2 ‘Homeless’ Men With a Guitar Stun Passersby With Unexpected, Jaw-Dropping ’Hallelujah' Rendition

(Illustration - Shutterstock)

A singer named Herbie Russ is trying to change the game for Louisville’s homeless community.

Two homeless men with a guitar sit by the sidewalk beside a shopping cart adorned with an American flag. Passersby pay them little heed, until the scruffy fellow on the right starts to strum the first few chords of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.“

Almost everybody knows the song, and people on the street undoubtedly prepare themselves for yet another mediocre rendition of the soulful classic. That is until the elderly, long-haired fellow next to the guitarist starts to sing.

In a stained, short-sleeved button-down shirt and ripped pants, the singer looks like nobody to write home about. Then he opens his mouth, and jaws drop. The epitome of “never judge a book by its cover,” the singer’s first notes raise goosebumps, and it only gets better from there.

The singer, Herbie Russ, through the pain in his voice, tells us all that he has a story—a story worth hearing.

“Herbie dropped out of school in the 11th grade,” reads the bio on the musician’s official website. He was kicked out of his parents’ home for substance abuse but, as a gifted saxophonist, got by playing for local bands in exchange for money or a couch to sleep on.

Herbie graduated to playing for bands that would put him up in hotel rooms, but before long, the musician’s addiction tore him down; he ended up living out of his car. “After years of drifting, homelessness, drugs, and being arrested,” Herbie’s bio continues, “he eventually turned to God.”

“You’ve given me this talent,” Herbie prayed. “I need some direction.”

Direction came to the young musician, but he had to earn it the hard way. He offered his musical services to a homeless shelter in his home of Detroit, Michigan, but the director scoffed at him, telling him they needed practical labor instead.

Herbie witnessed homeless folk at rock bottom, and that’s when he experienced a moment of enlightenment; he had narrowly escaped a life of desperate homelessness himself, so he decided to help using the skills he already had.

The musician continued to pour his passion into his music, but rather than pocketing the proceeds from his gigs, he donated everything to the homeless shelter. Herbie amassed thousands. He’s even performed on “America’s Got Talent.”

“He realizes, at 54, he’s just one slip-up away from homelessness,” reads Herbie’s website. “Or, losing his regular weekly house gig.” As such, the homeless outreach advocate has never given up on his mission. He is deeply affected by his peers and he is personally invested in a solution.

In 2019, Herbie Russ teamed up with comedian Tom Mabe to film a series of “Bait Bum” videos; they want to help people living rough on the streets of Louisville, and it’s working.

“He surprised passersby who assumed that he was homeless,” said Herbie’s hosts on Great Day Live. Which was exactly what Herbie wanted; his sidewalk serenades raked in a lot of money, all of which went directly toward helping the city’s homeless population.

Herbie’s homeless compatriots remind him of where he could so easily be himself. The people he champions have become his friends and his fellow musicians; to this day, Herbie often hires homeless people to carry his gear between gigs, too.