When most of us last saw Kobi Marimi, he was basking in the warmth of his audience at Eurovision 2019.
Despite an eventual 23rd place finish, the Israeli audience bestowed a tremendous ovation upon Kobi that evening in Tel Aviv. With tears in his eyes, he exited the stage.
Many Eurovision contestants tend to fade into obscurity after the contest is over. Would that be the last we saw of Kobi Marimi?
Nope. After a stint in the Israeli production of “Spring Awakening”, Kobi is out with his first single – a fun, upbeat, HEBREW song called “Yalla Bye”.
This is surprising for two reasons:
- Because thus far, we’ve rarely heard Kobi Marimi sing in Hebrew. During his time on “HaKochav Haba”, the reality show he won to become Israel’s Eurovision representative, he almost always sung in English.
- Because musically, this song is very different from most of what we’ve heard from Kobi Marimi thus far. Most of his songs showcase his powerful vocal abilities – and while they are certainly on display this time, his voice seems to take a back seat to the overall musical experience.
This new pop song is a lot of fun, and does a great job bringing out Kobi’s vocal talents without making them the obvious focal point of the song. It’s also great to hear him sing in his native language. Perhaps THIS should have been our 2019 Eurovision entry?
Oh, and for those who miss hearing “Home” every 15 minutes (as we did back in May), click below.