Jerusalem is my home ... a South African song invades the world

A South African song about Jerusalem has reached the world, with the song of South African musician, Master KG, and songwriter Numjibo Zikode, seen more than 150 million times on YouTube.

The song has a catchy rhythm and a traditional African dance that has drawn millions of followers, but its dance challenge, made famous under the hashtag #JerusalemaDanceChallenge, is what revolutionized and spread widely around the world.

"Jerusalem is my home, guard me, walk with me, don't leave me alone, my place is in Jerusalem, my kingdom is in Jerusalem," the lyrics say.

Fans in Angola released their choreography to the rhythm of the song, and the video spread very quickly, and after that an art campaign and the famous dance challenge was born.

Since then, thousands of videos of people imitating dance moves have proliferated - from healthcare workers in France, Sweden and South Africa, to diners in Italy and Romania, to ambassadors and ministers in various places across Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Caribbean and Europe, Which was uploaded to various social networking sites.

A song from the streets of Jerusalem

The dance challenge made its way to the streets of occupied East Jerusalem, where the Jerusalem music group "Jo" made a Palestinian version of the song's dance challenge, which was filmed with the participation of the small African Palestinian community in Jerusalem in the Bab Al-Majlis area in the Old City adjacent to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

Local dancers created their unique version of the Jerusalem dance by adding an element of Palestinian dabkeh, and within 12 hours of its release, the video had been viewed more than 20,000 times, and was widely circulated via WhatsApp and other messaging apps in South Africa.

Shaden Qous, one of the participants from the Palestinian Jerusalemite African community in the Jerusalem Dance Challenge, indicated that the song meant a lot to them as it came to support Jerusalem from the heart of Africa.

Shaden added, in her speech to Al-Jazeera Net, that the lyrics of the song touched their hearts, because it is African and directed to Jerusalem, and it tells about their roots and their daily struggle with the occupation.

Qous emphasized that their participation in the Jerusalem dance is nothing but solidarity from the Holy Land and the African Jerusalemite community, with their brothers of African descent all over the world.

The group ended the video with a message saying, "This video is from Jerusalem to South Africa with love. This dance from Jerusalem youth is presented to our friends in South Africa. Let us unite with renewed energy towards liberation. From Palestine to South Africa, the future is for the peoples, the future is ours."

Against injustice and occupation

While the singer and writer of the Jerusalem song, Numjibo Zikudi, confirmed that the lyrics of the famous song came after a period of internal conflict and problems in her life to light the way for her and everyone who listens to the words.

Numjibo explained to Al-Jazeera Net that its message to the whole world and to the Palestinians who live in Palestine and in Jerusalem in particular, is that God sees everything and sees the suffering that everyone lives, especially under oppression and occupation, adding that this matter will not continue and will end soon.

Numjibo confirmed that she is determined to visit Jerusalem soon, to emphasize the importance of art in the face of injustice and solidarity with the people of Jerusalem, noting that she and the singer Master KJ were very happy to cross the borders of South Africa and the African continent, to reach the whole world and to the heart of Palestine Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, Nadia Mir, the activist and director of the South African Shamsan Organization, explained that she invited Master KG, and the singer, songwriter, Numjibo Zikode, to visit Jerusalem and perform the song in the Old City in solidarity with the Palestinians against the occupation.

Nadia Mir confirmed to Al-Jazeera Net that her organization supported the Joe band in Jerusalem and other groups from South Africa to present the song with the challenge of dancing in solidarity with the Palestinians, pointing to the role of art in supporting culture and affirming the right of return for the people of Jerusalem and Palestine.

Global participations

The former South African minister, spokesman for the boycotting occupation movement in South Africa, Ronnie Castle, stressed to Al Jazeera Net, the importance of these arts in inspiring the struggle against any racial occupation anywhere in the world.

Castle explained that the gathering felt proud that this South African song had emerged from the womb of a country that lived the scourge of an apartheid regime to talk about one of the purest places and places of all religions and races in the world.

Castle pointed out that the song’s lyrics speak to the people of Jerusalem and against any injustice and occupation of any kind.

The spokesman for the boycott movement group stated that the gathering supports the initiative of the singers' visit to Jerusalem, and to show the full solidarity of the Palestinians in general, and the people of Jerusalem of African origin in particular against the occupation, with the support of the Minister of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for such initiatives.

And the South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, spoke during his last national speech on September 16, about the song of Jerusalem being global, stressing that there could be no better way to celebrate South Africa than joining this global phenomenon, which is spreading in All over the world that challenge the Jerusalem dance.

The president made it clear in his speech that he loves the Jerusalem song a lot, so he urges everyone to take on this challenge on National Heritage Day to showcase the talent and good music from South Africa, according to what the South African president said.