We already head to day 5: some rehearsals of the 2nd semifinal, and….. the big 5. 11.30 – 11.50 Denmark11.55 – 12.15 Armenia12.20 – 12.40 Romania12.45 – 13.05 Estonia13.10 – 13.30 Belgium 14.40 – 15.10 Germany15.20 – 15.50 France16.00 – 16.30 Italy16.40 – 17.10 Ukraine17.20 – 17.50 Spain18.00 – 18.30 United Kingdom
photo credits: EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett/Corinne Cummings Finland After the lunch break, it is time for a lot of energy: Finland. As expected, Käärijä wears the green bolero jacket we know so well. He is accompanied by four dancers wearing pink. The show starts with Käärijä in a huge wooden box, climbs on top of a couple of pallets and sings there before he goes to the floor to continue his performance. We can at least say Käärijä’s performance spots a lot of energy. With Käärijä’s rehearsal, we saw all the participants in the first semifinal rehearse. It is time to continue with the second semifinal. Denmark Reiley’s performance is cleverly designed with a revolving structure that showcases three different colored rooms as he passes through doorways, utilizing the LED floor and projected graphics to special effects. The visuals range from swirling clouds to hearts and emojis, creating an atmosphere that gives the performance a dreamy feel. It’s very much in line with Gen Z sensibilities according to Eurovision.tv. Reiley himself is wearing pink, a colour we saw before today. Armenia Brunette is wearing a white dress with black sewings. She starts her performance on a sloped structure that is put upright. The structure has blue and pink swirls projected on it. The graphics and lightning change halfway as the song is changing it’s tempo. Brunette leaves the sloped structure, the stage is quite white with white squares in the background. Eurovision.tv speaks of strong vocals. Romania Yellow is the colour when we talk about Romania. Yellow suits, a yellow jacket and even yellow Pikachu socks! Theodor Andrei starts off with only a guitar on an empty stage. In the second half of the song, that all changes with much more energy. There is a dancer on stage as well. The end of the presentation seems to be quite dramatic, although eurovision.tv does not give more details about it. Belgium Belgium surprises with a completely different outfit than he had in the national final. Gustaph wears a white suit and a white hat, and a pink blouse. Gustaph has his own flight of stairs, which he intensively uses. He is supported by three backing vocals who play a main role in the entire show. He has a LED backdrop of vogueing, drag queens. A dancer also has a role in the act. Cyprus Eurovision.tv mentioned being impressed by Andrew’s vocal capacities. Andrew is wearing a black sleeveless vest. There’s an exciting energy in the way this song gradually intensifies from its opening note to an even more explosive conclusion. The LED background alternates between serene waterfalls and fiery flames. The floor has smoke and four banks of flames. in collaboration with Eurovision Artists
Today is already the 2nd day of the rehearsals. What to expect today? After Sweden, we have another favourite in the contest today: Finland. But there is more: 11.30-12.00 Israel12.10-12.40 Azerbaijan12.50-13.20 Czechia13.30-14.00 The Netherlands15.10-15.40 Finland15.50-16.20 Denmark16.30-17.00 Armenia17.10-17.40 Romania17.50-18.20 Belgium18.30-19.00 Cyprus
© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett About Quick Facts NameStef Caers Born5 July 1980 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionEurosong 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBecause of You (2023) Biography Stef Caers, born in Leuven in 1980, is a Belgian singer, musician, producer and singing teacher.He initially performed under the stage name Steffen and later as Gustaph. Caers followed secondary education at the Academie voor Muziek-Woord-Dans in Heist-op-den-Berg. He graduated as a producer at the music conservatory of Ghent. At the age of nineteen, still during his studies, he scored a hit in 2000 as Steffen with the song “Gonna Lose You”, which reached 22nd place in the Flemish Ultratop 50. Caers won a prize at Flemish Radio 2 in the subcategory “The debut” that year with the song. His next single, “Sweetest Thing”, was a more modest success: the song got stuck in the charts. Caers later noted that his songs like Steffen, which he wrote as a sixteen-year-old, are not entirely in line with his style. The music world made it clear to him that he should keep his homosexuality a secret so as not to undermine his popularity. It therefore remained with these singles under that name. Caers focused more on studio work and writing music. He also made jingles for Radio Donna and Q-music. However, he also remained active on stage, including as a pianist and background singer. With Mo Harcum, Sofie Verbruggen and Sandrine Van Handenhoven he paid homage to Marvin Gaye. With the latter two, he paid homage to Ella Fitzgerald in the 2021-2022 theater season, together with the VRT Bigband. He has been performing solo since 2008 under the name Gustaph. Four years later, under that name, he began singing and writing for Hercules & Love Affair, a group best known in the LGBTQ+ community. As a result, he performed at Pukkelpop, Glastonbury and Chanel shows, among others. Caers left the group in 2018. Caers is also a teacher at Hogeschool Gent within the jazz / pop course and at the pop and rock music course at Hogeschool PXL. Caers went to the Eurovision Song Contest twice as a backing singer. In 2018 with Sennek and in 2021 at Hooverphonic. He also was a voice coach for Geike Arnaert of Hooverphonic. In January 2023, he took part in Eurosong, the Flemish national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. Gustaph won Eurosong 2023, which meant that he was chosen as the Belgian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. He reached the final there and became 7th. Entries Because Of You Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsJaouad AlloulStef Caers MusicJaouad AlloulStef Caers BackingsMonique HarcumChantal KashalaSandrine van Handenhoven DancersPussCee West Results Semi Points: 90Position: 8Running order: 5 Results Finals Points: 182Position: 7Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/U1xD14IMKtg
Gustaph will represent Belgium with the song “Because of you”, written and composed by Jaouad Alloul and Stef Caers. After an exciting voting, the televoter chose Gustaph as the winner with a landslide, while Gala Dragot was the favourite with the expert jury. It is to be announced in which of the semifinals in Liverpool Belgium will perform. Gustaph, “Because of you”, 278 pts. The Starlings, “Rollercoaster”, 277 pts Gala Dragot, “T’inquiette”, 271 pts. Chérine, “Ça m’ennuie pas”, 268 pts. Ameerah, “The carnival”, 171 pts. Loredana, “You lift me up”, 167 pts. Hunter Falls, “Ooh la la”, 128 pts.
