Ofira Assayag against the successful singer: "I am playing you for the last time"
Ofira Assayag was not indifferent to the name of the song by "The Next Star" alumnus, Ido Malka, and during a broadcast on 102FM, she gave him a public ultimatum to change the song's name. Along the way, she revealed a bizarre confrontation she had with the Tel Aviv Municipality: "There is a limit to stupidity" | All the details
Ofira Assayag, a journalist, television host, and one of the most prominent radio presenters in Israel, is known as someone who does not compromise on expressing her opinions — even when they spark a stormy public controversy. Now, she is setting a clear and razor-sharp condition for singer and songwriter Ido Malka in a live broadcast that quickly turned personal.
The drama unfolded during a routine broadcast by Assayag on the 102FM radio station, just before she was about to play one of Malka's well-known songs. "Ido Malka, I must say: what is this, calling a song 'Psychopath'?" the host attacked the singer over the microphone, while expressing her disgust at the name of the work.
The song in question, "Psychopath," was released in March 2024 and became a hit after gaining massive exposure on social media. The success paved the way for Malka to participate a few months later in the reality show "The Next Star for Eurovision," where he performed the original song at the audition and captivated the judges. Beyond the professional success, the program was also kind to him on a personal level, as during it he met his partner, Yuval Raphael, who represented Israel at Eurovision.
But Assayag, it turns out, was not really interested in the dizzying success. To explain why the name of the song grates on her so much, she chose to share with the listeners an unusual personal anecdote regarding a struggle she waged against the authorities. "It reminds me of a story," Assayag said on the air. "When one of my children was assigned to a municipal kindergarten, we received an assignment to the 'Donkey Kindergarten.' I said: 'Excuse me? What does that mean, Donkey Kindergarten?'"
She described her stormy reaction to the strange assignment:
"I turned the Tel Aviv Municipality upside down. Does this sound normal to you? They will ask 'Where is your child assigned?' and I will answer 'In the Donkey Kindergarten.' Calling a child a donkey? There is a limit to stupidity."
After that, Assayag returned to the original topic and delivered a threatening and unequivocal message to the young singer: "And calling a song 'Psychopath'? Ido Malka, you have another chance to show respect and change the name. I am playing it for the first and last time," she concluded firmly just before the song began to play.
