Eden Golan is in Sweden for the Eurovision Song Contest, but has not visited much of the country.
The 20-year-old Israeli singer is surrounded by security guards as she travels between her hotel and the contest venue in the city of Malmö. According to Israel’s public broadcaster, she was practicing her song amidst boos in preparation for her performance at the Pancontinental Singing Competition.
The Golan Island has been the focus of protests by anti-Israel demonstrators calling for Israel’s expulsion from Eurovision over the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which has killed around 35,000 people.
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On Thursday, a crowd estimated by police to number more than 10,000 people marched through a city in southern Sweden, chanting “Liberate Palestine” and “Israel is a terrorist state.” Banners accused Eurovision of being complicit in genocide and called for a boycott of the tournament.
Another protest march is planned for Saturday, hours before Golan faces artists from 25 other countries in the live Eurovision final.
Goran has rarely been seen in Malmö, apart from rehearsals and performances at the Malmö Arena. While other performers took to the stage in front of fans at the city’s Eurovision Park, Golan did not.
Israeli Eurovision 2024 contestant Eden Golan during a press conference with the finalists after the second semi-final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest at the Malmö Arena in Malmö. Make a heart with your fingers. Sweden, May 9, 2024. (Jessica Go/TT News Agency, via AP)
She was one of 10 teams to advance to Thursday’s semi-final, decided by votes from Eurovision viewers around the world. Golan was greeted with some boos and applause from the arena crowd. Bookmakers say she is likely to finish in the top half of the final competition, which will be determined by a combination of public voting and domestic music industry judges.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Golan’s performance “while battling an ugly wave of anti-Semitism.”
“So celebrate. When they boo, know that we’re rooting for you,” he said.
Golan’s song is a powerful ballad titled “Hurricane”, although that was not its original name. The song was originally called “October Rain,” an apparent reference to the October 7 Hamas attack that killed approximately 1,200 Israelis and sparked the Gaza War. This violated contest rules that prohibit “political” content.
The retitled song contains less specific lyrics about going through difficult times, claiming that “love never dies.”
Born in Israel to parents from the former Soviet Union, Golan spent much of his childhood in Russia, appearing on a Russian television talent show before returning to Israel. She cites Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, Whitney Houston, and Justin Timberlake as her inspirations.
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Although she has avoided making direct political statements, she said, “It’s a great honor to represent your country, especially in these times.”
After the semi-final, Golan said he was “overwhelmed with emotion.”
“I’m so excited to get back on stage and share a little bit of my love with you all,” she said.
