Belgium: Eurosong 2025 line-up revealed!

VRT has officially unveiled the lineup for Eurosong 2025, the Belgian national selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest. After contacting record labels, VRT has come to a shortlist of eight artists who will compete for the Belgian representation in Eurovision 2025.

The line-up

Eight artists will compete in Eurosong 2025:

  • Jelle van Dael
  • Lenn, Grace
  • Mentissa
  • LEEZ
  • Le Manou
  • Red Sebastian
  • Stefanie Callebaut

Each artist will showcase their unique musical style and vision, ensuring that the competition offers a diverse range of performances.

Eurosong 2025 – The Format

The selection process will consist of two preliminary rounds, in which the artists will perform their chosen songs in their most authentic form, without any extra stage effects or production enhancements.

Following the two preliminary rounds, the final of Eurosong 2025 will take place in a live show on Saturday, February 1st, 2025. The final decision of which artist will represent Belgium at Eurovision 2025 will be determined by a combination of public votes and a professional jury.

The show will once again be hosted by Peter Van de Veire, a familiar face in the Belgian Eurovision scene. As always, he will also provide expert commentary during the Eurovision Song Contest in May, offering insights and updates as the competition unfolds.

Mustii represented Belgium in Eurovision 2024 with his entry “Before The Party’s Over”. Despite being a fan-favorite, Mustii did not qualify to the grand final, finishing thirteenth in the second semi-final.

Stay tuned to EurovisionFun for all the news!

Source: VRT

Belgium Reveals Five Artists Competing in Eurosong 2025 for Eurovision Representation

The newspaper HLN reveals in today’s article the five out of eight artists who will compete in Eurosong 2025, where the winner will represent Belgium at Eurovision 2025. These are well-known and emerging names from the Flemish music scene. The Flemish public broadcaster is responsible for selecting the country’s entry for the upcoming song contest.

Jelle Van Dael – former frontwoman of Lasgo.

Lisa Van Rossem ‘LEEZ’ – sister of Metejoor, semi-finalist of The Voice van Vlaanderen 2016 (VTM).

Seppe Herremans “Red Sebastian” – finalist of Sing Again (VTM).

Noèmie Wolfs – former frontwoman of Hooverphonic.

Grace Khuabi – winner of The Voice van Vlaanderen 2021 (VTM).

Without a public call for submissions, but through invitations to known and experienced artists, Belgium is holding a national final for Eurovision 2025 to select its representative. The goal is, of course, to achieve a good placement after this year’s unexpected elimination of Mustii in the second semi-final. Announcements are expected in the near future.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Source: HLN

Belgium: VRT invites Joost Klein for Eurovision 2025!

The recent public call of Joost Klein to the Belgian public broadcaster seems to have found a response, since the Dutch-speaking public television of Belgium with a post on social media expresses its interest in the artist and the possible representation of the country by him in Eurovision 2025 .

A few days earlier at a concert in Belgium, Joost Klein, responding to a banner of his fans calling for him to return with the Netherlands to Eurovision 2025, replied:

Who told you that I want to represent this country! Belgium call me!

Studio Brussel (VRT) did not miss the opportunity and responded to Joost Klein. The Belgian broadcaster published a post on Instagram in which it wrote: “@joostklein check private messages please, thank you”, along with a video of Klein doing his reading. While she hinted that she is trying to get in touch with the Dutch singer.

 

Δείτε αυτή τη δημοσίευση στο Instagram.

 

Η δημοσίευση κοινοποιήθηκε από το χρήστη VRT Studio Brussel (@stubru)

It is obvious that Belgian public broadcaster is interested in seeing Joost Klein compete in Eurosong 2025 and why not represent the country in Switzerland. VRT will hold Eurosong 2025 to select the artist and song that will represent the country in the competition. There will be no open call for song submissions, but by invitation only to established artists.

Artists who receive an invitation will be asked to submit up to two original songs to VRT. The songs will be auditioned and a committee will decide which artists and which songs will compete in Eurosong 2025, to represent Belgium at Eurovision 2025.

