Ahead of Eurovision finals, Noa Kirel's heart is with Israel under fire

As missiles rained down on her home country, Israel’s Eurovision Song Contest representative, Noa Kirel, tried to keep her focus on preparing for the finals in Liverpool on Saturday night, although she admitted in a press conference with Israeli media on Wednesday that it was a challenge.

“It’s not easy mentally to go on stage at Eurovision when people in Israel are going down to shelters. My heart is with them. I’m proud to represent the country on days like this and send a big hug to everyone in Israel,” she said.

Kirel, who qualified for the finals after an electrifying performance of her song, "Unicorn," in the semi-finals on Tuesday night, said she took her role as a representative of Israel abroad seriously during this crisis, and expressed her hope that her performance provided some enjoyment for people back home.

“We sing songs and raise the energy and the morale. I connected with everyone [here], everyone who was with me in the semi-finals. We have huge unicorn balloons all over the place and everyone comes in and immediately tells us, ‘Oh Israel, we love you,’” she said.

Eurovision held amid war and turmoil

It is not unusual for Eurovision to take place against a backdrop of turmoil, both in Israel and around the world. In May 2021, Israel’s contestant Eden Alene performed in the Eurovision finale during a similar conflict with Gaza. And while the contest is traditionally held in the home country of the previous year’s winner, last year, Kalush Orchestra, a rap group from Ukraine, took the top prize.

Eurovision could not be held there this year because of Russia’s ongoing invasion of the country, so the European Broadcasting Union decided to hold the contest in the UK this year, since last year, the British singer, Sam Ryder, came in second.

Technically, Ukraine is co-hosting this year, with Ukrainian star, Julia Sanina, as one of the hosts. This year, before each semi-final performance, video clips from Ukraine were shown, as well as images of Liverpool and the performer’s home country. Russia has been suspended from the European Broadcasting Union, which means it can no longer participate in the song contest.

KIREL’S TOUGHEST competitors at the final on May 13 are believed to be Loreen of Sweden, with her song, “Tattoo,” and Käärijä of Finland with a fun, silly pop tune, “Cha Cha Cha.” Loreen won Eurovision in 2012 and her song this year has been criticized as being derivative of ABBA.

Many have also pointed out that Brunette, a singer from Armenia who will perform her song, “Future Lover,” in the second semi-final on Thursday night, has a similar dance routine to Kirel’s in “Unicorn.”

But while no one knows who will win, Kirel is a real contender on YouTube, where the video of her performing “Unicorn” in the semifinals has already garnered 1.5 million views, even more than those for Loreen’s “Tattoo” performance.

Dozens of fans from around the world have posted videos praising Kirel and touting her as the potential winner. A team from Wiwibloggs, a popular Eurovision blog, strongly predicted that Kirel will be in the top three when the votes from around the world are tallied on Saturday night. But no matter where Kirel finishes, her fans in Israel are enjoying her polished and charismatic performances, and will be rooting for her.