"Diva" (
Hebrew: דיווה) is the winning song of the
Eurovision Song Contest 1998, performed in Hebrew by Israeli singer
Dana International representing
Israel. The music was composed by
Svika Pick, with lyrics written by Yoav Ginai. The song was produced by
Offer Nissim with music arrangements by Alon Levin[3] and included on her fifth album, Free (1999). It was Israel's third winning song in the Eurovision Song Contest, following the consecutive victories of
1978 and
1979. Dana International's win is considered influential in making trans identity mainstream.[4]
The song became the last entry entirely in a language other than English to win the contest
until 2007. As the song did not have any live orchestral accompaniment, the interval act was the last time live music from an orchestra was used in the contest, as the 1999 contest lacked the necessary budget and was held in a venue not large enough to hold one.[5]
The selection of Dana International's song caused so much controversy amongst conservative groups in Israel that on her arrival in Britain, police escorts and security were required continuously. The performance consisted of Dana International wearing a silver dress, backed by four other female singers wearing black. It involved no dancing.
The song was the eighth entry performed on the night, following
Poland's
Sixteen with "
To takie proste" and preceding
Germany's
Guildo Horn with "
Guildo hat euch lieb!". At the close of voting, it had received 172 points, placing 1st in a field of 25. This was Israel's third Contest victory and, as they had not entered the previous year's Contest, they achieved the unusual distinction of having won a Contest the year after not competing.
After the results were announced, Dana International caused a stir by arriving to the presentation late after a long delay, because she changed into an extravagant costume designed by
Jean-Paul Gaultier adorned with bird feathers before performing the reprise.
The song was chosen in an internet poll conducted by the
European Broadcasting Union in 2005 as one of the 14 most popular songs in the history of the Eurovision, and was one of the entrants in the Congratulations 50th anniversary concert in
Copenhagen,
Denmark, held in October 2005. It was re-enacted by Dana International along with six dancers equipped with giant feathered fans and a live
orchestra as the original footage was shown in the background. "Diva" came 13th in the final voting.
Digital release
Despite its legacy as a well remembered Eurovision winner, as of 2018, the song was unavailable on digital music platforms (with the sole exception of Scandinavia). Efforts were made to get the rights holders to release the song digitally;[6][7] the efforts finally paid off, as on 11 April 2019 the English version of the song got released, with the Hebrew version to follow the week after.[8]
Content
The song is a moderately uptempo number. It is an ode to powerful women of history and mythology:
Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory or
Queen Victoria,
Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of beauty and love, and the Greek queen
Cleopatra are named.
^Stevenson, Jack (2001). "Eurovision: The Candy-Coated Song Factory". In Cooper, Kim; Smay, David (eds.). Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth. Los Angeles:
Feral House. pp. 173–176.
^Diva (UK & Australian CD1 liner notes).
Dana International. Dance Pool. 1998. DANA1CD, 666145 2.{{
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^Diva (UK & Australian CD2 liner notes). Dana International. Dance Pool. 1998. DANA1CDX, 666145 5.{{
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^Diva (UK cassette single eleeve). Dana International. Dance Pool. 1998. DANA1MC.{{
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link)
^Diva (European CD single liner notes). Dana International.
CNR Music. 1998. 5300294.{{
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link)
^Diva (European remixes CD single liner notes). Dana International. CNR Music. 1998. 5300306.{{
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link)
^Diva (French remixes 12-inch single sleeve). Dana International. CNR Music France. 1998. 3041086.{{
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link)
^After the broadcast it was announced that the
Spanish broadcaster wrongly tallied the votes and
Germany should have got the top mark – 12 points – instead of being snubbed, as it happened. The mistake was corrected and so Germany was placed seventh over
Norway. Israel and Norway both received two points less than originally and
Croatia,
Malta,
Portugal, the
United Kingdom,
Netherlands,
Belgium,
Estonia and
Turkey all received one point less than indicated during the broadcast. Originally Estonia,
Cyprus and Portugal had tied for 11th place with 37 points but because Portugal and Estonia received one point less than indicated during the broadcast, Cyprus was placed 11th over Estonia and Portugal.