Israel: Everything that happened in the 21st episode of HaKokhav Haba!

Yesterday, Saturday December 28, the 21st episode of HaKokhav Haba, the singing competition through which Israel will select its representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, was broadcast.

With 15 artists participating, the continuation of the HaKokhav Haba duels phase began. Four pairs of contestants competed in this latest episode, where one of them was eliminated by the end of the competition process.

Hosts and Judges

In yesterday’s episode, the judging panel welcomed a new addition, the singer Nasrin Kadri. Rotem Sela continues to host the show alongside Assi Azar, who was one of the hosts of Eurovision 2019. Since the first season of HaKokhav Haba in 2013, Azar has been a host, while Rotem Sela joined from the second season and continues her role to this day.

The judging panel includes:

• Assaf Amdursky
• Keren Peles
• Shiri Maimon
• Eden Hason
• Ran Danker
• Itay Levi
• Nasrin Kadri

The Pairs

Nathalie Zafar and Udi Schneider
Nathalie chose to perform “Total Eclipse of the Heart”. The judges gave mixed feedback, and she scored 85%. Udi performed “Shir HaBricha”, received positive votes from the judges, scored 91%, and advanced to the Top 14.

Red Band with Moran Aharonia and Valerie Hamati
Red Band and Moran Aharonia performed “One”. Their performance failed to impress the judges, earning a score of 67%. Valerie performed “Desert Rose”, impressed the judges, and advanced to the Top 14 with a score of 74%.

Amit Sadeh and Aviad Klein
Amit performed “Kach Oti” and scored 71%. Aviad performed “Iris”, but with only 56%, he was left in the elimination zone.

Alma Maimon de Razon and Yuval Gold
Alma performed “Yellow Brick Road” and scored only 55%. Yuval performed “LeOlam BeIkvot HaShemesh”, delighted the judges, scored 90%, and advanced to the Top 14.

The Elimination of the Night

The contestants at risk of elimination were Nathalie Zafar, Red Band and Moran Aharonia, Aviad Klein, and Alma Maimon de Razon. Ultimately, the judges decided that Aviad Klein’s journey ended here.

The previous winner of HaKokhav Haba and Israel’s representative for Eurovision 2024 was Eden Golan. With her song “Hurricane”, Eden Golan finished in fifth place in the final rankings.