After a week of tv-shows on Flemish television, in which all the contestants chose a song out of two, there will be a final in Belgium. The show starts at 20:20 and you can watch it here. The contestants are: * Loredana You lift me up * Chérine Ça m’ennuie pas * Hunter Falls Ooh la la * Ameerah The carnival * Gala Dragot T’inquiète * Gustaph Because of you * The Starlings Rollercoaster Loredana took part in Eurosong 2014 with 2Fabiola and reached the semifinal.Tom Dice (The Starlings) represented Belgium in 2010 with the song “Me and my guitar”.
We know a lot about Eurovision and we want to share this knowledge with you! Therefore we’d like to bring you a blast from the past. Today, we will have a look at 1973, when Nicole and Hugo represented Belgium with the song “Baby baby”. Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest Belgium is one of the countries that participates in the Eurovision Song Contest from the first moment on in 1956. The only Belgian victory came in 1986, with Sandra Kim and her song “J’aime la vie”. However, in recent years Loïc Nottet (2015) and Blanche (2017) reached the top-5, both with a 4th place. National Selection In 1973, the national final Liedjes voor Luxemburg was held on February 25th. The song presentation can be found on Youtube, sound only. Although five quite big names in Flanders participated, Nicole and Hugo were the big favourites, as they missed the contest in 1971. Rita Deneve, “Ga met me mee”, 0 pt., 4th Nicole and Hugo, “Jij en ik en wij”, 0 pt., 4th Ann Christy, “Bye bye”, 1 pt., 3rd Kalinka, “Nooit ga ik van je heen”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Morgen”, 0 pt., 4th Rita Deneve, “Vrede voor iedereen”, 2pt., 2nd Nicole & Hugo, “Baby, baby”, 4 pt., 1st Ann Christy, “Meeuwen”, 0 pt., 4th Kalinka, “Home sweet home”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Kiss, Kus, Kuss”, 0 pt., 4th For the Dutch speaking: a lot of information about the national final can be found in “Van Canzonissima tot Eurosong – 65 jaar Belgische preselecties voor het Eurovisie Songfestival“, written by André Vermeulen. Nicole & Hugo The duo existed of Nicole Josy (Nicole van der Palm, born October 21st 1946) and Hugo Sigal (Hugo Verbraeken, born November 10th 1947). Both had a solo career before they met in 1970. Nicole already attempted to go to Eurovision in 1968. The first success of the duo came in 1971, when they won Canzonissima, the Belgian preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest, with the song “Goeiemorgen, morgen“. Unfortunately, Nicole got jaundice and had to stay in bed. The duo was replaced at the contest in Dublin. In December, 1971 became their happy year after all: Nicole and Hugo married. Two years later, they won the Belgian preselection again, and now they were able to go to Eurovision. Unfortunately they came last, but no one ever forgets the purple suits the duo was wearing. In 1974, they proved their success on another contest: the World Popular Song Contest in Tokyo, where they placed 2nd. It brought them several international tours in the 1970s. In 1984, they toured throughout the world on a cruise ship. A comeback came in 2004, when Nicole and Hugo participated in the Belgian preselections again with the song “Love is all around“. Although they didn’t win, the song became a hit. It was followed by several hits in Dutch like “Ik denk aan jou“, “Verliefd“, “Pastorale” and “Schietgebed“. In 2015 the duo decided to retire. On November 4th 2022, Nicole Josy passed away. Baby, Baby The song the duo sang at Eurovision in 1973, “Baby, baby” was composed by Ignace Baert, with lyrics from Erik Marijsse. A very remarkable line in the song was one Nicole sang: “Een vrouw kan niets alleen” (A woman can’t do anything alone). The song reached the 28th place in the Belgian charts. In Eurovision, most of the countries awarded it 5/10 or less, only Monaco and Spain awarded it with 6/10 votes. Therefore, the song became 17th and last.
©EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameJérémie Makiese Born15 juni 2000 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionInternal selection 2022 In Eurovision2022 Turin SongMiss you (2022) Biography Jérémie Makiese, born in Antwerp to Congolese parents, is a Belgian singer and footballer. Jérémie Makiese is bilingual French and Dutch. He was registered at the age of thirteen in the football club based in Anderlecht, BX Brussels. He also played at the Youth Academy Molenbeek. He signed a one-year contract as a goalkeeperat the start of the 2021 school year with Royal Excelsior Virton. Jérémie Makiese participated in in the ninth season of The Voice Belgium, in 2021. He chose to join Beverly Jo Scott’s team. He won the competition. On September 15, 2021, RTBF 2021, RTBf announced that Jérémie would represent his country at the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest. In may 2022, he went to Turin to represent his country in the contest with the song “Miss you”. Entries Miss you Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2022 LanguageEnglish LyricsJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ MusicJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ DancersCédric LibambuAlpha LopezShean AssalMalik Zaryaty Results Semi Points: 151Position: 8Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 64Position: 19Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/sB09advfF6E
Yes, the die is cast again. Ten songs will go through to the final, to be exactly the ten countries you will find below: Belgium Czech Republic Azerbaijan Poland Finland Estonia Australia Sweden Romania Serbia Congratulations to the ten winners. And remember: only ten songs could go through. That does not mean that the other songs are bad.
