Gil Ofarim covered Bryan Adams’ “Christmas Time” in an Instagram video. Not everyone was so enthusiastic about it – also in view of the headlines that the musician has made in recent months.
Attempt at reconciliation or provocation?
Wearing a dark red velvet jacket, the musician sits in front of the smartphone camera with his acoustic guitar. “A nice good evening everyone and a Merry Christmas to everyone out there,” he greets his audience. “We celebrate ‘Christmas Day’ at home, a mix of Christmas and Hanukkah,” he continues. In the background, festively decorated, is a Christmas tree. Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish festival celebrated starting December 25th.
“I got a request to play a song again that I sang many, many moons ago, [der] but it’s still a great song. I hope I don’t screw him up. But it’s been a long, long time.” Then Ofarim begins to sing: the first verse of the Bryan Adams cult classic “Christmas Time”.
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Some fans praise Ofarim for the performance, but not everyone liked the performance. The comment column was divided into two camps: those who forgave him – and those who gave him up. “You screwed up completely different things,” wrote one user, probably referring to the “Star of David affair”. In November 2023, Gil Ofarim appeared before the Leipzig Regional Court on charges of defamation and false accusations. Two years earlier, the now 42-year-old had recorded a video in front of the Westin Hotel in Leipzig. In it, he claimed that a hotel employee discriminated against him when he checked in because of his Star of David necklace and made anti-Semitic insults with the words: “Pack up your star!”
The matter famously went to court as the hotel sued him. On the sixth day of the trial, Ofarim gave in and his allegations proved untenable. His emotional video statement: A lie. That’s exactly what many people still resented him for, including in the comments on his Christmas cover. “Whether the hotel employee whose life you destroyed can also have a halfway nice Christmas?” This user wasn’t the only one who asked herself. To this day, the scandalous rocker still owes the affected employee W. a public apology.
The stage comeback is certain
A few days earlier, the rumors about the 42-year-old’s career had come true. Gil Ofarim will attempt his comeback next year. The musician announced his concert on Instagram: “Matrix Bochum 2025! 🤍 I’m looking forward to my first real concert in years!” he wrote. He will take the stage on April 17, 2025. On the concert poster, he is sitting on a stone, stretching his head towards the sun.
One user referred to this new start in her criticism of the “Christmas Time” reconciliation attempt: “In addition to the really presumptuous title of his new tour, I find it really disturbing that Gil now seems to have to make his Jewish background clear again in every one of his videos . […] In doing so, he provokes and does the Jewish community a disservice, as he has already caused enough damage [sic] has.”
The polarizing musician was sentenced to pay a fine of 10,000 euros because of his false accusations. The amount should be paid to the Israelite Religious Community of Leipzig and the sponsoring association of the House of the Wannsee Conference. Ofarim only made the payment months later.