From Rising Pop Star to Spiritual Singer: The Inspiring Journey of Lizi Hazan

The future of musician Lizi Hazan seemed bright and promising. From a young age, she was deeply involved in music, and everyone around her was sure she was headed straight to the top of the stage. When she enlisted in the IDF, she insisted on serving in an army band, and at the same time produced many songs, most of them in English, which reached top chart positions around the world.

Immediately after completing her military service, Lizi continued rising. She performed as a backup singer for Israel’s leading artistsi including Lior Narkis, Ofer Levy, Tzadi Or, Maor Edri, Avi Peretz, Yaron Cohen, Ofir Cohen, on major stages such as Caesarea and Heichal HaTarbut. Some of her songs became well-known and were sung both in Israel and abroad, and she performed at weddings as a singer and soloist.

Despite her meteoric success, Lizi was still young at the time. Alongside the many songs she produced on her own, she also joined her older sister, singer Zohar, to create shared musical performances.

Singing Without Pause

The first blow that shattered her peaceful, flourishing life came when her father passed away suddenly on a Friday night. “He was only 64,” she recalls. “He went upstairs to go to sleep, slipped, and fell backwards. The blow to his brainstem was fatal, and he passed away a few hours later. It was a week before Parashat Vayetze, which is the portion he was born in — ‘Vayetze Yaakov.’ His name was Yaakov, and the combination of events was chilling.”

Lizi struggled deeply with the loss. “I was always very close to him,” she says. “I felt like the ground had been pulled out from beneath my feet. After some time I began having anxiety attacks, but I didn’t know how to identify them. I remember waking up one night unable to breathe, running to the window for air. I didn’t even understand that something was wrong. Only later did I begin treatment, and thank G-d I recovered and returned to myself with natural methods.”

During this time, she felt a genuine pull toward spiritual strengthening. “I come from a traditional home, a Shabbat-observant family,” she notes, “but as a teenager I wasn’t particularly careful about modest clothing or all the details of Jewish law. After my father passed away, I felt a real need to seek answers and strengthen myself through Torah classes.”

Throughout the year of mourning she hardly sang, but when the year ended, new opportunities quickly returned — no less exciting than before.

“I was invited to sing in Caesarea with another female singer. I told the producer that I would gladly perform, but only in modest clothing. At first she was shocked, but in the end she sewed me a special modest outfit — and even admitted it was more flattering.”

Around the same time, an opportunity came to participate in the famous TV show Eyal Golan Calls You, where Eyal Golan discovered new musical talents and awarded a prestigious prize to the winners. “I can’t forget the excitement. I reached the stage right before the finale. I felt like my dream was within reach. When I didn’t win, I felt my world collapse. The disappointment was enormous. Only now, looking back, I understand how G-d saved me at the last minute. He didn’t want me pulled into that industry.”

“Tell Mom Not to Cry”

Months later, joy finally returned to the family. Lizi married her husband, who was in the process of returning to religious observance, and five months later her sister Zohar — also a singer, got married as well.

“When I got married, I was still wearing pants,” Lizi says, “but slowly, gradually, my husband and I grew closer spiritually and took on more mitzvot. Meanwhile, my sister went to Miami for her honeymoon, stayed several months, and continued performing there.”

This interrupted their joint performances, but Lizi was happy for her sister’s success abroad. Half a year later, Zohar told her she was returning to Israel. “When I went to the airport to welcome her, I was stunned when I saw her walking toward me in a long skirt, tights, and even a headscarf. My first question was, ‘Zohar, is everything okay?’ I was always the one trying to bring her to Torah classes, and suddenly she was the one taking such a dramatic step. She told me that while abroad she felt a strong need to connect spiritually, and she committed fully to modesty.”

But along with the joy, it soon became clear that Zohar’s health was deteriorating. “While in Miami she had tests showing something malignant, but later tests in Israel looked more optimistic. For a short time we breathed easier, but very quickly it became clear that the improvement was temporary, and her condition was declining.”

Still, Lizi continued accompanying her sister to performances. Both were already more religiously observant by then, and they tried to sing only for women. Zohar also began leading hafrashat challah events, singing during the ceremonies.

“One evening I was invited to sing at such an event, and I took on a brave commitment — to wear partial head covering for my sister’s recovery. It was a huge personal challenge. Two weeks later, Zohar had a lung scan, and the results looked better. I felt G-d was listening to my prayers. It was an incredible feeling.”

Two more weeks passed, and doctors announced: “The tumor is gone and the lungs are clear.” “We were overjoyed,” Lizi says. “It felt like a medical miracle, and we even held a thanksgiving party.”

But the joy was premature. “A few weeks later my mother called at six in the morning, trembling, and said: ‘Come to the hospital. The doctors say Zohar has only a few hours left.’ We still don’t fully understand what happened. Her lungs were indeed clear, but apparently part of the tumor remained, and the medication she received caused seizures and fainting that severely worsened her condition.”

Even so, that day was not her final day. “Doctors spoke of hours, but Zohar fought for two weeks,” Lizi explains. “I visited almost daily and kept taking upon myself more spiritual commitments, knowing only Heaven could help her.”

Artists around the world also took on mitzvot in her merit.
“It was moving to tears. Many even stopped working on Shabbat — anyone who knows the entertainment world understands how huge that is. I’m sure it caused great noise in Heaven.”

During the shiva, Lizi accepted a personal commitment: “I decided to completely stop performing at mixed-gender events. It was a decision I had considered for a long time, but now I knew I had to do it. Was it hard to give up the entire nature of my performances? Yes, but after everything we experienced, I felt so close to G-d. Everything else felt insignificant. Also, I wanted to correct the past, because I had once performed with my sister at mixed events. When I made the decision, I genuinely thought I would continue singing only at very small gatherings — maybe 20 women at most. I didn’t imagine anything beyond that.”

Lizi also committed to continuing head covering and wearing tights.
“Originally I took it on for Zohar’s recovery, and after she passed, technically I was ‘released.’ But I chose to continue. I begged G-d for a sign that my actions were precious to Him.”

The sign arrived quickly. “The day after the funeral, the woman who prepared my sister for burial called me. She said she was marrying off her daughter, and that Zohar appeared to her in a dream holding a wedding dress. She shook her hand and said: ‘Mazal tov. Tell my mother she doesn’t need to cry — I am in Gan Eden.’”

Never Stop Praying

If you meet Lizi today, you would hardly believe she once lived an entirely different life. She continues performing only for women, especially at challah-baking events and women’s gatherings. A few years ago she joined the group “The Yehudiyot,” where she discovered something surprising: “I realized I could perform not only in small home events but also on huge stages. I stood in front of 11,000 women as a ba’alat teshuvah. It was incredible to learn I could continue my profession with holiness and purity.”

She also shares a powerful lesson: “During the years I performed at challah events, I saw so many miracles — sick women healed, singles met their soulmates, women found abundant livelihood, others conceived after years of waiting. And yet I, who was praying and doing everything I could to grow spiritually, was already married for five years with no children. I couldn’t understand why. It was painful. How could it be that everyone else’s prayers were answered except mine?”

“These were difficult years, but also years of strong faith and deep inner work. In the end, after six years, I was blessed with a son. We named him Or Chaim. He fills our lives with light and endless joy.”

“It’s clear to me that G-d forgets no one. Everything is precise from Above. We just need to continue praying, asking, and hoping.”