“HaKokhav HaBa” – Episode 11: Four contestants passed to the next round. The advancing contestants are Jenny Penkin, Anava Amoyal, Shira Ittah and Michael HarPaz.

Tonight, the eleventh episode of the reality show “HaKokhav HaBa” aired, through which Israel’s representative for Eurovision 2026 will be chosen. So far, 50 contestants have secured their place in the competition, and during tonight’s episode, four additional contestants advanced to the next stage thanks to the votes of the judges and the studio audience – One of them might go on to represent Israel in Eurovision this coming May.

The panel once again included Assaf Amdursky, Keren Peles, Shiri Maimon, Eden Hasson, and Itay Levi.

Jenny Penkin

Jenny Penkin, 33 years old from Tel Aviv. She has been making music for nearly a decade, as she states. The music she focuses on is primarily R&B. In addition, she teaches vocal development. She claims she would fit well in Eurovision, describing herself as an enthusiastic Zionist and sufficiently colorful. During her career, she worked with judge Assaf Amdursky as a backing vocalist for Marina Maximilian Blumin. For the audition, she chose to perform the song “My All” (originally by Mariah Carey). Jenny is undoubtedly very special. Her voice is caressing, and she is insanely talented. There is no doubt she was excited, but it is evident that she is very professional. She has great potential for success.

Eden said:

“There were many good moments, there were less successful moments. I felt like you were fighting a song you don’t need to fight“.

Shiri said:

“There were very beautiful moments, but I didn’t feel you chose the right song. There were moments when you were compressing“.

Assaf said:

“It felt like you were excited; you have years of experience on stages, and it showed you were excited. There were moments when I said I want everyone to hear you; it was a bit high for you. From here on, it will be easier“.

Itay said:

“The technique sometimes kills the soul, but you are an amazing singer“.

Four judges voted in her favor, Eden voted against. Jenny received 71% and advanced to the next round.

Anava Amoyal

Anava Amoyal, 24 years old from Dimona. Her mother passed away when Anava was a teenager. She started singing since she was a child and went to vocal training thanks to her mother. Her mother’s dream was for her to become a singer, and she came to “HaKokhav HaBa” for her. She sees herself representing Israel with ease. She listens to soul songs, as she testifies, and says that people always tell her she has a special voice and they are always surprised by her abilities. For the audition, she chose to sing the song “Gvulot Higayon” (originally by Nathan Goshen). From the moment Anava opens her mouth, you can understand what she was talking about. She has a deep and mature tone, undoubtedly not what you would expect. She is mesmerizing and has abilities that few singers possess. She still has work to do, but it’s good she came – an excellent singer.

Eden said:

“The small moments where you trilled more, that’s where I was captivated by you. I would want 20% more“.

Keren said:

“I felt like you sang to your mother. When an artist believes in himself, everyone feels it“.

Itay said:

“It’s charming that they named you Anava, that’s so you. You don’t know your greatness. It was so good, you’re just amazing“.

All five judges voted in her favor. Anava received 93% and advanced to the next round.

Harel Teyri

Harel Teyri, 27 years old from Jerusalem. Married and father to a son. Harel grew up as a Haredi child, and he says that to cope with difficulties he started writing. He does not define himself as Haredi but he is religious. After the wedding, his wife enrolled him in music studies. Since then he started singing in the streets of Jerusalem and people in the area know him. His dream is to reach as many people as possible. For the audition, he chose to sing the song “Psychopath” (originally by Ido Malka). What a special performance. Completely different from the original, he managed to make the song his own. Yes, it must be said that the performance did not rise much, he has more work to do, but kudos.

Eden said:

“The performance hit everything that makes the song fun. If you had chosen another song that explains your mental state, it would have been perfect“.

Assaf said:

“You had your eyes closed for a long time, and you had delivery issues. You have potential but we don’t have time“.

Keren said:

“I see tremendous potential in you, you definitely deserved to pass“.

Itay said:

“It was amazing in my eyes, this is a classic example of bad song choice. I ask you to come back next year“.

Assaf and Eden voted against. Harel received 54% and did not advance to the next round.