Recall that the Dutch singer Joost Klein was disqualified a few hours before the final of Eurovision 2024 after a complaint filed against him by a Swedish photographer in the production of the contest. The complaint, which has gone to justice, was that Joost Klein used violence against her.

The Deputy Director General of the European Broadcasting Union, Jean Philip De Tender, referred to Joost Klein’s desire to compete in Eurovision 2025, saying that this is possible, as long as his participation would not violate the contest’s regulations:

If there is no violation of the rules, I see no reason why he cannot participate. at Eurovision 2025.

Unlike Belgium, which is already moving forward with the procedures to find its representative in the next contest, Joost Klein’s native Netherlands, has not yet made it clear whether it will take part in Eurovision 2025, pending actions from the EBU, to avoid situations that happened in Malmö.

Would you like to see Joost Klein represent Belgium at Eurovision 2025? Tell us in the comments below!

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Source: Euromix

Joost Klein does not want to represent the Netherlands in 2025 but … Belgium!

Joost Klein, who with his behavior turned the spotlight on him in this year’s conetst, now tries to provoke discussions again with a new statement. According to his words in his last concert, he calls on the public television of Belgium to give him the representation of the country for Eurovision 2025!

After being eliminated from the Eurovision 2024 final, Joost Klein didn’t want to hear about the Eurovision contest, using not the kindest words about his experience in Malmö. But a few days earlier at the Pinkpop festival he seemed to change his mind and said in front of everyone present there, why not in 2025!

While everyone expected that he meant one more participation with his country The Netherlands, Joost Klein has other plans… or so he says.

More specifically, while he was singing in Belgium, wanting to comment on a banner held by some of his fans, which read: Joost for Eurovision 2025 with the Dutch flag on it as well, he said:

Who told you that I want to represent this country! Belgium call me!

Of course, after all the above, no one can take Joost’s words seriously, which change according to his mood. Only time will tell, and so will the judicial outcome of his case.

We remind you that a female employee of the Swedish public television who worked for this year’s competition, sued Joost Klein for violence against her. This resulted in his disqualification from the Eurovision 2024 final.

The Netherlands has not yet clarified whether it will take part in Eurovision 2025. On the other hand, Belgium will hold Eurosong 2025, but without an open call for song submissions, but with an invitation to specific creators and artists. This means that if Joost Klein really wants to represent Belgium at the next Eurovision, he will have to win the national final, Eurosong 2025.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Belgium: There will be no open song submission for Eurosong 2025!

VRT, Belgium ‘s public broadcaster, confirmed a while ago that there will be no open submission process for Eurosong 2025, the country’s national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025!

After a public protest by Joeri Fransen, VRT stated the reasons why there will not be an open submission process, through the channel’s General Music Coordinator:

“We have abandoned the elimination race that is ‘Eurosong’. ‘ used to be, and will no longer be, organizing preliminary rounds, semi-finals and a final,” says Kerremans. “We have noticed that such a formula is especially interesting for novice artists who could use any exposure, but it deters many established artists because of the possible loss of face. We have also abandoned the formula whereby absolutely everyone can submit a song. In the past we received thousands of submissions and that put too many songwriters to work unnecessarily.”

The process that will now be followed will be similar to the one that VRT followed in 2023.

After the channel contacted record labels, it already has a shortlist of potential artists, who will be asked to submit two songs by September, when VRT will select the finalists for the national final.

Read more

Eurovision 2024: These are the ten finalists of the Second Semi-Final!

The 68th Eurovision Song Contest has officially started and the Second Semi-Final was just concluded.

Tonight’s show was hosted by Malin Åkerman and Petra Mede. Sixteen countries performed tonight competing for ten tickets to Saturday’s Grand Final.

