Ishtar – better known to family and friends as Eti Zach – was born in Israel, in Kiryat Ata, a small town not far from Haïfa, on 10 November 1968. Eti and her sister were influenced by several different cultures as they were growing up. Raised by an Egyptian mother and a father with Spanish and Moroccan roots, the girls spoke Arabic at home but learned Hebrew at school. They were surrounded by music from an early age as their mother is the daughter of the famous Egyptian singer, Nora, and their father a talented musician in his own right. Eti appeared to have inherited the Zach family's musical talent and began singing professionally at the age of 15. She got her stage name from her grandmother who named her Ishtar after the ancient Asian goddess of fertility.

Like other Israeli teenagers (of both sexes), Eti began her military service at the age of 18 and spent two years in the army. Then, continuing with Israeli teenage tradition, she spent the following year travelling. Eti visited a number of countries including Australia and boosted her travelling funds by performing in local clubs. Eti's vocal talent and passion for music, not to mention her stage charisma and good looks, made her an instant hit with audiences worldwide.

On her return trip to Israel Eti stopped off to visit a friend in France. This visit proved to be a turning-point in her personal life and career, for Eti fell in love with France and decided to make it her home. The 24-year-old singer wasted no time in getting her music career up and running abroad, working as a backing singer for a host of well-known artists including the group Kaoma (famous for launching the "Lambada" craze), Tonton David and Julien Clerc. Meanwhile, Eti also began giving regular performances with a group called Cauma.

But Ishtar's big breakthrough came when producer Charles Ibgui came to see her in concert. Impressed by Ishtar's extraordinary voice, Ibgui signed her to his label, Atoll. Ibgui also introduced Ishtar to Los Ninos, a group of four Gypsy cousins from Montpellier, who had honed their musical talent playing with several major stars including Manitas de Platas and Paco de Lucia.

Ishtar became the group's frontwoman and, under the name Alabina, the fivesome went on to create a catchy multi-cultural fusion sound mixing Spanish, Arabic and Gypsy music with lyrics in French, Spanish, Arabic and Hebrew. Alabina's multi-cultural fusion sound was laid over electro beats which gave the group's music a strong dance feel and won them instant popularity on the international music scene. Needless to say, Alabina's 'Oriental pop' was soon crossing linguistic and geographical borders and shooting up charts around the world.

Alabina's debut album "The Album" – a name which spoke volumes about the group's international ambitions – came out in 1996 and scored an instant hit with music fans worldwide. "The Album" went on to sell over 200,000 copies (including 70,000 in the US, 35,000 in Spain, 25,000 in Italy and 20,000 in Israel). Ishtar's album even scored a huge hit in Armenia – a country where international releases usually make only the slightest of impacts!

The singles, "Alabina", "Ole y Ola" and "Habibi de mis amores" followed the same trajectory to success, selling over 150,000 copies apiece. Alabina's dance-influenced covers of traditional Arab classics seemed to appeal to music fans across the board. Indeed, the group appeared to have hit upon a successful formula for crossing cultural and religious divides.

Alabina owed much of their multi-cultural success to their charismatic frontwoman, who remained something of a mystery. Audiences remained in the dark about Ishtar's origins and many people took her for an Arab, never imagining for a moment that she had Jewish roots.

Relaxed, enthusiastic and exuberant on stage, Ishtar and her group established an excellent reputation on the live scene, performing extensive tours. Within six months of the release of their debut album, Alabina were performing at the legendary Olympia music hall in Paris and in 1997 they supported Carlos Santana when he played Bercy stadium. In March '98 the group brought the house down when they played in Chicago at celebrations to mark the dawning of the Persian New Year.

Alabina were soon back in the studio putting the finishing touches to their second album, "Sahara", released in October '98. The album quickly echoed the success of the first, making an impact on the charts in more than 20 different countries and reaching number 8 in Billboard's "Top World Music" chart. "Sahara" featured 11 tracks, each more catchy than the last, and included a brilliant cover of the disco classic "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". Re-recorded as "Lolole", Alabina's version of the song was soon getting dancefloors grooving around the world.

Alabina packed out the enormous Palais des Congrès when they next appeared in Paris on 6 March 1999 and went on to perform a sell-out international tour, bringing the house down when they played in New York's Central Park in July of that year at the "Vive la World" music festival.

Meanwhile, Alabina's records continued to sell like hotcakes on the international music scene, different versions of their classics being made available in different countries. Their official album count has gone beyond two these days as variants of their original albums now exist ("Sahara" becoming "The Album II" in several countries).

Following the release of Alabina's compilation album, "L'essentiel", in 1999 (which included a cover of the Jean-Jacques Goldman classic "Comme toi" as a special bonus track), Ishtar decided to branch out on her own without Los Ninos. She released a solo album in 2000, featuring her usual catchy mix of 'Oriental pop' and dance beats. Ishtar also continued in the multi-cultural vein, performing songs in French, English, Arabic and Hebrew, written by a host of famous songwriters and composers including Jacques Veneruso (the former "Canada" star who is a member of Goldman's hit songwriting team), the Tunisian songwriter Hedi Jouini, Didier Barbelivien and Lionel Florence.

Having become a huge star throughout the Arab world, Ishtar was invited to perform at "Ghriba 2000", the Millennium Pilgrimage organised in Djerba in May 2000. She also gave a private concert for the Moroccan royal family later that year.

On December 2nd and 3rd Ishtar triumphed in Paris once again, hundreds of fans flocking to see her perform two special festive concerts at the Olympia.

She, then, hit the road again on an international tour that took her around the world, to India, Australia, Hong Kong and the United States. She also paid a visit to her fans in Israel, her home country, where she hosted a few television shows, singing duos with local stars like Pablo Rosenberg, Avihu Medina, and David d’Or. On June 17^th, she was to be seen on the Universal City stage in Los Angeles. Immediately afterwards, she travelled back to France and gave a performance in Cannes on August 12^th.

Being better known worldwide as the lead of Alabina, Ishtar gave her world tour under this name.

August 2001