Discover the songs and jury for the Belgian Eurosong 2025 pre-selections

Monday, 13 January 2025 -The Belgian pre-selections for Eurovision – Eurosong 2025 – are just around the corner. Starting Saturday, 18 January, the whole of Flanders will be introduced to the contestants’ songs in two preliminary rounds. Saturday, 1 February, is the big day: viewers, together with a professional jury, will decide who will represent Belgium in Basel. The three shows will be hosted by Peter Van de Veire, who will also provide expert commentary for VRT during the semi-finals and the final round of the Eurovision Song Contest in May.

As of today, VRT 1 is already sharing short excerpts of the four songs from Preliminary Round 1 on social media; next week, a sneak peek of the four from Preliminary Round 2 will be made available. You can also find out more about the songs below. Four of the songs can be heard in full for the first time in the first heat, on 18 January. The other four songs can be heard in full for the first time in the second heat, on 25 January. After the second heat, on 25 February, all songs will be released.

Today, VRT 1 is also announcing who will sit on the professional jury during the live final on 1 February. Discover their names below.

Eurosong 2025: on Saturday, 18 and 25 January (preliminaries); on Saturday, 1 February, live on VRT 1 and VRT MAX.

First heat (18 January)

Grace - Pull up

Written by: Grace Khuabi, Willem Vanderstichele, Ameerah A. Roelants

Pull up, by 22-year-old Grace, is an upbeat party song with meaning. The song is about standing up for yourself. In the past, Grace was quicker to follow the herd. Her song is a call from her older self to her younger self: 'stand up for yourself', or 'pull up'. It is a positive message to all the people who are listening.

With Pull up, Grace shows a different side of herself as an artist. Moreover, there are also some phrases in Lingala in the song – a tribute to her Congolese roots.

Lenn - Air balloon

Written by: Len Neefs (Produced by: Willem Vanderstichele)

Air balloon is Lenn's very first single release. The 25-year-old Lenn wrote the song when he was in a difficult place mentally. It is a call to see the positive side of things: no matter how dark the night may be, the sun always rises the next day. There will be good times again, but sometimes it takes a while.

Air balloon was not written especially for Eurosong. The song mainly stems from Lenn's feelings and from his intention to make a statement as an artist.

Le Manou - Fille à papa

Written by: Manou Maerten, Willem Vanderstichele

Fille à papa is a cheerful pop song in French, with many musical influences from ‘90s house music. ​ Le Manou (29 years old) has a professional DJ career, and with Fille à papa, she likes to throw a big party on stage as a singer and entertainer.

Le Manou got the inspiration for her song during a writing camp in her own studio in Durbuy. It is an ironic nod to all nepo babies in the world, but with the necessary respect for what they often achieve themselves.

LEEZ – Perfectly imperfect

Written by: Will Knox, Loek van der Grinten, Philipine Nancy Corporaal, Lisa van Rossem

Perfectly imperfect is an almost archetypal Eurovision anthem with a modern twist, in which the 31-year-old LEEZ makes her voice shine to the fullest. The song is about how couples in a relationship can complement each other perfectly, despite the other person's imperfections. According to LEEZ, you should not want to change that person, but accept him/her/them with the imperfections that are always there. Nobody is perfect, but that's perfectly okay, too.

When LEEZ stumbled upon the words Perfectly imperfect during the writing process, she immediately felt the right connection with the song. This was what it had to be, because LEEZ also believes that she herself is not perfect.

Second heat (25 January)

Jelle van Dael - Monster

Written by: Udo Mechels, Jelle van Dael, Lindi Konings, Willem Vanderstichele

The song Monster, by 34-year-old Jelle van Dael, is about the bad things that happen in life, but especially about finding your inner strength to fight back and battle your inner demons. The story is partly autobiographical, but at the same time universal: everyone can recognize themselves in the song in a certain way.

Jelle co-wrote the song herself, because she thinks it is important that people get to know her better not only as an artist, but also as a person.

Mentissa - Désolée

Written by: Mentissa Mpatha Ngandu, Vianney Bureau, Lili Louise Musique/La Passée Editions

Désolée, by 24-year-old Mentissa, is a song about self-confidence: at a certain point you must dare to be yourself more, and you don't have to keep putting yourself last for the sake of peace. You can't do good for everything and everyone. The song says resolutely: ‘I'm sorry I don't regret it any more.’ At the same time, this is a difficult balance, because Mentissa describes herself as a sensitive person. That is a strength, but also a weakness, she thinks.

Mentissa also wants to make an artistic statement with Désolée. She sees it as the beginning of a new, more poppy time in her musical career.

Red Sebastian - Strobe lights

Written by: Seppe Herreman, Billie Bentein, Ameerah A. Roelants, Willem Vanderstichele

The 25-year-old Red Sebastian will take his chance in Eurosong 2025 with Strobe lights. In terms of sound, the song is an ode to the thumping beats of the ‘90s rave culture. Strobe lights tells the story of an exciting night clubbing: you know where it starts, but not where it will end.

The song is a real vocal feat on a technical level: it very consciously demonstrates all of singer Seppe Herreman’s vocal abilities, both in the high and low registers. With his amazing voice, Red Sebastian aims to make a splash in Basel.

Stefanie Callebaut - Gloria

Written by: Stefanie Callebaut, Jeroen Swinnen

Singer Stefanie Callebaut (37 years old) describes Gloria as an adventurous celebration of light and love. The singer applauds the fact that those who have already been allowed to listen to the song often describe it as a contemporary Bohemian Rhapsody.

‘Gloria is not a bite-sized pop song; it is a unique journey, an experience. A song of connection, in which I consider myself to be a bridge between the song and people’s hearts. In recent years, it’s been noticeable that the more unique songs have often ended up doing well in the Eurovision Song Contest. I am therefore convinced that Belgium can make a big impression in Basel with Gloria,’ says Stefanie. The fact that her own daughter also bears the name Gloria is, perhaps, no coincidence.

The professional jury

During the live final of Eurosong 2025 on Saturday, 1 February, both the Flemish public and Eurosong 2025’s professional jury will decide which contestant will represent Belgium in Basel. This professional jury consists of national and international stars:

Eurosong 2025: on Saturday, 18 and 25 January (preliminaries); on Saturday, 1 February, live on VRT 1 and VRT MAX.