THE LYRICS FOR Israel’s re-written Eurovision entry song have been revealed after the country’s original submission faced scrutiny from the competition’s organisers.
There were reports that the first version of the song proposed by Israel, October Rain, was rejected by the organisers, due to perceived political lyrics relating to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
Over 30,000 Palestinians are reported to have died as a result of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which was initiated in response to 7 October attacks by Hamas, in which an estimated 1,160 Israeli civilians were killed and 250 people were taken hostage.
The revised song, Hurricane, contains vague lyrics about overcoming struggle, similar to many other pop songs that have been entered into the competition over the years.
One section of the lyrics reads: “Some stole the moon tonight / Took my light / Everything is black and white / Who’s the fool that told you boys don’t cry? / Hours and hours empowers / Life is no game but it’s ours”.
The song closes out with singer Eden Golan singing “I’m still broken from this hurricane”.
In February, Eurovision organisers said they were scrutinising the previous entry.
In a statement to The Journal the European Broadcasting Union said it was examining the content of the song.
“The EBU is currently in the process of scrutinising the lyrics, a process which is confidential between the EBU and the broadcaster until a final decision has been taken. All broadcasters have until 11 March to formally submit their entries,” the EBU said at the time.
The deadline for song entries is today.
Eurovision bans political content in the songs entered into the competition.
KAN, the national broadcaster for Israel, previously stated that it had contacted the lyricists of October Rain and asked them to readapt its lyrics so that the entry would be accepted.
Israel has won the Eurovision four times, and the programme is widely watched in the country.
October Rain was performed by Russian-Israeli singer, Eden Golan, who was selected via a TV talent show after performing a cover of Aerosmith’s Don’t Want to Miss a Thing in the finale.
The performance was dedicated to the remaining hostages taken by Hamas during the 7 October attacks, and she performed the song surrounded on stage by empty chairs.
KAN published the full lyrics of October Rain on its website, which included: “They were all good children, every one of them,” and, “There is no air left to breathe / There is no place for me.”
The controversy over the original song was not the first time that a country has faced exclusion for political reasons.
Russia was excluded from Eurovision in 2022 due to the invasion of Ukraine, as the organisers said that allowing the country to compete would bring the competition “into disrepute”.
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