The 20th episode of HaKokhav Haba (special edition) was just concluded. HaKokhav Haba is the talent show under which the artist that will represent Israel at Eurovision 2024 will be selected.
Out of the 35 artists who made it beyond the audition stage, 14 advanced to the battles’ phase, where they will compete to represent their country in Eurovision 2024!
In episode twenty, the six remaining artists performed in duets, while five of them advanced to the next stage and one was eliminated. Assi Azar and Rotem Sela, serve as the show’s hosts, as they have been doing since 2014. The jury is consisted of Eden Hasson, Shiri Maimon, Itay Levy, Assaf Amdorsky, Ran Dankar, and Keren Pels.
The duets of the 20th episode
Six contestants performed in front of an audience and a panel of judges. The judges then selected one of the three contestants with the lowest score to be eliminated from the show.
Mika Moshe Vs Or Cohen
16-year-old Mika is one of the two big favorites of HaKokhav Haba. She performed a traditional ballad in Hebrew, enchanting both the audience and the jury. She achieved a score of 88%, despite the fact that one of the judges did not vote for it. He advances to the semi-final.
Despite the judges’ praise for Or Cohen’s ability to sing different styles of songs in each episode, that wasn’t enough to achieve a high score. With 75%, Or is a candidate for elimination.
Dor Shimon Vs Shai Tamino
A very Mediterranean-scented performance from Dor once again, but one that did not impress, as the judges said it was something they had seen before. With a score of 63% he is also a candidate for elimination.
Shai, on the other hand, gave an excellent performance and continues to improve with each episode. Despite this, the judges worry that she may not be suitable for Eurovision. With a score of 72%, she advances to the semi-finals.
Lian Biran Vs Eden Golan
Everyone in the studio is touched when Lian Biran sings a song about her mother. Sadly, she is a candidate to eliminate with a score of 82%.
Today, Eden Golan is demonstrating why she is the clear favorite to represent Israel in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest. She gave it all and according to the judges, it was a Eurovision-worthy performance. She advances to the semi-final with a score of 94%.
The results
Among the three contestants who achieved the lowest score in their duets, the judges decided that Lian Biran should be eliminated from HaKokhav Haba.
Hence, we are down to five artists that will perform in the semi-final, aiming for the Israeli representation in Malmö:
- Eden Golan
- Dor Shimon
- Shai Tamino
- Mika Moshe
- Or Cohen
The Final of HaKokhav Haba will take place on February 6.
Israel qualified for the finals every year from 2015 to 2020 through HaKokhav HaBa, and Netta won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018 with the song “Toy”.
Israel was represented last year by Noa Kirel and the song “Unicorn”, which came in third place with 362 points overall.