These were tonight’s contestants:

  1. Malta: Sarah Bonnici – “Loop
  2. Albania: Besa – “Titan
  3. Greece: Marina Satti – “Zari
  4. Switzerland: Nemo – “The Code
  5. Czechia: Aiko – “Pedestal
  6. Austria: Kaleen – “We Will Rave
  7. Denmark: SABA – “Sand
  8. Armenia: Ladaniva – “Jako
  9. Latvia: Dons – “Hollow”
  10. San Marino: Megara – “11:11”
  11. Georgia: Nutsa Buzaladze – “Firefighter”
  12. Belgium: Mustii – “Before The Party’s Over”
  13. Estonia: 5miinust and Puuluup – “(Nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi”
  14. Israel: Eden Golan – “Hurricane”
  15. Norway: Gåte – “Ulveham”
  16. The Netherlands: Joost – “Europapa”

The results were determined exclusively by public voting and tonight’s ten qualifiers are the following:

  • Latvia
  • Austria
  • The Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Israel
  • Greece
  • Estonia
  • Switzerland
  • Georgia
  • Armenia

A few words about tonight’s show

Tonight’s show started with the two hostesses singing their own version of Sweden’s winning entry “Tattoo“.

 

For the first time, the BIG 5 and the host country performed live in the semi-finals. Hence, tonight the following countries performed:

  1. France: Slimane – “Mon Amour
  2. Spain: Nebulossa – “Zorra
  3. Italy: Angelina Mango – “La Noia

Following the conclusion of the participants’ performances, three Eurovision divas took the stage for a Eurovision Sing-A-Long. Helena Paparizou, Charlotte Perrelli and Sertab Erener sang their Eurovision winning entries, making the crowd go crazy.

 

However, the intervals did not stop there. Charlotte Perreli took the stage along with Petra Mede, while the Eurovision 2023 runner-up, Käärijä, performed his song “Cha Cha Cha” for one more time.

 

The show was finished with a performance of Herreys, Sweden’s winners in 1984, who sang their all time classic “Diggy Loo Diggy Lei”.

The allocation regarding in which half will the qualifiers perform in the Grand Final, comes next, so stay tuned…


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Belgium: VRT interrupts Semi Final broadcast with call for ceasefire in Israel!

Trade union VRT briefly interrupts broadcast semifinal Eurovision with call for ceasefire in Israel. The VRT union also supports journalists in the war zone:

“Moreover, the state of Israel is destroying the freedom of the press. That’s why we’re interrupting the image for a while.” Finally, the union calls for a ceasefire and “stop genocide”.

The socialist trade union ACOD-VRT defends the action.

“We have been watching the events in the Middle East with horror for months now. We are convinced that the State of Israel is committing a genocide and that is why it is outrageous that there is an Israeli entry in the Eurovision Song Contest. Doing nothing, just watching, is no longer an option.”

ACOD-VRT points the finger at the umbrella of public broadcasters that organizes the Eurovision Song Contest.

“Unfortunately, the EBU has made the Israeli entry possible and therefore we have decided to interrupt the broadcast. We hope to send a signal to the Israeli government to stop the fighting and killings, allow international observers and the press to enter and sit down for a negotiated solution.”

VRT management informed

 VRT spokesperson Yasmine Van der Borght told the editors of hln.be:

“It is indeed a trade union action. We were informed it was going to happen. Trade unions have the right to take action and do not need permission to do so. I can only say that we have taken note of the action.”

Before the start of the broadcast, there was a small-scale protest at the premises of the VRT and the French-language broadcaster RTBF. About 70 activists denounced the broadcast of the Eurovision Song Contest, because Israel is allowed to participate.

In the center of the Swedish city of Malmö, where the Eurovision Song Contest takes place, protests are still taking place against Israel‘s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest, Swedish media report. So far, nine people have been arrested. Starting at 4 p.m., more than 10,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through Malmö. According to the police, this was largely uneventful.

N-VA MP Michael Freilich responds:

“We live in a free country and so everyone is free to protest. The fact that the unions disrupt a TV broadcast for millions of viewers is their choice. Anyone who claims to want to tackle injustice, but does not say a word about the terrorist acts of Hamas and the more than 100 hostages, undermines their own credibility. That’s a missed opportunity.”

