With his parent’s car loaded down with old Beach Boys cassettes and tapes of Israeli folk music, Oren was exposed to music at a very early age. Fascinated by rhythm, it wasn’t long before he was rummaging through the kitchen for pots and pans and water jugs to bang on—anything to make a beat. Performing with his younger brother, these homemade instruments led to a series of summertime street performances in downtown Huntington Beach, a gig that eventually landed them as the opening act on the nationally televised FoxTeen Choice Awards.
Born and raised in Southern California, Oren has always had a rich appreciation for the ocean and the coastal culture that surrounds it. Having spent the last 5 years living on the island of Maui, this time has only strengthened that appreciation and has had a huge influence on his music. Using his percussive background, he quickly learned to play the ukulele and started composing music soon thereafter. Much of Oren’s music is inspired by a lifestyle of traveling, surfing, and sailing, and he values the ability to translate this lifestyle to his listeners through his original and inspired lyrics. “Working on a sailboat and performing at local beach bars here on Maui gives me the opportunity to share my music with thousands of people every year, and nothing inspires me more than seeing the smiles and happiness that my music brings”. Aside from his own performances, Oren has recently had the opportunity to open up for such acts as Third Eye Blind and two-time Grammy Award winner Taj Mahal, as well as local artists Paula Fuga, Micah Wolf, and The Throwdowns.
After the completion of his first album, entitled “Spread the Aloha”, Oren’s music has managed to gain popularity through a widespread grassroots movement. The depth of this movement was perhaps first evident on a trip to Australia in which, upon performing in a small surf town at a local pub, many of those in attendance already knew many of the lyrics to his songs. Since that time, listeners have trickled in from places as removed as Sweden, Israel and Canada, and a first grade class in rural Kentucky recently completed a music video set to the tune of Oren’s hit track, “Stay Positive”.
With the release of his second album, “Keepin’ It Simple”, Oren’s aim is to continue the trend of upbeat, inspired music that his listeners have come to expect, as well as encapsulate his underlying theme in life. “I see too many people in this world who are unhappy, stressed out, and consumed with the wrong things. I think we all need to take a step back and find what we love and find what makes us happy. We gotta keep it simple! To me, that’s taking a step forward”.
A lifetime surfer with a deep respect for the ocean, Oren has recently felt a call to help care for and protect the element which has inspired so many of his songs and shaped who he is as an artist. Out of this desire to protect our fragile resources emerged the environmental awareness anthem “Ocean Song”, which aims to call attention to the immediate need to take care of our oceans on a local, national, and global level. This song was written before the oil spill in the gulf coast but this recent tragedy has strengthened his belief. Oren says, “through music I can not only garner attention and raise awareness about the perils our oceans face, but also tell a story and enhance the foundation that grassroots organizations have already created”. Since its early release, “Ocean Song” has been used in promoting events such as Surfrider Foundation’s International Surf Day, as well as the Surfrider Blue ‘Aina monthly beach and reef cleanups that focus on cleaning up local island surf spots. Regarding the role he is playing in raising ocean awareness here in the islands, Oren simply believes that “it is empowering to inspire people to get inspired”.
While music can easily be seen as one of Oren’s passions, Oren is quick to stress that his music is simply a channel for expressing those things in life that he is truly passionate about. “My music tells stories of my travels around the world, surf trips to Baja with my brothers, sailing adventures, sing-a-longs on the beach with friends & family, summertime memories, falling in love, sunsets and moonlights. But there’s more to it than just the stories. There’s a message, a vibe, a feeling that you get with this music. There’s some kind of energy that is ignited that literally puts a smile to your face and reminds us all how beautiful this world really is. And it feels so good. This is life. This is what we have. This is what we do. We might as well be stoked while we’re living. Keep the movement going! Spread the word. Spread the love. Spread the music. Spread the Aloha.”