How can the career of Dana International be summed up? Loved by the masses and equally loathed by just as many, Dana International is not only a pop star but also something of a figurehead for the gay/transgender movement in Israel. Since her breakthrough in 1992, she has been continuously one of the biggest selling artists in the Middle East, despite her releases being outlawed in all muslim countries. During the course of her career, she has released no fewer than eight studio albums and is probably the most succesful music act to ever emerge from Israel.
Sharon Cohen as she is actually called was born Yaron Cohen in Tel Aviv in 1972. According to the singer herself, although she was born a male, she identified herself as female from a very early age. Depsite coming from a relatively poor Yemenite Jewish family, they supported her, enabling her to take music lessons. Dana apparently came out publicly as a transexual at the age of 13. She took the plunge, making the transformation from male to female in 1993 in the UK. She released her first album Danna International shortly after her return to Israel and it quickly achieved gold status. Her career shot to unscaled heights and went from strength to strength, her second release in 1994, Umpatampa consolidating her superstar status.
She first attempted to enter the Eurovision via Kdam in 1995, with Layla Tov, Eropa, finishing second but which also went on to become a monster hit in her native Israel. In 1998 however, she would prove more succesful with Diva, which went on to win the Eurovision Song Contest for Israel. The choice to send Dana to Birmingham in 1998 caused extreme controversy among the ultra orthodox Jewish population, and wherever she went, she caused a media frenzy. Many claim it was the media and public curiosity which was the actual reason she won the 1998 contest and not due to the merits of Diva itself. Diva put these accusations to shame, going on to become a worldwide smash, selling over 400,000 copies and going top 10 5 European countries.
Following her victory however, she failed to maintain an international career of note, although she still remained a cult figure and personality. Dana again caused quite a commotion when presenting the trophy to Charlotte Nilsson as winner of the 1999 contest, when she fell over on stage due to the sheer weight of the award. During the period 2002-2006, Dana’s career suffered significant setbacks not least due to the problems while negotiating a recording contract with Sony/BMG.
After a few years out of the limelight, she returned as a force to be reckoned with, enjoying renewed success in 2007 with Love Boy, one of the biggest hits in Israel for many years. In 2008, she participated in the Eurovision Song Contest once more, as composer behind the song Ke’ilu Kan by Boaz Mauda, achieving 9th place. Dana is currently working on her latest release. Her participation in the Europe’s most beloved programme this year is yet another step in her masterplan to fight her way back into the mainstream market. You can say what you like about Dana International, but staying power she has got by the bucketload and can’t be kept down for long!