Source: hln.be

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Eurovision 2024: The results of the fourth day of the Press Poll!

The 2024 Press Poll is underway, as we have previously informed you. Now that all countries have had their rehearsals, it’s time for the accredited journalists to cast their votes for the countries that they believe will qualify from the second semi-final and the country that will win the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest.

Those are the results of the second semi-final and the final, as of May 9th, at 21:00:

Second Semi-Final 

When it comes to the winner, the results are the following:

In voting for the winner, Croatia is in first place, Switzerland is second and Cyprus is third! It is worth noting that among the fans Cyprus is in the first place!

We would like to remind you that the results that were made public online in the last few days are invalid. Accredited journalists were never contacted to cast their votes.


Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the updates regarding the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest!


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Eurovision 2024: The odds before the second semi-final – “Battle” between two for victory!

We are just hours away from the second semi-final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest, which means that in a few hours from now sixteen countries will compete for one of the ten tickets leading to Saturday’s grand final.

With two days left until the Grand Final, the favourite column of many of you is back, as the betting analysis for the 68th Eurovision Song Contest is back again.

With less than a few hours to go until the second semi-final of Eurovision 2024, we take a look at the betting companies’ odds regarding each country’s chances of winning this year’s contest.

Battle of Croatia and Switzerland

The 68th Eurovision Song Contest now has one huge favourite and that is Croatia. Baby Lasagna‘s supersonic performance in the first semi-final has given Croatia a clear winning edge, with their maiden victory as an independent country “just around the corner” according to the bookers. For the first time during this year’s Eurovision season, a song is being played at odds of less than two, between 1.62 and 1.91. The chances of history being made and having a new country win are overwhelmingly in favour of the Croats.

The only threat to Croatia could be Switzerland, always according to the bookers. Nemo has managed to gain slight momentum since yesterday, being the only country in the top ten, with the exception of Croatia, who are offered at lower odds than the day before yesterday. Switzerland and Nemo‘s win is now being bet at odds between 3.5 and 4.

Beyond that, the gap between the top two countries and the rest has increased dramatically. Thus, third is now Ukraine, who gained one place after their performance in the first semi-final. Up to 12 times the stake is returned if the Ukrainians win in Malmö.

A one-place rise for Ireland, which is now in fourth place. The possibility of Ireland winning is now offered between 10 and 19. Rounding out the top five is France, who like Italy return up to 26 times the stake of anyone who believes in them. France‘s win is played between 17 and 26, while Italy‘s is played between 13 and 26. However, Oddschecker shows France fifth and Italy sixth, as Italy’s odds are expected to rise even further in the coming hours.

A big loser before the shows is clearly the Netherlands. Having lost four places compared to before the start of the rehearsals and now outside the top five in seventh place, a potential win for Joost Klein and “Europapa” could return up to 36 times the stakes. Eighth is Israel, seen as the eighth favourite to win the 68th Eurovision Song Contest, at odds of close to 67.

Greece remains in ninth place. A potential win for “ZARI” and Marina Satti is currently being played at odds between 51 and 151, higher than in our analysis the day before yesterday where it was also being played at odds between 51 and 151.

Finally, the top ten is completed by the United Kingdom, which after a long time returns to the higher echelons of the betting tables, with Olly Alexander having built momentum after his first rehearsals. Up to 201 times the stake returns the UK’s first win inside the 21st century.

Second Semifinal

As we are just a few hours away from the second semi-final, in today’s analysis we will take a look at the chances of each of the fifteen participating countries in tonight’s show to qualify.

Six countries are considered a given to qualify, with Switzerland, Netherlands, Armenia, Israel, Norway, and Greece being offered by bookies at odds of under 1.10. Significantly, the odds on the top four countries in particular return almost nothing to those who bet on them. For example, in the event that someone bets ten euros on their qualification, they will only make a profit of fifty euro cents on the best one.

