Brussels, 10 January 2023
Belgium have kicked off the week-long Eurosong marathon. From Monday to Friday, we’ll get to know the participants in Eurosong 2023, and their songs.
Every day, VRT will release a 30 minute reality show, presenting the contestants during their bootcamp (or “songclub”). During this bootcamp, each artist will showcase their two songs, with their competition listening in. After they’ve performed both songs, their fellow rivals will give them feedback, and the contestants will pick which of their two songs will be performed on the big finale this Saturday.
Eurosong 2023 Planning:
Monday 9 Jan: Loredana (both songs)
Tuesday 10 Jan: Chérine (both songs), Hunter Falls (first song)
Wednesday 11 Jan: Hunter Falls (second song), Ameerah (both songs)
Thursday 12 Jan: Gala Dragot (both songs), Gustaph (first song)
Friday 13 Jan: Gustaph (second song), The Starlings (both songs)
Saturday 14 Jan: Finale
Tonight we saw two artists share the spotlight: Hunter Falls brought his second entry, “Home”, while Ameerah performed both of her songs for the very first time.
Who is Hunter Falls?
Hunter Falls is the nom de plume of Tchiach Ommar Abdulrahman. The 28 year old singer is the son of Kurdish refugees of Iraqi decent. Falls discovered his passion for music as a school going teenager, composing his first tunes as early as five. Falls was born in Belgium, however after the separation of his parents, has spent years living in the UK and in Sweden. His globetrotter ways have permeated his music as well, with clear Swedish and Middle-Eastern influences.
Falls has been consistently releasing singles as an indie pop artist the past few years, fueled by a participation in MNM’s rising star. Eurosong 2023 marks an opportunity for this indie singer to finally enter the Belgian mainstream music scene.
Who is Ameerah?
Astrid Roelants, stage name Ameerah, hails from Heverlee and lives in Los Angeles. She was born in distant 1986, the year that Belgian Sandra Kim won. She has been an active participant in the Belgian and international music scene for years, specializing as a vocalist for techno and dance songs. In a way, Ameerah is the most successful of the 7 contestants, having scored a third place on the Billboard Hot Dance Airplay with “The Sound of Missing You“, a collaboration with Wildboyz. Another song featuring her vocals, “Freaky Like Me” by Norwegian duo MadCon was a #1 hit in Norway and a decent hit across Europe. Ameerah’s self-proclaimed proudest moment is sharing a hot cocoa with Jennifer Lopez.
And yet, Ameerah’s humble beginnings can be found in this very selection: Eurosong 2004 marked Ameerah’s début appearance (under her true name, Astrid), when she participated in the Belgian national final with the song “Don’t you stop the music”. 2023 marks Ameerah’s return to the selection that enabled her international career in the first place. Let’s hope for a better result this time!
The Decisions
The relevant portion of today’s songclub shenanigans kicked off with the presentation of Hunter’s second song: “Home“. Afterwards, the songclub deliberated and gave Hunter Falls its advice: pick “Ooh la la”. Falls was pleased with the verdict, and went with “Ooh la la“.
Then, it was Ameerah’s turn to take the stage, performing her two songs: “Armaggeddon“, a rock ballad, and “The Carnival” a downtempo pop song. The songclub was split on which song they liked more, with Gala VERY reluctantly casting the deciding vote for “The Carnival”. This aligned with Ameerah’s own preferences, and will sing the latter on Saturday!
Tomorrow we’ll hear from the youngest artist of the crop and the oldest: Gala Dragot and Gustaph!
Do #YOU like “Ooh la la” and “The Carnival”? Do #YOU think they have what it takes to represent Belgium? Let us know in the comments.
