| Ninet Tayeb | |
|---|---|
Ninet Tayeb at the 2007 Yom Ha'atzmaut concert in the Yarkon Park |
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| Background information | |
| Born | October 21, 1983 |
| Origin | Kiryat Gat, Israel |
| Genres | Alternative rock, indie |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, drums |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Labels | Hed Artzi Helicon |
| Website | Official website |
Ninet Tayeb (Hebrew: נינט טייב, also known as Ninette or Nina) (born October 21, 1983, in Kiryat Gat, Israel) is an Israeli-pop rock singer and actress who became widely known as the first winner of Kochav Nolad (the Israeli version of American Idol).[1]
She is currently performing after the release of her second album, and stars in the Israeli version of Spring Awakening.[2]
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Tayeb is of Tunisian Sephardic Jewish descent, the third of five children to her parents. She was raised in Kiryat Gat, where she started to sing in the local youth center.[3] She was nicknamed Nina by her friends and family.
During her IDF service, Tayeb auditioned for the first season of "Lo Nafsik Lashir – Kokhav Nolad, then a format under development. The Israeli media embraced her as a Cinderella story and named her the star, and she was in the lead all throughout the season.[4] In the semifinal, she sang a song by Hayehudim, bringing mainstream attention to the veteran band.[5] In the final, she performed Zohar Argov's classic Mizrahi song "Yam Shel Dma'ot" (A Sea of Tears), and won with almost half of the votes. She is the contestant with the longest-lasting and largest popularity after the show.
She is usually invited to the grand finale of the show every year and introduced as the number one winner of the show.
After winning Kokhav Nolad, Teddy productions, the production company behind Kokhav Nolad, created a daily drama to capitalize on Tayeb's popularity. The show, HaShir Shelanu ("Our Song"), was loosely based on Tayeb's life, became a hit and ran through 4 seasons, with Tayeb starring as Ninet Levi for two seasons, and as herself for the remaining two.[6]
In 2009 the movie "Kirot", a thriller directed by Dani Lerner, was released to theaters with Ninet in the lead as a beaten woman avenging her abusing husband.[7]
In the summer of 2010 Ninet played the roll of Wendla Bergman on the Hebrew vesion of the rock musical "Spring Awakening" written by Frank Wedekind. Ninet was nominated for the Israeli Theatre Awards for best female actress of 2010.
Three years after winning the Israeli Kokhav Nolad reality show, Tayeb began work on her first album, Barefoot (Yechefa, Hebrew: יחפה). The album was produced by the Israeli rock singer Aviv Geffen,[8] whom Ninet admired in her teen years; it was mainly composed, written and adapted by him. The album was released on September 7, 2006, and was later certified gold, selling more than 20,000 copies. The cover image was produced by Helicon.
1. Barefoot
"Yehefa" / יחפה
2. When You Are Here [Released as first single on July]
"KsheAta Kan" / כשאתה כאן
3. Anything Might Happen [Released as second single on August]
"HaKol Yakhol Likrot" / הכול יכול לקרות
4. Days of Forgiveness
"Yamim Shel Sliha" / ימים של סליחה
5. If You Come [Released as fourth single on December]
"Im Tavo" / אם תבוא
6. Longing (Are the Children of Loneliness)
"Ga'agu'im (Hem HaYeladim Shel HaBdidut)" / געגועים הם הילדים של הבדידות
7. Good to Die In the Name of Love
"Tov Lamut BeAd HaAhava" / טוב למות בעד האהבה
8. She Knows [Released as third single on November & first video clip, see this section]
"Hi Yoda'at" / היא יודעת
9. After All
"Aharei HaKol" / אחרי הכול
10. How Does It Feel When It's Over
"Eikh Margishim KsheZe Nigmar" / איך מרגישים כשזה נגמר
11. Knew You'd Be Back
"Yadati SheTahzor" / ידעתי שתחזור
12. Puppet
"Buba" / בובה
Songs 1–4 (including the first two singles) & 6, 10 & 12- were all written, composed and adapted by Geffen. Song 5, the fourth single, was written by Eli Moreno, composed by Ilay Bottner & adapted by Idan Raichel and Gil'ad Shmu'eli. Song 7 was written and composed by Erez Al'Grebli, and adapted by him and Tomer Mazmer. Song 8, the third single (and first video clip) was written by Tayeb, composed by her and Ilay Bottner, and adapted by Aviv. Song 9 was written by Barak Pheldman, composed and adapted by Yonni Bloch. Song 11 was written by Tayeb and Geffen, composed & adapted by him.
