#103: Im Nin’alu by Ofra Haza
City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKOI
Peak Month: December 1988
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #7
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Finland Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Greece Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Norway Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Portugal Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Spain Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Switzerland Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on West Germany Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Austria Singles chart ~ #2
Peak Position on Sweden Singles chart ~ #2
YouTube: “Im Nin’Alu”
Lyrics: “Im Nin’Alu”
Ofra Haza is a singer born in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 1957. She began singing at an early age, including at local weddings and as a soloist in her school choir. At the age of 12, Haza joined a local protest theater troupe, named “Hatikva” (The Hope) which had been recently founded by a neighbor of hers, Bezalel Aloni. Haza soon emerged as one of the most gifted performers in the troupe. Aloni spotlighted her in many of his productions, and later became her manager and mentor. At 19, she was Israel’s foremost pop star, and news articles have retrospectively described her as “the Madonna of the East”. She represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest of 1983, with the song “Hi”, finishing second with 136 points.