Shira Ittah

Shira Ittah, 19 years old from Netanya, soldier. Her mother testifies that she started singing from the age of 5. She writes and plays music about everything her heart feels. She suffered from comments because she was a chubby girl, according to her, and singing helped her build her self-confidence. Every year she watches Eurovision with her family. She came to give her best and believes she has a lot to contribute. For the audition, she chose to sing the song “October Sky” (originally by Yebba). Wow! From the second she opens her mouth, you can’t take your eyes off her. So emotional, such a special voice! Simply goosebumps, a girl so talented.

Shiri said:

“It was one of the most perfect singing takes I’ve heard, I was shocked“.

Assaf said:

“In my eyes, the dosage was the most impressive. You knew when to shout and knew when not to push, it was a work of art, you control the narrative very well, it was beautiful and it held me“.

Keren said:

“You have you completely, you are not enough, you are excellent“.

Itay said:

“I want to give you advice, you have a powerful frequency that I would like you to adopt throughout the singing. You sing amazingly and you are accurate, but in that frequency it brings out your power“.

All five judges voted in her favor. Shira received 93% and advanced to the next round.

Yotam Olmer

Yotam Olmer, 22 years old from Kiryat Ono. He has been involved in music for many years, writing, playing, and composing. He testifies that he can represent Israel at Eurovision. For the audition, he chose to sing the song “Mi Hayah Ma’amin” (originally by Keren Peles). It is evident that he is a shy guy, his delivery is somewhat closed, but listen, what a voice. He captivates from the first moment. He definitely needs to work on himself if he wants to one day take the big stage in Europe, but he has the foundation completely, he is cute and special. Toward the end of the song, he opened up a bit more.

Eden said:

“You started singing, it was cute to me and as you continued I didn’t understand what you were singing, you need to work on diction“.

Shiri said:

“I didn’t really understand. You were really inside yourself“.

Assaf said:

“It was an amazing performance in my eyes, you are a persona“.

Four judges voted in his favor, Eden voted against. Yotam received 67% and did not advance to the next round.

Michael HarPaz

Michael HarPaz, 52 years old, married and father of 4. From Hi Five, the most successful boy band that operated in the country. He says he left the band after they achieved all possible accomplishments. Despite that, he is proud of every moment he was in the band. He competed in the Eurovision national selection’s semi-final in 2013, where he performed the song “Michtav LeIma“. It is important to him to reach Eurovision because he wants to engage in advocacy, which he has been doing since October 7th. He explains that he wants to correct the lies told about Israel, and he came to do everything he can to represent the country. For the audition, he chose to sing the song: “I’ll Be Alright”, his original song that was later translated into Hebrew for singer Maya Bouskila, called “Rak Al Tagid“. What a star, you can see the experience he has on stage and see that he came to devour the stage. He can definitely represent Israel! With the right song, he will also go high in Eurovision.

Eden said:

“How much authenticity and truth you have in your singing, I think you have all the elements to represent Israel in the best way“.

Shiri said:

“If I once thought you need to come to Eurovision with circuses, a guy with so much experience comes, I’m not ruling out anything, I wish someone like you could represent us“.

Assaf said:

“They heard your music, but piles of ‘kiddos’ we got with talent I have no idea where they bring from. You will need to fight for your place, I’m giving you a warning against vote“.

Four judges voted in his favor, Assaf voted against. Michael received 74% and advanced to the next round.

“HaKokhav HaBa” for Eurovision

Ahead of Eurovision 2026, the Israeli national broadcaster decided to continue its collaboration with Keshet 12 in selecting the next Israeli representative for the contest. This partnership between the broadcaster and Keshet has brought Israel seven consecutive qualifications to the Grand Final, highlighted by Netta Barzilai’s victory with the song “Toy”, which brought Eurovision to Israel.

We’ll be here throughout the entire season, reporting on all the latest news, updates, and predictions – stay tuned!

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Israel at Eurovision 2025

“New Day Will Rise” is the song performed by Yuval Raphael, who was chosen to represent Israel after winning the 11th season of “HaKokhav HaBa”. Israel advanced to the final after winning the second semi-final with 203 points and finished second overall with 357 points in the grand final. Israel ranked first in the public vote but only 14th with the jury. This marks the third consecutive year that Israel has reached the top five – an unprecedented achievement.

Eurovision 2026: This will be Israel’s 48th participation in Eurovision. Israel joined the contest in 1973 and has won four times. Its most recent victory was at Eurovision 2018 with the song “Toy”, performed by singer Netta Barzilai.