A tribute to maybe Greenlick/Sagittarius 12
There is no more extreme pendulum than Israel's prime time - a viewing experience that ranges from the gloomy and angry news to a carnival of costumes, singing and eye-popping food.
This is truer than ever since October 7, a date that burned almost everything, almost every word and every symbol, with the taste of disaster.
"The Next Star" stepped into this trap in a delusional season, torn throughout from conversations about the glittering international pop fantasy, to the depressing local atmosphere of war and grief.
The evening of the grand final, where Aden Golan was chosen as our representative at Eurovision to be held this year in Malmö, was perhaps the most disturbed demonstration of this season.
In the background is the melody of Eurovision, dancers, cheerful jokes - while the songs, including "Fruit of your garden" by Aviva Avidan, "I was in heaven" by Sarit Hadad and "Neri Shuva Aliya" in an arrangement that leaves no doubt about the context, evoke thoughts about the Memorial Day ceremonies.
Add to that Noa Kirel in a garment that says "Alive" going back to that song by Ofra Haza in case you've completely lost all desire for understatement, and you get a roller coaster of a manic-depressive state.
Neither here nor there, trying with all my might to celebrate life and simply unable.
Living in Israel, dreaming of Malmo.
Eden Golan/Regev Zarka
For years, final performances have not been something to remember the morning after, and it is no wonder, then, that the most moving performance in the final was as part of a tribute to Lieutenant Shaoli Greenlick, who auditioned at the beginning of the season and a few weeks later was killed in combat in the Gaza Strip.
His family came up to sing along with his recorded voice Omer Adam's "In the end everything passes" at a moment that more suited the national gut feelings at the moment.
No stars, no Europe, nothing festive: just a humble tribute to the talent of an ordinary person who was and is not.
This was preceded, unfortunately, by an embarrassing mistake in the live broadcast, which caused the broadcast to be interrupted.
An equally confusing moment was recorded later, when in a sharp transition from the performance came Keshet's amused self-promotion to the winning VIP kitchen, and lo and behold, the roller coaster continued for another round.
More in Walla!
Moving to tears: Shaoli Greenlick's family members sang in his memory at the finale of "The Next Star"
To the full article
And on the sidelines of all this, one can forget that there was also a competition, at the end of which Golan, who sings and dreams of international pop, won, perhaps more than any other finalist in the history of the program, and certainly compared to her competitors in the final, who are much closer to the traditional sounds of Israeli music.
Beyond the proven talent, it's worth dwelling on this decision: perhaps, in the end and despite the gathering within ourselves, Israel probably still fantasizes about the world, about pop, about unbridled joy.
And perhaps, on the other hand, this very strange transmitter actually indicates otherwise: even if this dream is alive and well, we are not really able to devote ourselves to it at the moment.
Not yet.
More on the same topic:
Eurovision 2024
the next star