Israel: KAN confirms internal selection for Eurovision 2023

Israel: KAN confirms internal selection  for Eurovision 2023
Sunday, 12 June 2022

  • The Israeli national broadcaster, KAN, will be taking part in Eurovision 2023 and will go internal in order to select their ESC hopeful. 

    KAN has announced that Israel will be present in Eurovision 2023 but with change of the way to select their Eurovision 2023 representative as they will be going internal. 

    Since 2015 the Israeli Eurovision representatives have been selected through the talent show 'The Next Star'. This year the X-factor served as the selection format for Eurovision 2022, but it seems that the bad results in Turin brought a change of direction for the Israeli broadcaster which will select next year's act internally. 

    Specifically, the next Isreali Eurovision act will be determined by a 9 members committee which will consist of people from the music scene and industry representing all genres of music. Once the ESC 2023 representative is selected the broadcaster will move on seeking for the next Israeli Eurovision entry. 

    KAN will shed more light on the details of the selection over the following weeks. 

     

    Israel in Eurovision 

    Israel has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 43 times since making its debut in 1973. Israel’s first appearance at the contest in 1973 was successful, with Ilanit finishing fourth. Israel has achieved 4  victories, in 1978 and 1979, with first two wins for Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta, with the song “A-Ba-Ni-Bi” and Gali Atari and Milk and Honey, with “Hallelujah” .

    Its third victory came in 1998, with Dana International and “Diva”  and its fourth in ESC 2018 with Netta’s song Toy. The country’s best results apart from  its victories  were the second-place finishes for Avi Toledano in 1982 and Ofra Haza in 1983. Former winner Izhar Cohen returned to place fifth in 1985. Duo Datz finished third in 1991, before Israel achieved . Eden then finished fifth in 1999. Israel has hosted the contest three times, in 1979 and 1999, both in Jerusalem and in 2019 in Tel Aviv. 

    After the introduction of the semi-finals in 2004, Israel has failed to reach the final six times. In 2014, the country failed to qualify for the fourth consecutive year, when Mei Feingold finished 14th (out of 15) in the second semi final, despite being one of the favorites to qualify. In 2015, Israel reached the final for the first time in five years, with Nadav Guedj finishing ninth. The only Israeli entrant to achieve a better result in the 21st century before their 2018 win was Shiri Maimon in 2005, who gave the country its tenth top five result in the contest, finishing fourth. In 2019 Kobi Marimi winner of the Rising Star, rerpesented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest on home soil  with his entry Home.

    In 2020 Eden Alene  won the talent show “The next Star” and the ticket to Rotterdam where she was going to perform the nationally selected song Feker Libi. Due to the covid-19 pandemic the contest was cancelled interrupting Eden's Eurovision journey. Nevertheless, Eden Alene had the chance to complete in 2021 her Eurovision journey  performing "Set Me Free" in the 12 position of the first semi final and after qualifying to the Grand final she finished 17th with a total of 93 points. 

    This year the winner of X-factor Israel 2022, Michael Ben David, defended the Israel colors in Turin singing in the 2nd semi-final, 'I'M' , but unfortunately didn't make it to the Grand final. 

     

    News Source: KAN/ESCToday

    Image: EBU / ANDRES PUTTING

     

     

     

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