Belgium

1st semifinal overview

Of course we first see beautiful images of the Netherlands. The tiny house already plays a role. After Duncan Laurence has opened with a new song, the four presenters welcome you; three in a dark dress or suit, Chantal in yellow. Lithuania: Yellow suits no one; but there are exceptions. Just try doing with your fingers what the guys from The Roop do. They are dancing, but not alone. We are sure of a place in the final for the yellow men. Slovenia: “Amen”: this is not the last prayer you will hear. But Ana Soklic shows that she has a strong voice. She is a woman of the world: you can see that on the LED screens behind her. Unfortunately the final might be one bridge to far for her, we think. Russia: You cannot miss it: Mazinha is a Russian woman. If you think she is going to perform the same trick as Linda Wagenmakers did: keep looking, she is doing something different. Mazinha will definitely reach the final. Sweden: If you follow Melodifestivalen you will, as usual, see not much new things. But people who were concerned about Tusse’s voice can rest assured: there is nothing wrong with that. Tusse goes straight to the final. Australia: The story is known, Montaigne is not in Rotterdam. You don’t notice that. Her performance is in every way a lot stronger than anything we’ve seen of her before. However, we think it’ll be tough for Montaigne to reach the final. North Macedonia: Vasil comes with a ballad. And then half of the viewers say “wow, beautiful”, and the other half “boring”. But “Here I stand” suddenly means something completely different now that Vasil came out as gay in public two weeks ago. We are pretty sure that it’s not gonna help him to a place in the final. And then Nikkie de Jager comes to update us on everything that has happened online in recent weeks. Then Edsilia Rombley talks to us from the greenroom, after which the show continues. Ireland: Ireland does not use LED screens but cardboard. Two particularly handsome ladies serve all those pieces of cardboard in the Irish act. Yes, as a TV viewer you miss that part. She impresses by running the set, and empathizes with it so that it actually sounds like she is out of breath. It’s not impossible for Ireland to reach the final. It’ll be hard however. Cyprus: Elena Tsagrinou sings that she likes menthe wrong men. If you think she’s breaking the rules by having a lot more than six people on stage, no, she works with mirrors. For a moment it was rumored that Lady Gaga would perform at the Eurovision song contest: not, but Elena comes close with her song. Cyprus will go to the final, no doubt about it. Norway: Another bunch of demons, but now with an angel in the middle. But that one is a fallen angel. One with a special story, as you can read here. We do not know TIX personally, but he has stolen our hearts because of ihis openness. It will definitely bring him the final. Croatia: Croatia works with holograms. Or did you really think they cloned Albina? The song has everything to make it to the final, but then Albina has to sing it well. And we haven’t really heard her do that until now. Reaching the final will be tough, but not impossible. Belgium: You could expect it: Hooverphonic is not in for a puppet show and therefore puts down a more down to earth act. As a result, Geike Arnaert’s strong vocals come out all the better. Not making concessions could just result in something beautiful. One of the editors of Eurovision Universe has already promised to eat his shoe if Belgium does not make it to the final. We think that will very well be possible. Israel: We can only say that Eden Alene is doing her best. Yet “Set me free” is not an entry that stands out from the rest. Eden sings a very high note: great that she does that, but it is not necessarily beautiful. The final is probably very far away for Eden. And then we are going to look at Måns Zelmerlow, who will be interviewed by Chantal Janzen. Romania: And then Roxen suddenly wears something different than during all rehearsals: a red and white blouse with ruffles and ditto skirt. Roxen has certainly made progress in the past week, but beautiful singing is something else in our humble opinions. No final this year for Romania. Azerbaijan: The Azerbaijan delegation knows how to throw a party on stage. Fortunately, because let’s say it carefully: “Mata Hari” is not their strongest entry ever musically. Mata Hari means “eye of the day”, or simply sun. This can be seen in their act. See you in the final on saturday Azerbaijan. Ukraine: If you are wondering what a forest would look like after a nuclear disaster, Go_A will show you. There are outspoken fans of this entry, but also outspoken opponents. Whether you like it or not, Ukraine show us a great performance. Malta: With Destiny you don’t have to worry about her voice: it is always good. She now wears a silver-colored suit and ditto boots: she has changed that quite often in recent days. The song is still a swinging song. Malta jumps into the final without any doubt. Then we can enjoy Davina Michelle singing the song “The power of water”, supported by actress Thekla Reuten. In addition, images of waterland in the Netherlands are added. Don’t go to the toilet now, but keep watching, because it is spectacular! When the lines are closed and the votes are counted we will see the countries that are automatically placed for the final. Italy: You see a glam rock band, but that is not exactly what you hear. Rock it is. Opinions can be divided into “loud noise” and “great”. Something

