Hooverphonic is a Belgian band that was formed in October 1995. Though originally categorized as a trip hop group, they quickly expanded their sound to the point where they could no longer be described as a singular genre, but rather encompass alternative, electronica, electropop, rock, and a mixture of others. The band originally called themselves Hoover, but later changed their name to Hooverphonic after discovering other groups were already using the Hoover name and to avoid any legal issues with the vacuum cleaner company.
Belgium has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 64 times since making its debut as one of seven countries at the first contest in 1956. The only countries with the same number or more appearances are Germany (66), France (65) and the United Kingdom (65). Belgium have been absent only three times in total, in 1994, 1997 and 2001, due to low scores in the previous contests that relegated them from the contest. Belgium has won the contest once, in 1986.
Belgium competed in every Junior Eurovision Song Contest before withdrawing 2013. The country's best result was in 2009, when Laura Omloop came 4th with "Zo verliefd". Belgium's worst result was in 2007, with Trust coming 15th with "Anders".
Hadise Açıkgöz is a Belgian-Turkish singer, songwriter, dancer and television personality. Born and raised in Belgium, her family is of Lezgin-Kumyk origin who settled in Sivas, Turkey. In 2003, she participated in the Belgian singing competition show Idool 2003, but rose to fame after releasing her debut album Sweat in 2005. The album spawned 5 singles and earned Hadise both a TMF Award (Belgium) and Golden Butterfly Award (Turkey). Hadise established and maintained a successful career in both Belgium and Turkey with the release of her self-titled album Hadise (2008). The album, which includes English and Turkish songs, features the single "Deli Oğlan" that became a number-one hit in Turkey.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Je t'adore" written by Kate Ryan, Niklas Bergwall, Niclas Kings and Lisa Greene. The song was performed by Kate Ryan. The Belgian entry for the 2006 contest in Athens, Greece was selected through the national final Eurosong '06, organised by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). The competition featured twenty-eight competing entries and consisted of seven shows. In the final on 19 February 2006, "Je t'adore" performed by Kate Ryan was selected as the winner via the votes of seven jury groups and a public televote.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "Le grand soir" written by Alec Mansion and Frédéric Zeitoun. The song was performed by Nuno Resende. The Belgian entry for the 2005 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected through the national final Finale Nationale Concours Eurovision de la Chanson 2005, organised by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF). In the final on 20 March 2005 which featured two competing entries, "Le grand soir" performed by Nuno Resende was selected as the winner after gaining 50.2% of the public televote.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Love Power" written by Paul Curtiz and Wakas Ashiq. The song was performed by the band The KMG's, which was internally selected by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in February 2007 to represent the nation at the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland. The song, "Love Power", was released on 23 February 2007 and officially presented to the public on 26 February 2007. This was the first time that a Walloon entry was performed in English at the Eurovision Song Contest.
The Hearts of Soul, also known as Dream Express and LBS, were a Dutch-Belgian musical group that originally consisted of the Indonesian-born Dutch sisters Bianca, Patricia and Stella Maessen. Belgian singer and composer Luc Smets joined the group in 1975. The group is known for representing the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 1970 and Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "Copycat" written by Benjamin Schoos and Jacques Duvall. The song was performed by the group Copycat, which was internally selected by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in February 2009 to represent the nation at the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia. The song, "Copycat", was presented to the public on 10 March 2009.
Belgium was represented by Sandra Kim with the song "J'aime la vie" at the Eurovision Song Contest 1986, held in Bergen, Norway.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "Would You?" written by Nina Sampermans, Jean Bosco Safari and Walter Mannaerts. The song was performed by Iris, who was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in November 2011 to represent the nation at the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan. The song was selected through the national final Eurosong 2012: Een song voor Iris, which was organised by VRT and featured two songs. In the final on 17 March 2012, "Would You?" was selected as the winning song after gaining 53% of the public televote.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Love Kills" written by Jukka Immonen and Iain James. The song was performed by Roberto Bellarosa, who was internally selected by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in November 2014 to represent the nation at the 2013 contest in Malmö, Sweden. The song was selected through the national final Eurovision 2013: A vous de choisir la chanson!, which was organised by RTBF and featured three songs. In the final on 16 December 2012, "Love Kills" was selected as the winning song via the votes of an expert jury and a public televote.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Mother" written by Ashley Hicklin and Rafael Artesero. The song was performed by Axel Hirsoux. The Belgian entry for the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark was selected through the national final Eurosong 2014, organised by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT). The competition featured thirty competing acts and consisted of seven shows. In the final on 16 March 2014, "Mother" performed by Axel Hirsoux was selected as the winner via the votes of seven international jury groups and a public televote.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Rhythm Inside" written by Loïc Nottet and Beverly Jo Scott. The song was performed by Loïc Nottet, who was internally selected by the Walloon broadcaster Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in November 2014 to represent the nation at the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria. The song, "Rhythm Inside", was presented to the public on 10 March 2015.
Loïc Nottet is a Belgian singer, songwriter and dancer. He began his career as a singer in the third season of The Voice Belgique in 2014 and represented Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015, where he placed fourth with his song "Rhythm Inside".
Laura Tesoro is a Belgian singer and actress. She represented Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "What's the Pressure". Tesoro is also known for portraying Charlotte on the Flemish soap opera Familie and placing second on season three of The Voice van Vlaanderen. The singer is also one of the four coaches on The Voice Kids.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "A Matter of Time" written by Laura Groeseneken, Alex Callier and Maxime Tribeche. The song was performed by Sennek, which is the artistic name of singer Laura Groeseneken who was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in September 2017 to represent the nation at the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal. The song, "A Matter of Time", was presented to the public on 5 March 2018.
"Wake Up" is a song by Belgian singer Eliot Vassamillet. The song represented Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv, where it was performed during the first semi-final but did not qualify for the final. The song was released on 28 February 2019.
Belgium originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Release Me" written by Alex Callier and Luca Chiaravalli. The song was performed by the band Hooverphonic, which was internally selected by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) in October 2019 to represent the nation at the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The song, "Release Me", was presented to the public on 17 February 2020.
Belgium participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "The Wrong Place" written by Alex Callier and Charlotte Foret. The song was performed by the band Hooverphonic, which was internally selected by the Belgian broadcasters Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie (VRT) and Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française (RTBF) in March 2020 to represent the nation at the 2021 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands, after they were due to compete in the 2020 contest with "Release Me" before the 2020 event's cancellation. The song, "The Wrong Place", was presented to the public on 4 March 2021.