Two days ago we made a prediction for the first semi-final. Okay, no Albania and Latvia, but Moldova and Iceland instead. But don’t forget: we got no less than eight countries right! That’s why we’re taking the risk for another prediction tonight, this time for the second semifinal. We think that these are the countries that will advance to the final tomorrow: Finland: Who doesn’t know The Rasmus? These rockers have a huge fan base all over Europe. They will vote en masse. Finland makes it to the final. Serbia: The bookmakers are even predicting that Serbia will finish in the top-10. The act with washing hands will be appreciated by enough people for a place in the final. Unfortunately, Britain’s Prince Harry lives in the US. He would definitely vote for this song that mentions his wife. Azerbaijan: This country almost always makes it to the final according to a fixed recipe: a foreign team writes a song. A strong act is built around it. A guarantee for success! Australia: This song is one you either love or hate. There are plenty of people who really appreciate the act with the mask and feathers. The message also gets across. Sheldon is also a very good singer. Cyprus: A surprising song in Greek. Cyprus is not necessarily high on all lists, but it is just such a number that still gets enough appreciation to reach the final tomorrow evening. Estonia: This song makes people happy. And if there’s one thing we need right now, it’s hope, and what’s this song about….? Stefan will be in the final on Saturday. Romania: Spain votes in this semi-final and that helps, but in the meantime WRS also puts on a slick show. We think there is a good chance that it will be a final place. Poland: This is one of two entries on which our entire team is unanimous: Poland goes to the final with the rock-solid, well-sung ballad. Welcome back in the final, Poland! Belgium: The Belgian gospel song is one of a kind, well sung and therefore stands out in a positive way. Although the Belgians themselves seem to have doubts, we are convinced of a place in the final for Jérémie Makiese. Sweden: If Sweden doesn’t go to the final, nobody will. Even when everything went wrong, Cornelia Jacobs remained professional. The bookmakers are still predicting a very high position. But are we right? We’ll know in about 24 hours!
We already head to day 5: some rehearsals of the 2nd semifinal, and….. the big 5. 11.30 – 11.50 Denmark11.55 – 12.15 Armenia12.20 – 12.40 Romania12.45 – 13.05 Estonia13.10 – 13.30 Belgium 14.40 – 15.10 Germany15.20 – 15.50 France16.00 – 16.30 Italy16.40 – 17.10 Ukraine17.20 – 17.50 Spain18.00 – 18.30 United Kingdom
photo credits: EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett/Corinne Cummings Finland After the lunch break, it is time for a lot of energy: Finland. As expected, Käärijä wears the green bolero jacket we know so well. He is accompanied by four dancers wearing pink. The show starts with Käärijä in a huge wooden box, climbs on top of a couple of pallets and sings there before he goes to the floor to continue his performance. We can at least say Käärijä’s performance spots a lot of energy. With Käärijä’s rehearsal, we saw all the participants in the first semifinal rehearse. It is time to continue with the second semifinal. Denmark Reiley’s performance is cleverly designed with a revolving structure that showcases three different colored rooms as he passes through doorways, utilizing the LED floor and projected graphics to special effects. The visuals range from swirling clouds to hearts and emojis, creating an atmosphere that gives the performance a dreamy feel. It’s very much in line with Gen Z sensibilities according to Eurovision.tv. Reiley himself is wearing pink, a colour we saw before today. Armenia Brunette is wearing a white dress with black sewings. She starts her performance on a sloped structure that is put upright. The structure has blue and pink swirls projected on it. The graphics and lightning change halfway as the song is changing it’s tempo. Brunette leaves the sloped structure, the stage is quite white with white squares in the background. Eurovision.tv speaks of strong vocals. Romania Yellow is the colour when we talk about Romania. Yellow suits, a yellow jacket and even yellow Pikachu socks! Theodor Andrei starts off with only a guitar on an empty stage. In the second half of the song, that all changes with much more energy. There is a dancer on stage as well. The end of the presentation seems to be quite dramatic, although eurovision.tv does not give more details about it. Belgium Belgium surprises with a completely different outfit than he had in the national final. Gustaph wears a white suit and a white hat, and a pink blouse. Gustaph has his own flight of stairs, which he intensively uses. He is supported by three backing vocals who play a main role in the entire show. He has a LED backdrop of vogueing, drag queens. A dancer also has a role in the act. Cyprus Eurovision.tv mentioned being impressed by Andrew’s vocal capacities. Andrew is wearing a black sleeveless vest. There’s an exciting energy in the way this song gradually intensifies from its opening note to an even more explosive conclusion. The LED background alternates between serene waterfalls and fiery flames. The floor has smoke and four banks of flames. in collaboration with Eurovision Artists
Today is already the 2nd day of the rehearsals. What to expect today? After Sweden, we have another favourite in the contest today: Finland. But there is more: 11.30-12.00 Israel12.10-12.40 Azerbaijan12.50-13.20 Czechia13.30-14.00 The Netherlands15.10-15.40 Finland15.50-16.20 Denmark16.30-17.00 Armenia17.10-17.40 Romania17.50-18.20 Belgium18.30-19.00 Cyprus
© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett About Quick Facts NameStef Caers Born5 July 1980 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionEurosong 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBecause of You (2023) Biography Stef Caers, born in Leuven in 1980, is a Belgian singer, musician, producer and singing teacher.He initially performed under the stage name Steffen and later as Gustaph. Caers followed secondary education at the Academie voor Muziek-Woord-Dans in Heist-op-den-Berg. He graduated as a producer at the music conservatory of Ghent. At the age of nineteen, still during his studies, he scored a hit in 2000 as Steffen with the song “Gonna Lose You”, which reached 22nd place in the Flemish Ultratop 50. Caers won a prize at Flemish Radio 2 in the subcategory “The debut” that year with the song. His next single, “Sweetest Thing”, was a more modest success: the song got stuck in the charts. Caers later noted that his songs like Steffen, which he wrote as a sixteen-year-old, are not entirely in line with his style. The music world made it clear to him that he should keep his homosexuality a secret so as not to undermine his popularity. It therefore remained with these singles under that name. Caers focused more on studio work and writing music. He also made jingles for Radio Donna and Q-music. However, he also remained active on stage, including as a pianist and background singer. With Mo Harcum, Sofie Verbruggen and Sandrine Van Handenhoven he paid homage to Marvin Gaye. With the latter two, he paid homage to Ella Fitzgerald in the 2021-2022 theater season, together with the VRT Bigband. He has been performing solo since 2008 under the name Gustaph. Four years later, under that name, he began singing and writing for Hercules & Love Affair, a group best known in the LGBTQ+ community. As a result, he performed at Pukkelpop, Glastonbury and Chanel shows, among others. Caers left the group in 2018. Caers is also a teacher at Hogeschool Gent within the jazz / pop course and at the pop and rock music course at Hogeschool PXL. Caers went to the Eurovision Song Contest twice as a backing singer. In 2018 with Sennek and in 2021 at Hooverphonic. He also was a voice coach for Geike Arnaert of Hooverphonic. In January 2023, he took part in Eurosong, the Flemish national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. Gustaph won Eurosong 2023, which meant that he was chosen as the Belgian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. He reached the final there and became 7th. Entries Because Of You Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsJaouad AlloulStef Caers MusicJaouad AlloulStef Caers BackingsMonique HarcumChantal KashalaSandrine van Handenhoven DancersPussCee West Results Semi Points: 90Position: 8Running order: 5 Results Finals Points: 182Position: 7Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/U1xD14IMKtg
Gustaph will represent Belgium with the song “Because of you”, written and composed by Jaouad Alloul and Stef Caers. After an exciting voting, the televoter chose Gustaph as the winner with a landslide, while Gala Dragot was the favourite with the expert jury. It is to be announced in which of the semifinals in Liverpool Belgium will perform. Gustaph, “Because of you”, 278 pts. The Starlings, “Rollercoaster”, 277 pts Gala Dragot, “T’inquiette”, 271 pts. Chérine, “Ça m’ennuie pas”, 268 pts. Ameerah, “The carnival”, 171 pts. Loredana, “You lift me up”, 167 pts. Hunter Falls, “Ooh la la”, 128 pts.
After a week of tv-shows on Flemish television, in which all the contestants chose a song out of two, there will be a final in Belgium. The show starts at 20:20 and you can watch it here. The contestants are: * Loredana You lift me up * Chérine Ça m’ennuie pas * Hunter Falls Ooh la la * Ameerah The carnival * Gala Dragot T’inquiète * Gustaph Because of you * The Starlings Rollercoaster Loredana took part in Eurosong 2014 with 2Fabiola and reached the semifinal.Tom Dice (The Starlings) represented Belgium in 2010 with the song “Me and my guitar”.
We know a lot about Eurovision and we want to share this knowledge with you! Therefore we’d like to bring you a blast from the past. Today, we will have a look at 1973, when Nicole and Hugo represented Belgium with the song “Baby baby”. Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest Belgium is one of the countries that participates in the Eurovision Song Contest from the first moment on in 1956. The only Belgian victory came in 1986, with Sandra Kim and her song “J’aime la vie”. However, in recent years Loïc Nottet (2015) and Blanche (2017) reached the top-5, both with a 4th place. National Selection In 1973, the national final Liedjes voor Luxemburg was held on February 25th. The song presentation can be found on Youtube, sound only. Although five quite big names in Flanders participated, Nicole and Hugo were the big favourites, as they missed the contest in 1971. Rita Deneve, “Ga met me mee”, 0 pt., 4th Nicole and Hugo, “Jij en ik en wij”, 0 pt., 4th Ann Christy, “Bye bye”, 1 pt., 3rd Kalinka, “Nooit ga ik van je heen”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Morgen”, 0 pt., 4th Rita Deneve, “Vrede voor iedereen”, 2pt., 2nd Nicole & Hugo, “Baby, baby”, 4 pt., 1st Ann Christy, “Meeuwen”, 0 pt., 4th Kalinka, “Home sweet home”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Kiss, Kus, Kuss”, 0 pt., 4th For the Dutch speaking: a lot of information about the national final can be found in “Van Canzonissima tot Eurosong – 65 jaar Belgische preselecties voor het Eurovisie Songfestival“, written by André Vermeulen. Nicole & Hugo The duo existed of Nicole Josy (Nicole van der Palm, born October 21st 1946) and Hugo Sigal (Hugo Verbraeken, born November 10th 1947). Both had a solo career before they met in 1970. Nicole already attempted to go to Eurovision in 1968. The first success of the duo came in 1971, when they won Canzonissima, the Belgian preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest, with the song “Goeiemorgen, morgen“. Unfortunately, Nicole got jaundice and had to stay in bed. The duo was replaced at the contest in Dublin. In December, 1971 became their happy year after all: Nicole and Hugo married. Two years later, they won the Belgian preselection again, and now they were able to go to Eurovision. Unfortunately they came last, but no one ever forgets the purple suits the duo was wearing. In 1974, they proved their success on another contest: the World Popular Song Contest in Tokyo, where they placed 2nd. It brought them several international tours in the 1970s. In 1984, they toured throughout the world on a cruise ship. A comeback came in 2004, when Nicole and Hugo participated in the Belgian preselections again with the song “Love is all around“. Although they didn’t win, the song became a hit. It was followed by several hits in Dutch like “Ik denk aan jou“, “Verliefd“, “Pastorale” and “Schietgebed“. In 2015 the duo decided to retire. On November 4th 2022, Nicole Josy passed away. Baby, Baby The song the duo sang at Eurovision in 1973, “Baby, baby” was composed by Ignace Baert, with lyrics from Erik Marijsse. A very remarkable line in the song was one Nicole sang: “Een vrouw kan niets alleen” (A woman can’t do anything alone). The song reached the 28th place in the Belgian charts. In Eurovision, most of the countries awarded it 5/10 or less, only Monaco and Spain awarded it with 6/10 votes. Therefore, the song became 17th and last.
©EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameJérémie Makiese Born15 juni 2000 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionInternal selection 2022 In Eurovision2022 Turin SongMiss you (2022) Biography Jérémie Makiese, born in Antwerp to Congolese parents, is a Belgian singer and footballer. Jérémie Makiese is bilingual French and Dutch. He was registered at the age of thirteen in the football club based in Anderlecht, BX Brussels. He also played at the Youth Academy Molenbeek. He signed a one-year contract as a goalkeeperat the start of the 2021 school year with Royal Excelsior Virton. Jérémie Makiese participated in in the ninth season of The Voice Belgium, in 2021. He chose to join Beverly Jo Scott’s team. He won the competition. On September 15, 2021, RTBF 2021, RTBf announced that Jérémie would represent his country at the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest. In may 2022, he went to Turin to represent his country in the contest with the song “Miss you”. Entries Miss you Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2022 LanguageEnglish LyricsJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ MusicJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ DancersCédric LibambuAlpha LopezShean AssalMalik Zaryaty Results Semi Points: 151Position: 8Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 64Position: 19Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/sB09advfF6E
Yes, the die is cast again. Ten songs will go through to the final, to be exactly the ten countries you will find below: Belgium Czech Republic Azerbaijan Poland Finland Estonia Australia Sweden Romania Serbia Congratulations to the ten winners. And remember: only ten songs could go through. That does not mean that the other songs are bad.
Two days ago we made a prediction for the first semi-final. Okay, no Albania and Latvia, but Moldova and Iceland instead. But don’t forget: we got no less than eight countries right! That’s why we’re taking the risk for another prediction tonight, this time for the second semifinal. We think that these are the countries that will advance to the final tomorrow: Finland: Who doesn’t know The Rasmus? These rockers have a huge fan base all over Europe. They will vote en masse. Finland makes it to the final. Serbia: The bookmakers are even predicting that Serbia will finish in the top-10. The act with washing hands will be appreciated by enough people for a place in the final. Unfortunately, Britain’s Prince Harry lives in the US. He would definitely vote for this song that mentions his wife. Azerbaijan: This country almost always makes it to the final according to a fixed recipe: a foreign team writes a song. A strong act is built around it. A guarantee for success! Australia: This song is one you either love or hate. There are plenty of people who really appreciate the act with the mask and feathers. The message also gets across. Sheldon is also a very good singer. Cyprus: A surprising song in Greek. Cyprus is not necessarily high on all lists, but it is just such a number that still gets enough appreciation to reach the final tomorrow evening. Estonia: This song makes people happy. And if there’s one thing we need right now, it’s hope, and what’s this song about….? Stefan will be in the final on Saturday. Romania: Spain votes in this semi-final and that helps, but in the meantime WRS also puts on a slick show. We think there is a good chance that it will be a final place. Poland: This is one of two entries on which our entire team is unanimous: Poland goes to the final with the rock-solid, well-sung ballad. Welcome back in the final, Poland! Belgium: The Belgian gospel song is one of a kind, well sung and therefore stands out in a positive way. Although the Belgians themselves seem to have doubts, we are convinced of a place in the final for Jérémie Makiese. Sweden: If Sweden doesn’t go to the final, nobody will. Even when everything went wrong, Cornelia Jacobs remained professional. The bookmakers are still predicting a very high position. But are we right? We’ll know in about 24 hours!
