 |
Jan Leyers | |
|---|---|
 Jan Leyers, 2016 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jan Anna August Leyers |
| Born | 16 May 1958 |
| Origin | Wilrijk, Belgium |
| Genres | Rock, pop |
| Instrument | Guitar |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Website | janleyers |
Jan Anna August Leyers (born 16 May 1958 in Wilrijk, Belgium) is a Belgian singer, songwriter, and television personality. He was a member of the group Soulsister and later became a solo musician and host of various television series.
Jan Leyers was born in Wilrijk, in Antwerp. When he was about 10 years old, he found an acoustic guitar in his attic, and his father, an architect, taught him how to play. 10 years later, he started the group Beri-Beri with Hugo Matthysen, Bart Peeters, and Marc Kruithof. The group tried for some years to become successful, but failed.
After Beri-Beri, Leyers spent a few years singing in theaters. In 1986, he met singer Paul Michiels in a café in Heist-op-den-Berg. Together, they recorded a single, "You Get to Me," which impressed Guy Brulez, an executive for EMI in Belgium. Brulez persuaded them to form a duo, which they named "Soul Sisters'". They recorded "Talk About It" and "Like a Mountain." The group, now under the name SoulSister, released their debut album, It Takes Two, in 1988. The single "The Way to Your Heart" was a hit in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and even made its way onto the United States charts.
In 1990, SoulSister changes its moniker to Leyers, Michiels, and SoulSister for a while, but then reverted to SoulSister. They released three more studio albums: Heat,Simple Rule, and Swinging Like Big Dogs (which Leyers co-produced with Joey Balin, an EMI executive). In between, Leyers pursued solo songwriting endeavours.
In 1997, SoulSister officially dissolved with the release of their Very Best Of compilation album. Leyers, now on a solo track, teamed up with Filip Cauwelier and Joost Van den Broek to form the group My Velma. SoulSister had performed melodic pop, but My Velma (which takes its name from Velma, the girlfriend of a mob boss in the Raymond Chandler book Farewell, My Lovely ) did harder rock. The group started off with two test singles: "Running a Bath" and "Shower of Love." In October 1997, the group recorded the album Exposed. It was released in June 1998 by Mercury Records of the Netherlands.
In 2000, Leyers had a big hit in Belgium with the single "Only Your Love Will Do," which was featured on the soundtrack for the Jan Verheyen film Team Spirit . There was also a hit on the soundtrack by his old SoulSister buddy Paul Michiels, and the following year he worked with Michiels on his Forever Young cover album. My Velma broke up at around the same time. Throughout these endeavors, Leyers remained a music producer and composer of music for films.
In 2003, Leyers released the album Jan Leyers, which became popular with the hits "Crash and Burn" and "Don't Make Me Miss You." It featured his hit from 2000, "Only Your Love Will Do."
On 1 January 2005, Leyers released the single "The Long Road," and soon afterwards begins his 2005 tour in Belgium. Later that year, he released the singles "Rolling On" and "Break My Heart." In September, he released In the Virgin Dark, which features these three singles along with "This One" and "The Remedy." "This One" is featured in the Jan Verheyen movie Buitenspel ("Off-side").
In the fall of 2006, he released Songbook: 1996–2006 , a compilation of his work with My Velma and his solo work.
In 1995, Leyers co-wrote, alongside Sally Dworsky and Paul Jefferson, the song "That's as Close as I'll Get to Loving You," which is performed by American country singer Aaron Tippin. He does songwriting on a regular basis for the Belgian band Clouseau. One of his top hits with Clouseau is "Dat Ze De Mooiste Is (That She's Most Beautiful)". He has written two songs ("I've Only Begun To Fight" and "I Want You Back", both soundtracks of "Team Spirit 2") for Natalia's first album This Time and one song ("Get Back") for her second album Back For More .
Leyers is the host of Nachtwacht ("Nightwatch"), a cultural discussion program on Canvas (Belgium). The show features people from across Belgium debating various topics from comedy to religion. Leyers was a co-host of De Droom van Ludwig ("The Dream of Ludwig"), which traced Ludwig van Beethoven's history across Europe. He has served as a judge on Idool 2004 , Belgium's version of Idol . In 2007 he made the television series De weg naar Mekka ("The road to Mecca"), in which he travelled across North Africa and the Middle East. His account also appeared in a book of the same title. Four years later, in 2011, another television series appeared called "De weg naar het Avondland" ("Road to the Evening Land"). Leyers travels from Ethiopia to Europe in this series, "following the footsteps of humanity". In 2017, ten years after De weg naar Mekka he made the television series "Allah in Europa" where he travels European cities to find out the future of Islam in Europe. The corresponding book was published in 2018.
