Eurovision in Liverpool is now less than a month away. In the run-up to rehearsals, we will get to know a bit more about this year’s artists, their discography, and their Eurovision journey so far. The next artist that we will be previewing is Belgium’s Gustaph.
Gustaph’s Eurovision Journey So Far…
Gustaph was one of seven acts announced to compete in Belgium’s national final Eurosong 2023. Like the other contestants, he initially presented two entries, “The Nail” and “Because of You”, and chose the latter song to compete in the live final on 14th January 2023.
In the final, Gustaph placed third with the professional jury and second with the public televote to win Eurosong 2023 – and Belgium’s ticket to Eurovision – by a singular point.
Gustaph will perform 5th in the running order in Semi-Final 2 on Thursday 11th May.
Gustaph performed several times during the Eurovision pre-party season, including at Barcelona Eurovision Party, Pre-Party ES and Eurovision in Concert. Our own Angus had the chance to catch up with Gustaph at Eurovision in Concert in Amsterdam, and you can watch the full interview here:
What Do We Think of “Because of You”?
That team at That Eurovision Site have been reviewing this year’s entries. Shiloh and Ben gave their thoughts on “Because of You”, which you can watch here:
Who is Gustaph?
Gustaph – real name Stef Caers – is a Belgian singer-songwriter from Leuven. He has been making music for over twenty years and released his debut single “Gonna Lose You” in 2000, which became a hit and entered the Flemish Singles Chart. More recently he released the singles “Second Coming” with Adam Joseph in 2020 and “Call” with Lady Linn in 2022.
Gustaph has also been a prolific backing vocalist in recent years, and provided backing vocals at Eurovision on two occasions. He supported Sennek in 2018 and Hooverphonic in 2021. In addition to his singing career, he is also a vocal coach at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent.
“Because of You”, which Gustaph describes as a celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community (of which he is a part), was written by Gustaph along with Jaouad Alloul.
Belgium’s Eurovision Journey
Belgium was one of the debutant countries at the beginning of the Eurovision Song Contest back in 1956. Back in 1956, countries could submit two songs, and for Belgium that year, ‘Messieurs les noyes de la Seine’ by Fud Leclerc and ‘Le plus beau jour de ma vie’ by Mony Marc represented the nation. To this day we do not know the final results of Eurovision 1956.
Belgium have taken part in every Eurovision Song Contest since 1956 except 1994, 1997 and 2001 due to the relegation system in place at that time. However, they have only ever won once; in 1986 with Sandra Kim singing the song ‘J’amie la vie’, scoring 176 points. In 2022, Belgium was represented by Jérémie Makiese with the song “Miss You”. Makiese came 19th scoring 64 points in the Grand Final.
What do you think of “Because of You”? Do you think Gustaph can bring Belgium back into the top ten? Let us know in the comments or on social media. Be sure to follow ‘THAT Eurovision Site’ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok as we prepare for Eurovision 2023!
New Source: That Eurovision Site / Gustaph
Photo Source: Roen Lommelen
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