We already head to day 5: some rehearsals of the 2nd semifinal, and….. the big 5. 11.30 – 11.50 Denmark11.55 – 12.15 Armenia12.20 – 12.40 Romania12.45 – 13.05 Estonia13.10 – 13.30 Belgium 14.40 – 15.10 Germany15.20 – 15.50 France16.00 – 16.30 Italy16.40 – 17.10 Ukraine17.20 – 17.50 Spain18.00 – 18.30 United Kingdom
photo credits: EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett/Corinne Cummings Finland After the lunch break, it is time for a lot of energy: Finland. As expected, Käärijä wears the green bolero jacket we know so well. He is accompanied by four dancers wearing pink. The show starts with Käärijä in a huge wooden box, climbs on top of a couple of pallets and sings there before he goes to the floor to continue his performance. We can at least say Käärijä’s performance spots a lot of energy. With Käärijä’s rehearsal, we saw all the participants in the first semifinal rehearse. It is time to continue with the second semifinal. Denmark Reiley’s performance is cleverly designed with a revolving structure that showcases three different colored rooms as he passes through doorways, utilizing the LED floor and projected graphics to special effects. The visuals range from swirling clouds to hearts and emojis, creating an atmosphere that gives the performance a dreamy feel. It’s very much in line with Gen Z sensibilities according to Eurovision.tv. Reiley himself is wearing pink, a colour we saw before today. Armenia Brunette is wearing a white dress with black sewings. She starts her performance on a sloped structure that is put upright. The structure has blue and pink swirls projected on it. The graphics and lightning change halfway as the song is changing it’s tempo. Brunette leaves the sloped structure, the stage is quite white with white squares in the background. Eurovision.tv speaks of strong vocals. Romania Yellow is the colour when we talk about Romania. Yellow suits, a yellow jacket and even yellow Pikachu socks! Theodor Andrei starts off with only a guitar on an empty stage. In the second half of the song, that all changes with much more energy. There is a dancer on stage as well. The end of the presentation seems to be quite dramatic, although eurovision.tv does not give more details about it. Belgium Belgium surprises with a completely different outfit than he had in the national final. Gustaph wears a white suit and a white hat, and a pink blouse. Gustaph has his own flight of stairs, which he intensively uses. He is supported by three backing vocals who play a main role in the entire show. He has a LED backdrop of vogueing, drag queens. A dancer also has a role in the act. Cyprus Eurovision.tv mentioned being impressed by Andrew’s vocal capacities. Andrew is wearing a black sleeveless vest. There’s an exciting energy in the way this song gradually intensifies from its opening note to an even more explosive conclusion. The LED background alternates between serene waterfalls and fiery flames. The floor has smoke and four banks of flames. in collaboration with Eurovision Artists
Today is already the 2nd day of the rehearsals. What to expect today? After Sweden, we have another favourite in the contest today: Finland. But there is more: 11.30-12.00 Israel12.10-12.40 Azerbaijan12.50-13.20 Czechia13.30-14.00 The Netherlands15.10-15.40 Finland15.50-16.20 Denmark16.30-17.00 Armenia17.10-17.40 Romania17.50-18.20 Belgium18.30-19.00 Cyprus
© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett About Quick Facts NameStef Caers Born5 July 1980 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionEurosong 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBecause of You (2023) Biography Stef Caers, born in Leuven in 1980, is a Belgian singer, musician, producer and singing teacher.He initially performed under the stage name Steffen and later as Gustaph. Caers followed secondary education at the Academie voor Muziek-Woord-Dans in Heist-op-den-Berg. He graduated as a producer at the music conservatory of Ghent. At the age of nineteen, still during his studies, he scored a hit in 2000 as Steffen with the song “Gonna Lose You”, which reached 22nd place in the Flemish Ultratop 50. Caers won a prize at Flemish Radio 2 in the subcategory “The debut” that year with the song. His next single, “Sweetest Thing”, was a more modest success: the song got stuck in the charts. Caers later noted that his songs like Steffen, which he wrote as a sixteen-year-old, are not entirely in line with his style. The music world made it clear to him that he should keep his homosexuality a secret so as not to undermine his popularity. It therefore remained with these singles under that name. Caers focused more on studio work and writing music. He also made jingles for Radio Donna and Q-music. However, he also remained active on stage, including as a pianist and background singer. With Mo Harcum, Sofie Verbruggen and Sandrine Van Handenhoven he paid homage to Marvin Gaye. With the latter two, he paid homage to Ella Fitzgerald in the 2021-2022 theater season, together with the VRT Bigband. He has been performing solo since 2008 under the name Gustaph. Four years later, under that name, he began singing and writing for Hercules & Love Affair, a group best known in the LGBTQ+ community. As a result, he performed at Pukkelpop, Glastonbury and Chanel shows, among others. Caers left the group in 2018. Caers is also a teacher at Hogeschool Gent within the jazz / pop course and at the pop and rock music course at Hogeschool PXL. Caers went to the Eurovision Song Contest twice as a backing singer. In 2018 with Sennek and in 2021 at Hooverphonic. He also was a voice coach for Geike Arnaert of Hooverphonic. In January 2023, he took part in Eurosong, the Flemish national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. Gustaph won Eurosong 2023, which meant that he was chosen as the Belgian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. He reached the final there and became 7th. Entries Because Of You Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsJaouad AlloulStef Caers MusicJaouad AlloulStef Caers BackingsMonique HarcumChantal KashalaSandrine van Handenhoven DancersPussCee West Results Semi Points: 90Position: 8Running order: 5 Results Finals Points: 182Position: 7Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/U1xD14IMKtg
Gustaph will represent Belgium with the song “Because of you”, written and composed by Jaouad Alloul and Stef Caers. After an exciting voting, the televoter chose Gustaph as the winner with a landslide, while Gala Dragot was the favourite with the expert jury. It is to be announced in which of the semifinals in Liverpool Belgium will perform. Gustaph, “Because of you”, 278 pts. The Starlings, “Rollercoaster”, 277 pts Gala Dragot, “T’inquiette”, 271 pts. Chérine, “Ça m’ennuie pas”, 268 pts. Ameerah, “The carnival”, 171 pts. Loredana, “You lift me up”, 167 pts. Hunter Falls, “Ooh la la”, 128 pts.
After a week of tv-shows on Flemish television, in which all the contestants chose a song out of two, there will be a final in Belgium. The show starts at 20:20 and you can watch it here. The contestants are: * Loredana You lift me up * Chérine Ça m’ennuie pas * Hunter Falls Ooh la la * Ameerah The carnival * Gala Dragot T’inquiète * Gustaph Because of you * The Starlings Rollercoaster Loredana took part in Eurosong 2014 with 2Fabiola and reached the semifinal.Tom Dice (The Starlings) represented Belgium in 2010 with the song “Me and my guitar”.
