mora
War hero
Are celebrity soldiers equal?
Israeli teen pop star joins army, but fellow recruits claim she gets special treatment
Israeli teen pop star joins army, but fellow recruits claim she gets special treatment
Celebrities In The Israeli Army
For most celebrity performers who make it big by age 18, taking a break from their careers to serve in the army is the furthest thing from their minds. But what if Kelly Clarkson or Britney Spears had to temporarily retire from concert tours to do a tour of duty? What if the Backstreet Boys were asked to drop their mics and pick up guns instead? This is precisely the dilemma that young pop icons face - in Israel.
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Roni "Superstar" Duani, pictured above, became a teenage favorite in 2003
when her debut album went straight to the top of the charts. She was inducted into the
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) a year ago.
Just one day after private Roni âSuperstarâ Duani, one of the countryâs biggest teen pop music idols, enlisted in the army, her fellow recruits contend she is receiving special treatment from commanding officers. The recruits say she is not partaking in daily tasks the other girls are obligated to perform. âShe does not perform guard or kitchen duty, and she is even permitted to shower alone,â said one recruit. But a source from the IDF Spokesmanâs Office said the superstar is treated just like any other new recruit. âSo as not to obstruct the (military) baseâs daily routine and prevent crowd gatherings, the soldier (Duani) does not perform guard duty in the front gate and does not perform kitchen duty,â the source said. âInstead, she performs guard duty within the baseâs inner-confines, as well as other alternate tasks.â A military source said Duani does clean the latrines, and that âevery soldier who asks to shower in private may receive authorization from his or her commanding officers.â
This is not the first time an Israeli celebrity serving in the army has been given permission to shower in private. Blonde bombshell Yael Bar-Zohar complained during her service that people were âpeekingâ at her while she showered and asked for permission to shower alone.
âI am very busy but having a lot of funâ
While this official recognition does not extend to teens who are famous entertainers, they are granted it, informally. From a public relations standpoint, pop stars are great for the army. As role models, they give the impetus to other Israeli youth to join the army. On the other side of the coin, the celebrity gets to do a relatively easy service, and realizes that they are not going to have to do a three-year slog in the mud. It's a mutually rewarding exchange.
Being in the army has kept me groundedâ
Another major issue for celebrities in the army is dealing with peers. "At the beginning, it was a bit weird because people didn't know how to talk to me," recalls Duani, who says her worst moment in the army was during basic training, when she arrived at the co-ed, communal lunchroom for the first time. "Everyone stopped what they were doing, put down their forks and knives, and stared at me. The room went quiet. It was totally embarrassing. This was a big trauma for me. I never went back to the lunch room again."
But, says Duani, by the end of basic training she had made four close friends. "After awhile they realized I was human - and just as scared as they were about being a new soldier in the army.
"When I am in the army, I feel like a soldier, not a super star," she says, admitting that she does still get asked for her autograph now and again by her IDF colleagues. "The best part of being a soldier is that I am free to act like myself. I don't have to perform all the time. Being a soldier keeps my feet on the ground. It helps me remember where I come from."