Day 5. Live Blog 2nd Rehearsals

Today we will follow the 2nd rehearsals in Ahoy, and will keep you informed live. In Cooperation with: Eurovision Artists. Photo & Video Credits: EBU 17.15 – Ukraine Last of the day Go_A, performs with a stand-in (Emmy) for singer Kateryna Pavlenko. Kateryna did not feel quite fit this morning, and in accordance with the security measures, she remains in quarantine pending a Covid-19 test. Whether the stand-in Emmy sings live, or whether the tape recording from the first rehearsal was used, is not entirely clear. Fact is, whether you like this genre or not … the act is rock solid. With a 9th place in the polls, Ukraine will undoubtedly easily qualify for the final. 16.50 – Azerbaijan Also today, Efendi puts down a solid rehearsal. Here and there some minor flaws in song and dance, and a little more conviction than last Sunday. 21st place in the poll. A place in the final is certainly not excluded. 16.25 – Romania Roxen performs in the same comfortable as last Sunday. Although vocally a little bit stronger than during the 1st rehearsal, Roxen comes across as nervous and anxious, which does not help her voice and the strong message of her song. 16th in the polls … Final perhaps , if she manages to recover. 16.00 – Israel During the first rehearsal it became clear that it is sometimes difficult for Eden to combine singing and dancing. The whole act looks energic and modern, but also today, Eden has trouble with the combination of singing and dancing. 17th in the polls, but will Israel make it to the final? 15.35 – Belgium. Hooverphonic still impresses today with their modest, sober and well-thought-out act. A welcome change from all the visual violence. Only a 20th place in the polls, but hopefully thanks to the professional jury we will see Belgium back in the final. 14.45 – Croatia Vocally, this rehearsal sounds a lot better than the first. The act is well put together, Albina herself still seems a bit insecure and nervous. Hopefully she will get over that before Tuesday. Own the stage girl!! With a 19th place in the polls, a final place should certainly be possible. 14.20 – Norway Today TIX puts on a much better rehearsal than last saturday, when the nerves seemed to be playing tricks on him. TIX has a high favor- and sympathy factor, and with a 15th place in the polls, we would like to see him back in the final. 13:55 – Cyprus Elena once again puts on an okay rehearsal, occasionally she sounds a bit out of breath. With seventh place in the polls, Cyprus will reach the final without too much trouble. 1.30 pm – Ireland Hard work has been done in the Irish camp in recent days. The whole thing seemed very messy last Saturday, during the 2nd rehearsal all the graphics come into their own much better, and it seems as if Lesley is running barefoot through a book, turning the pages. Vocally, there is still some gains to be made. With a 24th place in the polls, the question is whether it is all good enough for a final place. 13.05 – North Macedonia While there were some minor flaws in his vocals last Saturday, today Vasil puts down a solid rehearsal, although it seems that, especially at the end during the last blow, he is holding back to spare his voice. North Macedonia ranks 32 in the polls. It is very doubtful whether Vasil will be able to qualify for the final. 11.40 – Australia Just like last Saturday, no rehearsal in Ahoy , since Montaigne is not present in Rotterdam, but an exclusive preview 11.15 – Sweden Tusse had still some problems with his voice last Saturday, this now seems to have recovered completely. On stage there was an apparently self-assured, radiant Tusse, with a well-thought-out, slick act as we are used to from Sweden. Sweden ranks 10th in the polls. We will certainly see Tusse in the final 10.50 – Russia No changes in the act here either. Solid and stable act and vocals. The powerful message / ode to the Russian woman is very clear! Russia is ranked 14th in the polls. Finals should not be a problem. We would not be surprised if Russia managed to get a top ten, perhaps even a 5 position in the final 10.25 – Slovenia. In the second rehearsal for Slovenia, Ana comes out better than last Saturday. More confident in her singing and movement across the stage, although it seems her shoes are killing her. Slovenia is in 35th place in the polls. A final place will be a challenge. 10.00 am – Lithuania. The Roop shows a solid, dynamic act again in the 2nd rehearsal, with little or no changes. The Roop is ranked 8th in the polls. A top ten listing should certainly be possible for the Roop.

Recap First Rehearsals Day 2

Today we have watched the first rehearsals of day two. In our opinion Belgium put down the best reheasal of the day. Croatia, Norway, Romania have some serious work to do. Cyprus and Israel were oke. Azerbaijan had a strong rehearsal, with some little dance issues. Ukarain’s act is not specificly our cup of tea, but the act and vocals are very good in its kind. Bookmakers favorite Malta did not impress yet.