Tayeb has expressed some unhappiness with the first album, noting that due to microphone issues, her singing quality in it was not good.[9]
On November 17, 2009, Tayeb released her second album, Communicativi (communicative).[10] Tayeb wrote all the lyrics in the album, composed most of it, and produced and arranged the album with Rockfour. The album was praised by the critics as brave and exciting, mostly for the major shift in Tayeb's image from "the national sweetheart" of Israel to a darker image of a rocker. The album introduces Tayeb's new musical influences from the rock genre such as Jeff Buckley, P.J. Harvey, etc. This album is by far less commercial than her debut and none of the singles that have been released became hits, although Tayeb's status as Israel's most famous person in entertainment remains strong, thus making "Communicativi" one of the most talked about albums of recent years.
Track listing:
1. אם אני אלך / If I Leave
2. מדברים / Talking
3. כלה / Bride
4. עבדים / Slaves
5. שלווה / Serenity
6. אולי בחגים / Maybe During The Holidays
7. כך היה תמיד / It's Always Been Like This
8. פרח / Flower
9. כדור פורח / Balloon
10. כלב / Dog
11. יקינטון / Hyacinth
12. בשקט הזה / In This Silence
13. שני מעברים / Two Passages
In 2005, she was voted the 10th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.[11]
In 2004 Tayeb recorded a song called "Like Everybody" with comedian Eli Finish for the charity television broadcast "Yomtov". In 2008 Tayeb took part in the documentary TV series "Once In A Lifetime" for which she flew to Jamaica with musician Ben Artzi, where they recorded a reggae track together with local musicians. In memorial of Ofra Haza she recorded, along with Ivri Lider, a pop rock version of Haza's song "This Pain". The duet became a hit in Israel in 2007.
In the annual musical project "Hebrew Labor" of 2008 (new versions of Israeli classics), she recorded Ilan Virtzberg's song to late poet Yona Wallach lyrics, "I Couldn't Do Anything With This". The song was the first public presentation of "the new Ninet", as it introduced an alternative rock direction in Tayeb's career.
Tayeb took part in the annual children's song contest Festigal as a guest performer (not performing on Saturdays due to religious reasons) in 2004. In 2006 she participated in the children's production Shir Nolad – a cover versions competition of classical children's songs, which she won with a cover version of the classic "Mother". It was during that time when she met future life partner Yehuda Levi. She competed in the renewed Children's Song Festival in 2008 with the song "Layla" (Nighty Night) which she wrote and composed herself. The song featured, once again, alternative influences in the melody and her singing.
Tayeb was invited to perform in tribute concerts for Meir Ariel, Inbal Perlmutter, Elliott Smith and Jeff Buckley. The latter is the object of Tayeb's admiration. After meeting with Buckley's guitarist and song writer Gary Lucas, Lucas invited Tayeb to record a song which he co-wrote with Buckley but was never recorded.
In 2009 she performed in the renewed Arad Festival. It was the first time Tayeb performed her new material to a large audience. The reaction was unpleasant: Tayeb was booed off stage and refused an encore, which not much to anyone's surprise caused a bit of a media frenzy. Weeks later in a television interview about the Arad incident she stated: "It was painful, but it's the audience's prerogative".
Tayeb recorded the Hebrew soundtrack for the movie Mary Poppins. She was chosen by Walt Disney Company to record the Hebrew soundtrack for the movie The Princess And The Frog.
In 2010 Tayeb was chosen for the role of Wendla in Israeli production of the musical Spring Awakening at "Beit Lessin" Theatre.
Tayeb is the host of Israel Radio's 88 FM station "Pando Najena" show. She is currently working on two albums, one in English and one in Hebrew, with Rockfour.[9]
Tayeb began dating her Hashir Shelanu co-star (and on screen lover) Ran Danker in 2004.[12] Their on screen and off screen romance was the source of unprecedented media and public interest. Soon after their break up in early 2006, rumors arose speculating that their break up was the result of an affair between Tayeb and actor Yehuda Levi, the boyfriend of Hashir Shelanu co-star Efrat Boimvald. The two supposedly met while working on the children show production Shir Nolad in 2006. Although Levi ended his relationship with Boimvald after 7 years, Tayeb and Levi denied the rumors. They were spotted together on several occasions and after five months, Tayeb confirmed the new romance in an interview, stating that the two were in love. In 2009, Levi confessed in an interview that their romance began while they were both dating other people. Tayeb and Levi now live together in Tel Aviv.
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