Israel News
Singer, songwriter, dancer, and social media influencer Montana Tucker hit the carpet at the Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday making a fashion statement in support of Israeli captives in Gaza.
Tucker’s gown was emblazoned with a giant yellow ribbon loop in support of the 136 Israeli hostages still held captive by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. On the loop was written: “Bring Them Home.”
She also wore a Star of David necklace.
A handful of celebrities also wore smaller yellow ribbons at the Golden Globe Awards on January 7 to promote awareness of the hostage crisis.
At the Grammys, the Recording Academy’s CEO, Harvey Mason Jr., mentioned the tragedy of the music festival near Gaza, at which hundreds of young Israelis were slaughtered by invading Palestinian terrorists.
Mason said from the podium: “Music must be our safe space. When that’s violated, it strikes at the very core of who we are.”
He then listed other music events at which there were fatalities: “We felt that at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris.
We felt that at the Manchester Arena in England. We felt that at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas. And, on October 7, we felt that again, when we heard the tragic news from the Supernova Music Festival for Love, that over 360 music fans lost their lives and another 40 were kidnapped.”
Mason mentioned neither that the “music fans” were Israelis, nor that they were murdered and taken hostage by Hamas Palestinians, but it is hoped that some of the audience knew what he was talking about. Meanwhile, a pro-Palestinian protest was being held outside the event hall.
Montana Tucker, 31, wore the big yellow ribbon because she supports Israel and is a “proud Jew.”
She says that with her blonde hair and her unusual name, many people don’t realize that she is Jewish.
On October 8, the day after the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, Tucker posted a TikTok video of herself singing “HaTikvah” (the Israeli national anthem), along with a message that said in part: “Taking the lives of innocent people is NEVER okay….Am Yisrael Chai!”
She visited Israel in December to “bear witness” to the massacre, visiting the Kfar Aza kibbutz where many Israelis were slaughtered by Hamas terrorists on October 7, and meeting with Zaka volunteers (a body recovery rescue organization) and Magen David Adom (Israeli version of Red Cross) staff.
Tucker’s maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors, and she says that she was “extra, extra close” with her Zaide (grandfather) who died a few years ago. “His life goal was to educate, educate, educate,” she says. “He always wore a “I’m a Survivor” pin.”
Last year, in memory of her Zaide, Tucker made a series of 10 short TikTok videos about the Holocaust called “How To: Never Forget.”
The two-minute segments are based on a trip that the singer took with her mother to Auschwitz and other concentration camps.
Montana Tucker has nine million followers on TikTok and over three million on Instagram, and she wants to educate them.
Tucker cites a 2020 survey conducted across all 50 US states, that showed 63% of millennials and Gen Z young adults didn’t know that six million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. “Their favorite athletes and their favorite rappers are spewing antisemitic comments—these kids don’t know any better. They’re genuinely not being taught anything else,” she says.
The celebrity says it was a risk for her to put out the Holocaust documentaries. Her fans are used to her singing and dancing on “happy” videos. “I wasn’t sure what the reaction was going to be,” she says. “After the documentary reels came out, thousands of people un-followed me.” But Montana Tucker has no regrets. Other followers thanked her for sharing with them and for teaching them something they knew nothing about. “If you have a platform, then you should be using it to speak out,” she says.