Rehearsal Belgium

Sober and yet by no means boring, that’s how we could describe the performance of the Belgian band Hooverphonic. Singer Geike Arnaert stands amid four platforms on which the musicians play their instruments. Geike as well as the others are dressed in black. In the background, on the LED screens, we see Geike again. Her singing also makes a deep impression in the virtual press center. The group shows that a song can still make a big impression without too much adornment. in cooperation with Eurovision Artists photo credits: EBU

Road to Rotterdam: Belgium

It was a big surprise when, sometime in 2019, it was announced that Hooverphonic would be representing Belgium. A group with an enormous track record since 1996. The group had a new female singer, so that worked out well. Meanwhile, that singer, Luka Cruysberghs, has had to make way for Geke Arnaert again. She has sung with Hooverphonic before and is now returning.The song with which they will represent Belgium is called “The wrong place”.

Belgium: Hooverphonic sings “The wrong place”

Hooverphonic presented its Eurovision Song this morning. The song will be called “The wrong place”. Last year, Hooverphonic was already supposed to represent Belgium, but we all know why that didn’t happen. The group had the song “Release me” ready for Rotterdam. But another thing happened for the group: they decided to replace singer Luca Kruysberghs for Geike Arnaert. Geike had been the Hooverphonic singer from 1997 until 2008.

Allocation draw 2020 will be the same in 2021

As the countries participating in the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest will be the same as in 2020, the allocation draw also will be the same. Eurovision.tv just confirmed that the 41 participating countries agreed on that. That means, the countries will perform in the same part of the same semifinal as was planned for the 2020 contest. Of course, the following order will be decided when all the songs are known. The allocation draw was, and is: 1st semifinal, 1st part: North Macedonia Belarus Lithuania Sweden Slovenia Australia Ireland Russia 1st semifinal, 2nd part: Norway Cyprus Croatia Azerbaijan Malta Israel Ukraine Romania Belgium 2nd semifinal, 1st part: Austria Moldova Poland San Marino Serbia Iceland Czech Republic Greece Estonia Germany, Italy and The Netherlands will also be able to vote in this semifinal. 2nd semifinal, 2nd part: Denmark Bulgaria Switzerland Finland Armenia Latvia Georgia Portugal Albania France, Spain and the United Kingdom will also be able to vote in this semifinal.

Hooverphonic returns to previous line up

Hooverphonic surprised Belgium and the rest of the world today by announcing the return of Geike Arnaert. Geike was the singer of Hooverphonic between 1997 and 2008. “We had the feeling we got to do this”, band member Alex Callier stated. photo: Universal Music The members of Hooverphonic said to the press that they felt the need to work together again, twenty years after their success album “The magnificent three” and the song “Mad about you”. As Geike left the band in 2008 because of her solo project and not because of troubles between the band members, it was easy for her to return. Geike’s most successful solo project was a song with the Dutch band Bløf, the song “Zoutelande”. Of course this is sad news for singer Luka Cruysberghs. She was the singer at Hooverphonic’s 2020 Eurovision song, “Release me”. Record company Universal offers Luka a solo single. Alex Callier stated that if she wishes, she can count on Hooverphonic’s help.

Belgian Reynaert passed away

Singer Joseph Reynaerts, known as Reynaert for Eurovision matters, passed away last night. He was hospitalized last week, affected by COVID19. Reynaert represented Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1988 in Dublin with “Laissez briller le soleil”. Ten years earlier, he had won, ex-aequo the French songcontest in Spa. Reynaert wrote his song “Laissez briller le soleil” after the Belgian ship MS Herald Of Free Enterprise capsized and sank moments after leaving Port Zeebrugge in Belgium, causing many victims. The song won the 1988 Belgian preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest. In the international final in Dublin, Reynaert was less successful. He became 18th. After the contest, it became more silent around Joseph Reynaerts. He gave performances every now and then and worked together with Pierre Rapsat, Philippe Anciaux, Philippe Lafontaine and Steve Houben to honour George Brassens ten years after he passed away.At the end of the 1990s, Joseph Reynaerts became the director of the Centre Culturel de Flémalle. He resigned for health reasons in 2008. source: rtbf.be

Eurovision season starts

September 1st is the start of the Eurovision Season. Every song that is released from now on, can be a Eurovision entry.Due to COVID19, the previous contest had to be cancelled. We don’t know yet what the 2021 contest will look like. Junior Eurovision in Poland will be a first test case for this.Because of the cancellation, a lot of national broadcasters decided to give the same artist a second chance. Therefore, we already have 19 artists confirmed for the 2021 contest. They are: Australia: Montaigne Austria: Vincent Bueno Azerbaijan: Efendi Belgium: Hooverphonic Bulgaria: Victoria Czech Republic: Benny Cristo Georgia: Tornike Kipiani Greece: Stephania Israel: Eden Alene Latvia: Samanta Tina Malta: Destiny Moldova: Natalia Gordienko (unconfirmed!) Romania: Roxen San Marino: Senhit Slovenia: Ana Soklič Spain: Blas Cantó Switzerland: Gjon’s Tears The Netherlands: Jeangu Macrooy Ukraine: Go_A As soon as there is news, we will keep you updated!