We know a lot about Eurovision and we want to share this knowledge with you! Therefore we’d like to bring you a blast from the past. Today, we will have a look at 1973, when Nicole and Hugo represented Belgium with the song “Baby baby”. Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest Belgium is one of the countries that participates in the Eurovision Song Contest from the first moment on in 1956. The only Belgian victory came in 1986, with Sandra Kim and her song “J’aime la vie”. However, in recent years Loïc Nottet (2015) and Blanche (2017) reached the top-5, both with a 4th place. National Selection In 1973, the national final Liedjes voor Luxemburg was held on February 25th. The song presentation can be found on Youtube, sound only. Although five quite big names in Flanders participated, Nicole and Hugo were the big favourites, as they missed the contest in 1971. Rita Deneve, “Ga met me mee”, 0 pt., 4th Nicole and Hugo, “Jij en ik en wij”, 0 pt., 4th Ann Christy, “Bye bye”, 1 pt., 3rd Kalinka, “Nooit ga ik van je heen”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Morgen”, 0 pt., 4th Rita Deneve, “Vrede voor iedereen”, 2pt., 2nd Nicole & Hugo, “Baby, baby”, 4 pt., 1st Ann Christy, “Meeuwen”, 0 pt., 4th Kalinka, “Home sweet home”, 0 pt., 4th Liliane Dorekens, “Kiss, Kus, Kuss”, 0 pt., 4th For the Dutch speaking: a lot of information about the national final can be found in “Van Canzonissima tot Eurosong – 65 jaar Belgische preselecties voor het Eurovisie Songfestival“, written by André Vermeulen. Nicole & Hugo The duo existed of Nicole Josy (Nicole van der Palm, born October 21st 1946) and Hugo Sigal (Hugo Verbraeken, born November 10th 1947). Both had a solo career before they met in 1970. Nicole already attempted to go to Eurovision in 1968. The first success of the duo came in 1971, when they won Canzonissima, the Belgian preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest, with the song “Goeiemorgen, morgen“. Unfortunately, Nicole got jaundice and had to stay in bed. The duo was replaced at the contest in Dublin. In December, 1971 became their happy year after all: Nicole and Hugo married. Two years later, they won the Belgian preselection again, and now they were able to go to Eurovision. Unfortunately they came last, but no one ever forgets the purple suits the duo was wearing. In 1974, they proved their success on another contest: the World Popular Song Contest in Tokyo, where they placed 2nd. It brought them several international tours in the 1970s. In 1984, they toured throughout the world on a cruise ship. A comeback came in 2004, when Nicole and Hugo participated in the Belgian preselections again with the song “Love is all around“. Although they didn’t win, the song became a hit. It was followed by several hits in Dutch like “Ik denk aan jou“, “Verliefd“, “Pastorale” and “Schietgebed“. In 2015 the duo decided to retire. On November 4th 2022, Nicole Josy passed away. Baby, Baby The song the duo sang at Eurovision in 1973, “Baby, baby” was composed by Ignace Baert, with lyrics from Erik Marijsse. A very remarkable line in the song was one Nicole sang: “Een vrouw kan niets alleen” (A woman can’t do anything alone). The song reached the 28th place in the Belgian charts. In Eurovision, most of the countries awarded it 5/10 or less, only Monaco and Spain awarded it with 6/10 votes. Therefore, the song became 17th and last.
©EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameJérémie Makiese Born15 juni 2000 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionInternal selection 2022 In Eurovision2022 Turin SongMiss you (2022) Biography Jérémie Makiese, born in Antwerp to Congolese parents, is a Belgian singer and footballer. Jérémie Makiese is bilingual French and Dutch. He was registered at the age of thirteen in the football club based in Anderlecht, BX Brussels. He also played at the Youth Academy Molenbeek. He signed a one-year contract as a goalkeeperat the start of the 2021 school year with Royal Excelsior Virton. Jérémie Makiese participated in in the ninth season of The Voice Belgium, in 2021. He chose to join Beverly Jo Scott’s team. He won the competition. On September 15, 2021, RTBF 2021, RTBf announced that Jérémie would represent his country at the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest. In may 2022, he went to Turin to represent his country in the contest with the song “Miss you”. Entries Miss you Country🇧🇪 Belgium Year2022 LanguageEnglish LyricsJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ MusicJérémie MakieseSilvio LisbonneManon RomitiMike BGRZ DancersCédric LibambuAlpha LopezShean AssalMalik Zaryaty Results Semi Points: 151Position: 8Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 64Position: 19Running order: 16 https://youtu.be/sB09advfF6E
Yes, the die is cast again. Ten songs will go through to the final, to be exactly the ten countries you will find below: Belgium Czech Republic Azerbaijan Poland Finland Estonia Australia Sweden Romania Serbia Congratulations to the ten winners. And remember: only ten songs could go through. That does not mean that the other songs are bad.
Two days ago we made a prediction for the first semi-final. Okay, no Albania and Latvia, but Moldova and Iceland instead. But don’t forget: we got no less than eight countries right! That’s why we’re taking the risk for another prediction tonight, this time for the second semifinal. We think that these are the countries that will advance to the final tomorrow: Finland: Who doesn’t know The Rasmus? These rockers have a huge fan base all over Europe. They will vote en masse. Finland makes it to the final. Serbia: The bookmakers are even predicting that Serbia will finish in the top-10. The act with washing hands will be appreciated by enough people for a place in the final. Unfortunately, Britain’s Prince Harry lives in the US. He would definitely vote for this song that mentions his wife. Azerbaijan: This country almost always makes it to the final according to a fixed recipe: a foreign team writes a song. A strong act is built around it. A guarantee for success! Australia: This song is one you either love or hate. There are plenty of people who really appreciate the act with the mask and feathers. The message also gets across. Sheldon is also a very good singer. Cyprus: A surprising song in Greek. Cyprus is not necessarily high on all lists, but it is just such a number that still gets enough appreciation to reach the final tomorrow evening. Estonia: This song makes people happy. And if there’s one thing we need right now, it’s hope, and what’s this song about….? Stefan will be in the final on Saturday. Romania: Spain votes in this semi-final and that helps, but in the meantime WRS also puts on a slick show. We think there is a good chance that it will be a final place. Poland: This is one of two entries on which our entire team is unanimous: Poland goes to the final with the rock-solid, well-sung ballad. Welcome back in the final, Poland! Belgium: The Belgian gospel song is one of a kind, well sung and therefore stands out in a positive way. Although the Belgians themselves seem to have doubts, we are convinced of a place in the final for Jérémie Makiese. Sweden: If Sweden doesn’t go to the final, nobody will. Even when everything went wrong, Cornelia Jacobs remained professional. The bookmakers are still predicting a very high position. But are we right? We’ll know in about 24 hours!