In the same category we could also include Georgia, which has made a big impression in recent days, now having one foot and a half in the grand final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest. Up to 1.14 is offered for Georgia to qualify for the first time since 2016.

Beyond that, it’s a clear-cut case for the final three tickets, with Belgium, Austria and Estonia all having very, very good chances of qualifying. At odds of close to 1.30 you can bet the three countries.

And we go on to the remaining six countries in the semi-final, which are considered by the bookies as underdogs for qualification. Clearly more likely are San Marino and Denmark, who should be considered anything but out of the running, with their qualification being played at close to 3.25 and 3.5 respectively.

Finally, Albania , Czechia, Malta and Latvia seem to be “boiling in the same pot”, whose qualification quadruples, quintuples and sixfold the stakes.

We await the final results tonight with great interest to see if the bookers will be confirmed once again.

Which countries do you think will qualify for the grand final on 11 May?

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments!

Eurovision 2024: Family Show of the Second Semifinal- Live Commentary (Updated Live)

The family show of the Second Semi-Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 has just begun. The family show is the afternoon show before the live broadcast that starts at 21:00 CET, where the artists perform once again their entries. The Family Show is more financially convenient, identical to the live one for families and takes place earlier on the same day of the Semifinal. EurovisionFun will be watching all the shows live both at the on-site press centre in Malmö and at the online press centre and will be commenting on the full performances of the 16 participating countries and France, Spain, and Italy. 

This year we will watch the automatic qualifiers perform their entire songs as part of the Semifinal.

This article gets updated in real time, all you need to do is hit the refresh button on your browser!

So stay tuned to this article as we update it with all the details, preparing you for what you will see in the Semi-Final today May 9th, at 21:00 CEST.

The Show

A video shows us the presenters in the dressing rooms and then they start singing Tattoo, with slightly changed lyrics, lying on tanning beds. They then come on stage in a different outfit from the First Semi-Final and welcome us to the Second Semi-Final. We see the board with the 16 competing countries and the phone numbers.

The competition part

Malta

The first to take the stage today is Malta! Sarah is the best to open the Semi Final! An amazing show and perfect vocals! Malta has many possibilities to be the suprising qualifier!

Albania

Next is Albania. Besa is on the stage! A totally elegant performance but with a weak song! No possibilities for qualifying!

Greece

MARINA is here! The best performance for Greece so far! Marina was on fire with the best vocals! A sure qualification for Greece.

Switzerland

Nemo keeps the new outfit from yesterday’s rehearsal. They climb up their platform in the beginning of the song. During the rap part they get up and down the platform. Minimal lighting and visuals. Vocally they are really good despite the song being very demanding.

Czechia

The staging is full of red colours, and Aiko alongside with her five dancers represent the 5 stages of grief in a breakup. Lots of pyro during the whole performance and before the bridge, we see on the screen behind her a video of couple fighting before we get to the last part of the song. Vocally she was really good.

 

BREAK

France (not competing country)

A very chic performance with excellent vocals. He starts laying down on the floor as the camera approaches him. The lights are light blue and after the bridge they turn white with lots of smoke on stage. Slimane is having his signature vocal moment far away from the microphone.

Austria

A performance full of energy that takes us back somehow to the sounds of the 90’s.  Intense rave photorhythms throughout the song for Kaleen. Kaleen tries to combine intense dancing and vocals.

Denmark

Saba starts on a podium and scatters shiny sand. The light focuses on her eye and, as the camera pans out, we see her white outfit. The fog on the floor can also be seen in the chorus. In the second chorus, it looks like that the sand is being scattered from her hands and a figure identical to the singer appears on the LED screen. On the bridge, the leds go dark, the spotlight marks her heart and it beats with her rhythm.

Armenia

There is a whistle in the beginning of the performance. Afterwards she approaches a staircase-like structure which is placed in the middle of the stage and where the orchestra is standing. During the song she is going up and down.

