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Ethiopian Israeli teen wins X Factor Israel after wowing with audition

Eden Alene's audition scene went viral

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An Ethiopian teenager, who wowed audiences with her version of Demi Lovato’s “Stone Cold,” has won X-Factor Israel.

Eden Alene, 17, from Jerusalem, overcame a difficult childhood to enter the competition and win a recording contract.

The singer’s parents divorced when she was two and she was brought up by her single, Orthodox Jewish mother.

During the competition she talked about being ashamed of her origins, but as she grew up, she said she became proud to be Ethiopian.

A video of Alene’s audition went viral in October.

As part of the performance the aspiring singer explained why promoting coexistence was important to her.

She told viewers why she wears rubber bracelets, and how her favourite was from a workshop at Yale University, in which she sang in a mixed Jewish and Arab choir.

She sung Christina Perri’s “Human” in her final performance on X-Factor.

On winning the competition she said: "Thank you to everyone who voted and supported me from the beginning ... Thanks to my mother, she is the woman who supported me all along, I dedicate this victory to my mother who has made me who I am."

The teenager said she hopes her win will reflect well on the Ethiopian community in Israel.

In an interview with Israel Hayom she said: “Every Ethiopian represents the Ethiopian community.”

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