Eyal Golan

Eyal Golan, born Eyal Bitton on April 12, 1971, in Rehovot, Israel, has become one of Israel’s most successful singers in the Mizrahi pop fusion genre. His early life involved growing up in the Kfar Marmorek neighborhood of Rehovot with his mother’s family after his parents divorced when he was four years old. Prior to his musical career, Golan was involved in professional sports, playing soccer for Hapoel Marmorek’s youth team until age 18, and later joining their senior team. He continued playing professionally, with his final professional season for Maccabi Sha’arayim in 2005-2006. In 2014, he purchased Hapoel Marmorek.

Golan began his singing career in clubs at the age of 20. His debut album, “Lehisha ba’Laila” (A Whisper in the Night), was released in 1995, followed by a live album of cover songs. A significant turning point in his career came in 1996 when he started collaborating with the Israeli band Ethnix, known for blending new wave music with oriental melodies. This collaboration resulted in three successful albums and lasted until 2000. Throughout his career, Golan has released numerous albums, with almost all of them achieving platinum status. By 2019, he had released 22 studio albums and eight concert albums, consistently touring within Israel and occasionally performing internationally. In 2011, he reported the highest income among all singers in Israel, highlighting his commercial success.

Beyond his music, Golan has also appeared on television. In 2011, he launched the reality show “Eyal Golan Is Calling You” on Israeli Music 24, where he, along with Yosi Ganj, Adi Leon, and Yaron Elan, searched for emerging Mizrahi music talent. The show ran for two seasons, with Moran Mazor winning the first season and Nasreen Qadri winning the second. In 2018, he co-starred with Aviv Geffen in another singing competition titled “Aviv or Eyal,” where they coached competing teams, similar to the format of “The Voice.”