BREAK

Latvia

Dons starts behind the round structure with the blue armor. Very stable vocally as if you were listening to the audio, but the appearance is equally static. There are LEDs on the floor as if he is walking on a ladder, while a tree forms behind. Purple lights. Nothing more, nothing less.

Spain (not competing country)

We start with the familiar staging from Benidorm but on a larger scale.  The dancers take off their clothes just like in the national final. We also have fireworks in the second chorus. In the final chorus, everyone climbs onto the sofa structure and there is a shot from above and at the end the singer climbs to the top. Big applause for Spain.

San Marino

It’s the second consecutive entry in the Spanish language in this semi-final. The lead singer appeared without make-up. We start with a close-up of the singer, led in pink and black and paintings like a forest with trees and wolves. On the bridge the dancers have a skeleton outfit that glows pink.

Georgia

Nutsa in her gold-orange outfit raises the temperature tremendously in the Malmö Arena. She starts on a pedestal while a circle forms behind her. Four dancers make their appearance with a lot of smoke. In the LEDs we see her face, but also a solar eclipse. Many fires with duration and an impressive dance in the dance break. On the bridge she jumps onto the dancers and they lift her into the air. In the finale, she ascends the podium again and the dancers kneel before her. Georgia is ready to break the elimination streak that began in 2017. 

Belgium

MustIi is dressed in white and walks into a circle of microphones. where dry ice is ejected. On the bridge he comes to the front of the stage and opens his garment to reveal his chest that is covered in gold dust. Vocally he is doing really good.

Estonia

There are a lot of similiarities between the performance on the Eurovision stage and the stage of the Estonian national final. This entry is full of dance and energy something that is conveyed to the audience. Will they manage to bring the Baltic State back to the final?

Italy (not competing country)

Undoubtedly one of the most favourite entries of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest. The LEDs are full of trees tha creat a forest in the shades of gold and red. The Italian representative has all the potentials to bring Italy into the top five again, is vocally flawless and receives a big applause. 

Israel

Eden is surrounded by her four dancers on a circular structure in the middle of the stage. There is a lot of dry ice and on the bridge of the song the lighting changes to gold and on the leds we see a sun that gradually aligns with the circle. Vocally was once again great. There were again mixed reactions from the crowd, both applause and disapproval.

Norway

Norway returns to their native language after 2006 with Gåte and their entry “Ulveham”. The staging is almost identical to the one of the Melodi Grand Prix. Vocally was really good, mysterious atmosphere and nice shot changes. The leds transport us to Norwegian landscapes, with water and scenes from nature, which fit the message of the Norwegian participation perfectly. Big applause in the press centre.

The Netherlands

Now it’s time for the one of the big favourites not only for the first place in this smei-final, but in the the contest overall. Joost is on stage with two dancers and his friends, one of whom is dressed as a blue bird. On the LEDs there are images like a 2000s 3D video game and photos of food and sights from places accross the European Continent. Big applause here from the audience.

A recap of the songs follows

Interval Acts

The biggest sing-along in the world! People from across Europe are on the screen as Helena Paparizou takes the stage to sing her iconic “My Number One”. Petra Mede is in the crowd singing alongside with the audience. Next is Charlotte Perelli who is singing “Take Me To Your Heaven”, followed by Sertab Erener and “Everyway That I Can”.

The second and last recap of the songs.

Now we are seeing an ABBA tribute, considering this year marks 50 years since their victory.

Petra is doing an act, where she is singing about Sweden and Eurovision. Charlotte Perelli joins her.

The results 

These results are neither valid nor real, but they come about in order to serve the rehearsal’s purposes. 

The green room is behind the stage and the LED wall opens so we can see the contestants behind it. Martin Osterdahl executive producer of Eurovision Song Contest 2024, declares that he is happy to see that we now have a valid result!

Here we have a big change, as the 16 competing acts stand on stage, without their delegations, waiting for the result. The camera shows them one by one, as the presenters announce the qualifiers. After the first 5 qualifiers are announced, Alesha interviews them backstage and then we learn the 5 remaining qualifiers.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the updates around the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest!

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