- Title: Belgium’s Blanche vying for victory at this year’s Eurovision
- Date: 27th April 2017
- Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (APRIL 26, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) BELGIUM'S 2017 EUROVISION SONG CONTESTANT, BLANCHE, SAYING: "I'm not afraid of them because, you know, it's still a song contest and it's for fun, and we all want to win, but we don't [do] it only to win. I think a lot of countries have the chance to win. I do not know who is going to win. I hope it will be us, but ..." BLANCHE WALKING OVER TO AND SHAKING HANDS WITH INTERVIEWER FROM VRT
- Embargoed: 11th May 2017 16:29
- Keywords: artist contestant music singer contest song Belgium Eurovision
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- City: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Music
- Reuters ID: LVA0056E6EIQ5
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Blanche, who will represent Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev, Ukraine in May has her sights set on victory.
She will perform her first single, 'City Lights', a song which has won wide praise, with Blanche holding high-ranking bookmaker odds to win across the board. She's currently placed fifth in a Eurovision poll. She attributes this to the fact that when written, it "wasn't supposed to be for Eurovision."
The 17 year-old girl from the Belgian capital, Brussels, whose real name is Ellie Delvaux, first came to national attention when competing in the fifth series of 'The Voice Belgique' in 2016, reaching the quarter finals. On November 22nd 2016, French-speaking Belgian broadcaster RTBF announced that she had been selected to represent the country in Kiev.
Blanche is juggling her Eurovision bid with being a secondary school pupil, and will be absent from school for two weeks when she goes to Ukraine. She said she enjoys History, Philosophy, and is pursuing supplementary French classes which include the study of cinema, as well as photography and modern art.
Despite previously not having followed the contest, she now hopes to give Belgium its first win since 1986. It would be the country's second win in the contest's 62-year history.
Blanche would not divulge details of her on stage performance plans but said it would be similar to her music video. The performance on the night is considered an essential component for success or failure, as many voters at home will not have listened to the songs in advance.
The singer intends to postpone further study after finishing school, and following Eurovision, wishes to get to work on an EP.
The Eurovision Song Contest will take place on the 9th, 11th, and 13th May in Kiev, Ukraine. Last years winner Jamala took the crown with the song "1944" - the year that the Crimea Tartars were deported by the Soviet Union. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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