We already head to day 5: some rehearsals of the 2nd semifinal, and….. the big 5. 11.30 – 11.50 Denmark11.55 – 12.15 Armenia12.20 – 12.40 Romania12.45 – 13.05 Estonia13.10 – 13.30 Belgium 14.40 – 15.10 Germany15.20 – 15.50 France16.00 – 16.30 Italy16.40 – 17.10 Ukraine17.20 – 17.50 Spain18.00 – 18.30 United Kingdom
photo credits: EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett/Corinne Cummings Finland After the lunch break, it is time for a lot of energy: Finland. As expected, Käärijä wears the green bolero jacket we know so well. He is accompanied by four dancers wearing pink. The show starts with Käärijä in a huge wooden box, climbs on top of a couple of pallets and sings there before he goes to the floor to continue his performance. We can at least say Käärijä’s performance spots a lot of energy. With Käärijä’s rehearsal, we saw all the participants in the first semifinal rehearse. It is time to continue
Today is already the 2nd day of the rehearsals. What to expect today? After Sweden, we have another favourite in the contest today: Finland. But there is more: 11.30-12.00 Israel12.10-12.40 Azerbaijan12.50-13.20 Czechia13.30-14.00 The Netherlands15.10-15.40 Finland15.50-16.20 Denmark16.30-17.00 Armenia17.10-17.40 Romania17.50-18.20 Belgium18.30-19.00 Cyprus
© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett About Quick Facts NameStef Caers Born5 July 1980 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionEurosong 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBecause of You (2023) Biography Stef Caers, born in Leuven in 1980, is a Belgian singer, musician, producer and singing teacher.He initially performed under the stage name Steffen and later as Gustaph. Caers followed secondary education at the Academie voor Muziek-Woord-Dans in Heist-op-den-Berg. He graduated as a producer at the music conservatory of Ghent. At the age of nineteen, still during his studies, he scored a hit in 2000 as Steffen with the song “Gonna Lose You”, which reached 22nd place
Gustaph will represent Belgium with the song “Because of you”, written and composed by Jaouad Alloul and Stef Caers. After an exciting voting, the televoter chose Gustaph as the winner with a landslide, while Gala Dragot was the favourite with the expert jury. It is to be announced in which of the semifinals in Liverpool Belgium will perform. Gustaph, “Because of you”, 278 pts. The Starlings, “Rollercoaster”, 277 pts Gala Dragot, “T’inquiette”, 271 pts. Chérine, “Ça m’ennuie pas”, 268 pts. Ameerah, “The carnival”, 171 pts. Loredana, “You lift me up”, 167 pts. Hunter Falls, “Ooh la la”, 128 pts.
After a week of tv-shows on Flemish television, in which all the contestants chose a song out of two, there will be a final in Belgium. The show starts at 20:20 and you can watch it here. The contestants are: * Loredana You lift me up * Chérine Ça m’ennuie pas * Hunter Falls Ooh la la * Ameerah The carnival * Gala Dragot T’inquiète * Gustaph Because of you * The Starlings Rollercoaster Loredana took part in Eurosong 2014 with 2Fabiola and reached the semifinal.Tom Dice (The Starlings) represented Belgium in 2010 with the song “Me and my guitar”.
We know a lot about Eurovision and we want to share this knowledge with you! Therefore we’d like to bring you a blast from the past. Today, we will have a look at 1973, when Nicole and Hugo represented Belgium with the song “Baby baby”. Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest Belgium is one of the countries that participates in the Eurovision Song Contest from the first moment on in 1956. The only Belgian victory came in 1986, with Sandra Kim and her song “J’aime la vie”. However, in recent years Loïc Nottet (2015) and Blanche (2017) reached the top-5, both
©EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameJérémie Makiese Born15 juni 2000 Nationality🇧🇪 Belgian National SelectionInternal selection 2022 In Eurovision2022 Turin SongMiss you (2022) Biography Jérémie Makiese, born in Antwerp to Congolese parents, is a Belgian singer and footballer. Jérémie Makiese is bilingual French and Dutch. He was registered at the age of thirteen in the football club based in Anderlecht, BX Brussels. He also played at the Youth Academy Molenbeek. He signed a one-year contract as a goalkeeperat the start of the 2021 school year with Royal Excelsior Virton. Jérémie Makiese participated in in the ninth season of The Voice Belgium, in
Yes, the die is cast again. Ten songs will go through to the final, to be exactly the ten countries you will find below: Belgium Czech Republic Azerbaijan Poland Finland Estonia Australia Sweden Romania Serbia Congratulations to the ten winners. And remember: only ten songs could go through. That does not mean that the other songs are bad.
Two days ago we made a prediction for the first semi-final. Okay, no Albania and Latvia, but Moldova and Iceland instead. But don’t forget: we got no less than eight countries right! That’s why we’re taking the risk for another prediction tonight, this time for the second semifinal. We think that these are the countries that will advance to the final tomorrow: Finland: Who doesn’t know The Rasmus? These rockers have a huge fan base all over Europe. They will vote en masse. Finland makes it to the final. Serbia: The bookmakers are even predicting that Serbia will finish in the