Michelle Citrin

Biography

Michelle Citrin is an American singer, songwriter, producer, and multimedia artist best known for blending contemporary folk-pop with Jewish themes and humor. Born and raised in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, to an Israeli mother, she grew up in a culturally Jewish home but did not initially see herself as a “Jewish singer,” instead performing in mainstream New York City venues and developing her craft on the local acoustic circuit.[5] She later relocated to Brooklyn, New York, which she frequently cites as her artistic home base and where she built a reputation for intimate, soulful live shows and sharp, story-driven songwriting.[1][7]

Citrin’s career shifted significantly with the rise of YouTube and social media, where her witty, low-budget videos celebrating Jewish life unexpectedly went viral. Songs like “20 Things to Do with Matzah” and “Rosh Hashanah Girl” turned her into a pioneering figure in digital Jewish culture, drawing millions of views and leading to commissions and performances connected with Broadway and major Jewish organizations.[3][6] Working as a fully independent artist, she self-produced and sold thousands of copies of her EP Foursongsforyou, and she has been featured as a guest artist at synagogues, festivals, and concert stages across North America for her engaging performances and catchy, communal sing-along choruses.[2][4] Her work has helped redefine how Jewish identity can be expressed in contemporary pop-folk music, influencing the broader ecosystem of Jewish online content and independent Jewish singer‑songwriters.[3][6]

Artistically, Citrin is often described as a folk-pop storyteller with a warm, conversational vocal style, acoustic-guitar-driven arrangements, and lyrics that mix sincerity with gentle irony. She draws on personal narrative, spiritual searching, and everyday Jewish ritual, making them accessible to both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences through hook-focused songwriting and deft use of humor.[2][4][6] As one of the early artists to leverage viral video to share Jewish music worldwide, she occupies a distinctive place in the landscape of Jewish popular culture, credited by outlets like Jewish Rock Radio and The Forward with helping to normalize Jewish content in mainstream-leaning online entertainment while remaining entirely independent of major labels.[3][6]

Fun Facts

• Citrin became widely known in Jewish pop culture for her humorous YouTube song “20 Things to Do with Matzah,” which playfully explores creative uses for leftover Passover matzah and helped launch her as an internet personality.[3][6]
• Her video “Rosh Hashanah Girl” further cemented her status as a digital-era Jewish artist, with The Forward noting that she essentially had “the Internet to thank” for her path from YouTube visibility to higher-profile performance opportunities.[3]
• Despite her strong association with Jewish music, she has emphasized in interviews that she originally saw herself simply as a singer-songwriter, not specifically a “Jewish singer,” and only later embraced that identity as audiences responded to her Jewish-themed work.[5]
• She has remained fully independent of record labels, self-producing projects such as her EP Foursongsforyou and selling thousands of copies on her own while cultivating a loyal grassroots fan base.[2][4]

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• not publicly documented - No reliable sources identify specific individual mentors or formal composition/voice teachers associated with Michelle Citrin.

Key Collaborators

• Jewish communal and media organizations (various) - Citrin has frequently partnered with Jewish organizations and media outlets to create holiday- and culture-themed songs and videos, including viral YouTube projects that helped define her public profile. (“20 Things to Do with Matzah”, “Rosh Hashanah Girl” and other online holiday videos commissioned or promoted within the Jewish community.) [mid‑2000s–2010s[3][6]]

Artists Influenced

• not specifically named in sources - Outlets credit her as a pioneer of Jewish cultural content on YouTube, implying influence on later Jewish musicians and content creators who use digital platforms, but they do not identify particular artists by name. [late 2000s onward[3][6]]

Discography

Albums

Top Tracks

1. Turn It On - Sean Tyas Remix (25 All Time Trance Classics, Vol. 1)
2. Shake Your Grogger (Shake Your Grogger)
3. Turn It On [ASOT 384] - Original Mix (A State Of Trance Episode 384 (Year Mix 2008))
4. Hanukkah Lovin' (Hanukkah Lovin')
5. Turn It On - Radio Edit (Trance Top 1000 - Selection 004)
6. Turn It On - Original Mix
7. Yihiyu
8. 20 Things You Can Do With Matzah (Rosh Hashanah Girl & The Matzah Song)
9. Turn It On [ASOT 344] Tune Of The Week - Original Mix (A State Of Trance Episode 344)
10. Modeh Ani (Modeh Ani)

External Links

• Spotify
• MusicBrainz