After being played for the first time on Belgian radio in the early morning of Monday 17 February, Hooverphonic officially premiers the music video of 'Release Me' on our YouTube channel. The trio will represent Belgium on 12 May, in the 2nd half of the 1st Semi-Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. And find out below what connects 'Release Me' to Italy's Eurovision 2017 entry 'Occidentali's Karma'.

On the music video

The trio Alex, Raymond and Luka says: "Director Matthias Lebeer has captured the song's essence in a poetic and stylistic fashion that matches his signature style and perfectly aligns with Hooverphonic's world. If we have learned one thing, it's that a song that's written from personal experience will be received well. As if the audience feels the authenticity."

The story behind Release Me

Hooverphonic's Eurovision Song Contest 2020 entry Release Me was written by band member Alex Callier and was composed by Alex Callier and Italian composer Luca Chiaravalli.

Hooverphonic - 'Release Me' (Single Cover) VRT

Alex Callier: "The song is about saying goodbye. I wrote it when my father was terminally ill, but 'Release Me' has a universal theme: everyone has to deal with saying goodbye at one point in life, to a friend, family or lover."

Hooverphonic Zeb Daemen

Go to Hooverphonic's participant profile for the Release Me lyrics and more information on the band.

A Belgian-Italian Eurovision connection

Luca Chiaravalli has previously co-written and co-arranged other Hooverphonic songs and has worked on multiple Sanremo entries throughout the years, notably on Sanremo winner Francesco Gabbani's (Italy 2017) Occidentali's Karma. The song reached 6th position in the Grand Final in Kyiv.

What do you think of Release Me? Let us know in the comments!

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Posted 01 October 2019 at 22:45 CEST

Belgium chooses Hooverphonic for Eurovision 2020

Hooverphonic Zeb Daemen

Public broadcaster VRT has the honour of announcing the first Eurovision Song Contest 2020 participant. The Belgians selected Hooverphonic to represent their country in Rotterdam. The group is currently working on their participating song.

Band members Alex Callier, Raymond Geerts and Luka Cruysberghs are currently working on their entry. The song will be in English, is in the demo stage right now and the final version will be unveiled in early 2020.

About Hooverphonic

Over the course of their 25-year career, Hooverphonic developed an instantly recognizable sound, somewhere between trip-hop and pop. From day 1, Alex Callier (producer/songwriter) & Raymond Geerts (guitar player) have formed the core of the band and over the years, they have worked with a variety of singers. Since 2018, Luka Cruysberghs is Hooverphonic’s singer. In 2017 she won The Voice of Flanders, with Alex as her coach.

Hooverphonic’s sound has seen an evolution from the earlier albums A New Stereophonic Sound Spectacular and The Magnificent Tree to the recent (gold) album Looking For Stars. Songs like With Orchestra and In Wonderland show that Hooverphonic succeeds in sounding fresh time and time again, without sacrificing the identity of the band or the connection with their fans.

Hooverphonic Zeb Daemen

Singles Mad About You, Badaboum, 2 Wicky, Romantic and Eden were international successes and form the basis of the band’s live set. Hooverphonic has toured the United States and Europe multiple times, both on their own and with artists like Moloko and Massive Attack. Recently, the band performed in Japan, representing Belgium at the Belgian Beer Weekend. And in October 2019, they will set off on an extensive European tour.

Why Eurovision?

Alex Callier has been following the Eurovision Song Contest for years, both out of professional and personal interest. The glamour, quality of the artists and the international appeal make participation a logical next step for Hooverphonic. Luka, too, has a link with Eurovision: in her early teens, she took part in the Belgian national selection for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. The song she chose for her audition was Hooverphonic’s Happiness, which brings the Belgian Eurovision 2020 participation full circle.

The band will perform in either the first Semi-Final on 12 May 2020, or the second Semi-Final on 14 May 2020 with the hope of qualifying for the Grand Final on 16 May 2020.

What do you think about Hooverphonic becoming the Belgian representative? Let us know in the comments!