Tonight sees another exciting event in the Eurovision calendar! It will be Israel’s turn to step into the spotlight as the final of HaKokhav HaBa decides the Middle Eastern state’s representative in 2015. Four finalists remain and all of them are desperate to grab the Israeli golden ticket to Vienna, but only one can win. Sari Nachmias, Avia Shoshani, Nadav …
Israel to decide artist on 17 February
Israeli national broadcaster IBA has confirmed that the winner of HaKokhav HaBa (The Next Star) will be the Middle Eastern state’s representative in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. The final of the singing competition is set to take place on 17th February in Jerusalem and four acts currently remain in the competition. The last four artists left who will be …
Israel: 4 Finalist are known
Israel has chosen its finalist. The Semi Final of The Next Star (HaKokhav HaBa) and two more competitors have been eliminated leaving us with the 4 finalists. The finalists are: Avia Shoshani Nadav Gedj Sari Nachmias Iki Levy & The Rasta Hebrew Men Which means that Orit Binsay and Sa’ar “Rusty” Davidov have been eliminated. The Final will take place on …
Israel: 16 Finalists announced for
Israel is down to 16 Finalists in the ‘The Next Star” selection show and one of them is going to represent their country at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria this May. After a rather elaborate selection process, a panel of judges decided on the 16 candidates and the list can be found below. Shoshani – Watch Video Asif …
Israel: 45 artists still in with a chance!
45 artists now remain in Israel’s race to find a singer. The casting stage of their national selection HaKokhav HaBa (The Next Star) is now over and we are left with the lucky artists who achieved an approval rating of 70% or greater from the jury – including former entrant Harel Skaat – and audience. The next stage of the …
39 countries represented in Eurovision 2015
The EBU has confirmed that 39 countries will be represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015, hosted between 19-23 May in Vienna, Austria. The number is two up on last year, representing the first increase in participation since Germany’s hosting in 2011. Amongst the participants is a surprising return from Czech Republic, who will take part for the first time …
Israel: Harel Skaat to be a judge on Israeli selection
Israel are looking towards their last finalist to help them with their 2015 selection. Harel Skaat, who represented the East Mediterranean country in 2010 and finished 14th, will be a judge on HaKokhav HaBa, a singing competition which will select Israel’s artist for Vienna heavily modelled on elements of The Voice and The X Factor. Skaat will be joined as …
Israel changes selection format
Today several Israeli media reported about a change of format in the Israeli preselection. Previously the radio station 88 FM was appointed by the IBA to select an artist internally – after shortlisting Marina Maximilian, Ester Rada and Asaf Avidan and approaching them, all three declined the offer. As a result of that, a new selection method was chosen. The …
Big names for Israel in 2015?
Despite the relaunch of the IBA in the upcoming year, Israel is willing to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. However, financial problems might still be an obstacle to entering the competition in May. Yona Wiesenthal, the Director General of the IBA, pointed out that negotiations with the EBU regarding the reduction of the participation fee are still ongoing. Even …
Israel: IBA to shut down & re-open in March
We previously reported about the uncertain future of Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest. What brought it about was the fact that the Israel Broadcasting Authority has been facing severe financial and image problems. The Knesset, the parliament of Israel, has been discussing the potential shutdown of the public broadcaster for quite a while now. Yesterday a final decision regarding …