Gil Ofarim
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| Gil Ofarim | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gil Doron Reichstadt Ofarim |
| Born | August 13, 1982  Munich, Bavaria, Germany |
| Genre(s) | Pop Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instrument(s) | Electric guitar |
| Years active | 1997 - present |
| Label(s) | Neo-Ne / SonyBMG |
| Associated acts | Zoo Army The Moffatts |
| Website | http://www.gilofarim.de/ |
Gil Doron Reichstadt Ofarim (born August 13, 1982 in Munich, Bavaria) is a German singer, songwriter and occasional actor, currently also known as the lead singer of the band Zoo Army.
Gil's showbiz career took-off in May 1997 when he was spotted in a Munich underground station by a talent scout for Bravo magazine and was asked to do a pictorial story spread. The article generated thousands of letters from fans and he landed a recording contract with BMG. His first single "Round 'N' Round (It Goes)" was released in November 1997 and became a Top 40 smash in Germany. His album Here I Am was released in May 1998 and was very successful in several Asian countries, including Thailand, the Philippines, and Singapore. He became the first musician to have three singles ("Never Giving Up Now," "Talk To You," and "If You Only Knew" - a collaboration with The Moffatts) on Thailand's Top 5 simultaneously. [1]
After several other successful singles, Gil became disenchanted with being a teen idol. His 2003 release On My Own showcased his move in a different musical direction, as well as his physical appearance.
Since June 2005 Gil is the lead singer of Zoo Army. Zoo Army consists of Gil, Tal (his brother), Roland Söns and Dominik Scholz. They released their first single "I'm Alive" and album 507 in the first half of 2006.
He is also active as an actor and played the part of Christoph in the Pro7-Production Endlich Sex! (Finally Sex!) in 2004 and Stefan Döbbelin in the TV two-part Sturmflut, Die (The Storm Tide) in 2006. His latest role is Max in the psycho-thriller Strip Mind which opened in Germany on January 3, 2007.
Gil speaks German, Hebrew, and English. He sings in English.
Although Gil is virtually unknown in the United States, he has an impressive underground fan following. He had a brief surge in popularity in the late 1990s when Hanson fans noticed that Gil's younger brother, Tal, bore a strong resemblance to Zac Hanson.
His Israeli father, Abi Ofarim, was a star in his own right, a folk artist, who had a group with his first wife Esther Ofarim. Gil's mother, Sandy, is Abi's third wife.
Contents |
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- Here I Am (1998)
- Children Of The World (1998)
- The Album (2000)
- The Best Of Gil ... So Far (2001)
- On My Own (2003)
- 507 (Zoo Army) (2006)
- 507 Limited Edition (Zoo Army) (2006)
[edit] Singles
- "Round'n'Round (It Goes)" (1997)
- "Never Giving Up Now" (1998)
- "If You Only Knew" (featuring The Moffats) (1998)
- "Here I Am" (1998)
- "Let The Music Heal Your Soul" (featuring Various Artists) (1998)
- "Talk To You" (1998)
- "Walking Down The Line" (1999)
- "Out Of My Bed (Still in My Head)" (1999)
- "The Reason" (2003)
- "She" (2003 - not released)
- "In Your Eyes" (2004)
- "I'm Alive" (Zoo Army) (2006)
