Singer eyed as Israel’s Eurovision entry killed fighting in Gaza
Wearing military uniform, Shaul Greenglick, 26, auditioned while on furlough for ‘The Next Star’ contest with a song about living with deep pain
An Israeli military reservist was killed in the Gaza Strip on Monday just weeks after he successfully auditioned on a TV show that picks the country’s submission for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Cpt. (res.) Shaul Greenglick, 26, from the central town Ra’anana, performed on “The Next Star” on December 3 while on furlough from his mobilization in the war against Hamas.
Dressed in army fatigues and lieutenant’s stripes, he sang a popular ballad and was green-lit for the next round in the selection process. His pick was a cover of the new single “Blind Bat” by Hanan Ben Ari, a song about living with deep pain.
Judges told Greenglick he was “a natural talent with an amazing voice.”
One of the judges, Keren Peles, told Greenglick on the stage: “I’m happy to see you wearing a uniform, because it’s reassuring that someone like you is in uniform. I would be happy to see you representing Israel at Eurovision.”
But Peles, writing after Greenglick’s death in northern Gaza clashes was published on Tuesday, said he had dropped out of the show because of his duties in the infantry reserves.
רק לפני 3 שבועות: האודישן ב"הכוכב הבא" של סרן שאול גרינגליק ז"ל שנפל ברצועה – "יש לך כישרון טבעי"https://t.co/8mPDE1EdQ2 pic.twitter.com/jhhBGp8FwJ
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) December 26, 2023
“I imagined this year differently, as a year of aspiration and of living my dreams,” Greenglick said in a December 14 post on Facebook, which listed his job as a travel health adviser.
“Now I’m living an old dream, of fighting for the country …. A new, different dream will have to wait a bit.”
Greenglick, of the Nahal Brigade’s 931st Battalion, was killed Monday in the northern part of the Strip.
“Shaul participated in the current season of ‘The Next Star’ and moved us all. We send our condolences and share in the deep sorrow of the family members and friends. The next episode of the next star will be dedicated to Shaul. Of blessed memory,” said the Keshet Media Group, which created the show, in a statement.
The 2024 Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted in May in Malmo, Sweden.
At least 164 soldiers have been killed in Israel’s group operation in Gaza, triggered by Hamas’s murderous attack in southern Israel on October 7 when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 240.
