Imri Ziv ( he, אימרי זיו; born 12 September 1991), also known as IMRI, is an Israeli singer and voice actor. After winning ''

HaKokhav HaBa ''HaKokhav HaBa'' ( he, הַכּוֹכָב הַבָּא, translated as "The Next Star"; formerly ''HaKokhav HaBa LaErovizion'', ''Rising Star to the Eurovision'') is an Israeli interactive reality singing competition, which was first broadcast ...

'', he represented

Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 Israel participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. Israeli broadcaster Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) collaborated with the commercial broadcaster Keshet and Tedy Productions which organised the reality singing competition HaKokhav ...

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...

with the song "

I Feel Alive "I Feel Alive" is a song performed by Israeli singer Imri Ziv. The song represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. It was written by Dolev Ram and Penn Hazut. The song was released as a digital download on 10 March 2017 by Unicell. ...

" placing in the 23rd place in the finals.

Life and career

Life and education

Born in Hod HaSharon, in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, to a family of

Ashkenazi Jewish Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

(

Romanian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Romania concerns the Jews both of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is present-day Romanian territory. Minimal until the 18th century, the size of the Jewish population increased after ...

Polish-Jewish The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Ashkenazi Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the l ...

Austrian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Austria probably begins with the exodus of Jews from Judea under Roman occupation. Over the course of many centuries, the political status of the community rose and fell many times: during certain periods, the Jewis ...

, and

Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...

) descent. Ziv studied at Ilan Ramon High School. While doing his obligatory military service, he practiced in a musical band of the Education and Youth Corps Unit of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

. For university, he studied a degree in communication sciences at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya. Imri says that since he was a child he has had a talent for easily learning languages. He speaks fluent

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

with an Argentinian accent, as his Spanish teacher was from Buenos Aires.

2012–2016: ''The Voice Israel'' and early career

In 2012, he auditioned for the inaugural edition of the television talent show ''

The Voice Israel ''The Voice Israel'' (Hebrew: ''The Voice ישראל'') is the Israeli version of ''The Voice of Holland''. It is part of the international syndication ''The Voice'' based on the reality singing competition launched in the Netherlands, created ...

'', singing "אהובתי" with 2 judges of four,

Sarit Hadad Sarit Hadad ( he, שרית חדד, ) (born on September 20, 1978) is an Israeli singer. In October 2009, the Israeli Music TV Channel (Channel 24) named Hadad "best female singer of the 2000s". She represented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contes ...

and

Rami Kleinstein Rami Kleinstein ( he, רמי קלינשטיין; born 10 November 1962) is an Israeli singer and composer. Biography Kleinstein was born in New York City, to an American-Jewish family of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. He immigrated to Israel with his ...

turning their chairs. Being part of Team Rami, he proceeded to the Battle Rounds singing "פרפרים" and was eliminated by mentor Kleinstein who opted for advancing teammate rival Orit Shalom. Ziv performed as a

backing vocalist A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

in Israel's

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

and

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

entries, respectively with

Nadav Guedj Nadav Guedj ( he, נדב גדג'; born 2 November 1998) is an Israeli singer and actor who represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. He is the winner of season two of '' HaKokhav HaBa'' (Israel's '' Rising Star''). Guedj was born in ...

singing " Golden Boy" and

Hovi Star Hovav Sekulets ( he, חובב סקולץ; born 19 November 1986), known by his stage name Hovi Star ( he, חובי סטאר), is an Israeli singer. He represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song " Made of Stars" by Doron ...

singing " Made of Stars" with both qualifying to the finals. In 2016, he performed voice over in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

for the 3D animated film '' Trolls''.

2017–present: ''HaKokhav HaBa'' and Eurovision Song Contest 2017

He participated in season 4 of ''HaKokhav HaBa L'Eurovizion'', the reality singing competition "The Next Star for Eurovision", being the Israeli format of '' Rising Star''. In the auditions on 2 and 3 January 2017, he performed "

The Edge of Glory "The Edge of Glory" is a song by American singer Lady Gaga from her second studio album, '' Born This Way'' (2011). The song was released on May 9, 2011, as the album's third single. Initially released as one of two promotional singles for ''Bor ...

" by Lady Gaga, obtained 93% of the public vote and the approval of all judges

Keren Peles Keren Peles Toor ( he, קרן פלס טור; born March 11, 1979) is an Israeli singer-songwriter, poet and pianist. Music career Peles graduated from the Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music. In 2005, she became famous for her songwritin ...

Harel Skaat Harel Skaat ( he, הראל סקעת, born 8 August 1981) sometimes known by the mononym Harel is an Israeli singer and songwriter. He represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song " Milim" ("מילים", "Words"). Skaat ...

( 2010 Israeli Eurovision entrant) and duo Static & Ben-El Tavori. In the quarter-finals held on 30 and 31 January 2017, he performed "

Rude Boy Rude boy, rudeboy, rudie, rudi, and rudy are slang terms that originated in 1960s Jamaican street culture, and that are still used today. In the late 1970s, there was a revival in England of the terms ''rude boy'' and ''rude girl'', among other ...

"
Video: Imri Ziv performs Rude Boy
on YouTube) by

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to th ...

earning 72% and approval from three judges and in the semi-final "

I Don't Want to Miss a Thing "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith as the official theme song for the 1998 sci-fi disaster film ''Armageddon'', in which lead singer Steven Tyler's daughter Liv starred. It is one of four so ...

" by Aerosmith earning 95% and approval of all judges and qualifying for the finals. In the final on 13 February 2017, he first performed "

Halo Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * ''Halo'' (franch ...

" by

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

winning 78% of the public's votes and approval of all four judges. He followed it up with an interpretation of " Because of You" by

Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of '' American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her de ...

winning the contest with 74% approval rating. The finalist Diana Golbi finished runner-up with 67% and Julieta was third with 58%. After winning ''HaKokhav HaBa L'Eurovizion'', Ziv represented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. His song, "

", written by Dolev Ram and Penn Hazut was released on 9 March 2017, placing third in the second semi-final and 23rd in the final

Discography

Singles

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ziv, Imri 21st-century Israeli male singers Israeli pop singers Living people Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Israel Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2017 1991 births People from Hod HaSharon The Voice (franchise) contestants Israeli Ashkenazi Jews