Leyers is married to Belgian TV actress Anne Meunier. They have four daughters: Dorien, Ella, Billie, and Olga. [1] They reside in Hove, Belgium.
Rudy Trouvé is a Belgian musician from Antwerp. In the early nineties he founded the Heavenhotel record label and released dozens of records since. Between 1993 and 1995 he was part of Deus, quitting the band in favour of focusing on his own solo career, exploring obscure music groups and temporary collaborations.
The Pointer Sisters are an American girl group from Oakland, California, who achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Their repertoire has included such diverse genres as R&B, pop, jazz, electronic music, bebop, blues, soul, funk, dance, country, and rock. The Pointer Sisters have won three Grammy Awards and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994. The group had 13 US top 20 hits between 1973 and 1985.
Clouseau is a Belgian pop group, having success in Belgium and the Netherlands since being established in the late 1980s. Apart from a brush with English material in the early 1990s they perform in Dutch. Their biggest hits are "Daar gaat ze" and "Passie".
Marktrock is a music festival held each year around 15 August, in the heart of the university town of Leuven, Belgium. There is also a smaller Marktrock festival in Poperinge, which is held on the last Saturday of August.
Thomas Andrew Barman, is a Belgian musician, film director and photographer.
Paul Anna Kamiel Michiels is a Belgian singer and songwriter who became popular for his work with the Belgian music group Soulsister. He has earned the nickname Polle Pap, a name he inherited from a childhood job as a milkman in his hometown of Heist-op-den-Berg, where he was born.
Soulsister is a Belgian music band consisting of Jan Leyers and main vocalist Paul Michiels that initially existed from 1986 to 1995 and, after a split, reunited in 2007. Soulsister is often designated as SoulSister, the Soul Sisters or Leyers, Michiels and SoulSister.
Idool 2003 was the first season of the Belgian version of the Idol series. It was won by Peter Evrard, and followed by Idool 2004. The series was officially launched on 28 September 2002 by Belgian television network VTM. The hosts of the show are Koen & Kris Wauters of the group Clouseau. The jury members were Jean Blaute, Nina De Man, Jan Leyers & Bart Brusseleers.
Wim Soutaer is a Belgian singer best known for placing third in Idool 2003, the Belgian version of Pop Idol.
Jan Smit is a Dutch singer, television host, and actor. Smit mostly sings songs in the Dutch language, in a genre known as palingsound. In addition to his solo career, in 2015 Smit joined the schlager trio KLUBBB3, and in 2017 The Toppers. As a TV presenter, he has worked on programs like the Beste Zangers and Sterren Muziekfeest op het Plein Since 1999, Smit has been serving as an ambassador for the SOS Children's Villages.
"Have I Told You Lately" is a song written and recorded by Northern Irish singer and songwriter Van Morrison for his nineteenth studio album, Avalon Sunset (1989). It is a romantic ballad that is often played at weddings, although it was originally written as a prayer. The opening line is from the song "I Forgot to Be Your Lover" by William Bell.
Bart August Maria Peeters is a Belgian singer, musician, television presenter and actor.
Udo Mechels, born in Brussels on 10 May 1976, is a Belgian singer commonly known simply as Udo. He won the first season of the Belgian version of The X Factor in 2005.
Billy Davis Jr. is an American singer and musician, best known as a member of the 5th Dimension. Along with his wife Marilyn McCoo, he had hit records during 1976 and 1977 with "I Hope We Get to Love in Time", "Your Love", and "You Don't Have to Be a Star ". Davis and McCoo were married in 1969. They became the first African-American married couple to host a network television series, titled The Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr. Show, on CBS in the summer of 1977, the year "You Don't Have to Be a Star " won a Grammy Award.
Steve Willaert is a Belgian composer, arranger, musician and producer.
Stan Van Samang is a Belgian actor and singer.
Koen Maria Gaston Wauters is a Belgian singer, active with the band Clouseau, television presenter, and occasionally actor and race car driver.
Tom Vanstiphout is a Belgian musician who has made four solo albums and has toured with Clouseau, Jan Leyers and Milow.
Koninklijke Beerschot Voetbalclub Antwerpen, or simply Beerschot, is a Belgian professional football club located in Antwerp, that competes in the top tier Pro League after promotion from second tier in 2023–24 season. In 2013, KFCO Wilrijk decided to integrate the identity of Beerschot AC when they were relegated in the 2012–13 season, not only through their league position but also due to losing their professional licence through financial issues, being officially declared bankrupt on 21 May 2013 and folding shortly afterwards. The club colours are purple and white, they play their games on the club's home ground the Olympic Stadium often referred to as 't Kiel.
In Stereo is the eighth studio album recorded by Belgian pop band Clouseau. The album was produced by Jean Blaute and Kris Wauters, and released through EMI on 12 March 1999.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
