The Next Generation of Original Music
IMAGINE BELGIUM
Discover the international youth music competition that's all about the music
Your music
your way
The Imagine Music Experience is a global music program by JM International for young musicians (solo & bands!) between the ages of 13 and 21, that currently takes place in 8 countries across 3 continents. At Imagine, musicians get to share their talent with the world, receive training from music industry experts and connect with young musicians from different genres and countries.
Get your
gig on!
Are you a young solo musician, band or ensemble whose members are under 21 years old and do you live in Belgium? Then sign up for a life changing musical experience!
How Imagine works
Registrations for Imagine Belgium are prolonged until May 24th 2021. The Belgian National Finals are set to take place on the 26th of June 2021 at the Botanique in Brussels, and the winners will have the amazing opportunity of participating in the Imagine International Finals from 1-5 September 2021 together with musicians from 7 other countries including Brazil, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Zimbabwe.
Imagine Belgium is back!
After a 5 year hiatus, Imagine is back in Belgium! JM Wallonie-Bruxelles and JM Brussel, the competition's organisers, are excited to announce the relaunch of Imagine Belgium and what it means for their country's young musicians. Hundreds of young Belgians got their first break at Imagine since it started in 2003 including the Compact Disk Dummies, Green Moon, Milo Meskens, and Geppetto & the Whales to name a few.
How to apply
Applications are open on the platform www.mubazar.com
The procedure is very simple!
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You must first create an account on the platform
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Find the Imagine Belgium 2021 opportunity
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Complete the application form:
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if you are part of a band or an ensemble: only one person completes the form and adds the information of all the members of the band (* all members of the band must meet the age and residency conditions)
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attach a maximum of audio and video musical content, as well as any other document that presents your musical project
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Validate the terms and conditions and let's go!
You will be notified by email end of May or beginning of June 2021 if your application has been selected for the National Finals on June 26 at the Botanique in Brussels.
Discover the 10 finalists!
Here they are, the 10 finalists of Imagine Belgium edition 2021:
Gloria Diana Maria, Jen, Ventus, ShiroKuro, Jens en Isabel, The Chalkheads, Millennial All-Style Collective, Marie Mawet, MARGO and Nathan Andrien!
Gloria Diana Maria
Herentals, °2001, duo
R&B, soul, pop
Video - Instagram - Vi.be
Together with guitarist Vladimir Dimitrov, Gloria Diana Maria performs songs by artists such as Summer Walker and Jorga Smith, as well as her own. Two young passionate musicians looking for great stage opportunities.
Jen
Bruges, °2001, solo
Singer-songwriter, indie pop
Video - Facebook - Instagram - Vi.be
Singer-songwriter Jen brings melancholic songs with a touch of sarcasm. She grew up in Bruges and studies singing/songwriting at PXL Music in Hasselt. Over the years, she has been involved in various musical projects, but recently she has begun to bare her soul in her solo project. What you can expect from her songs: fragile and emotional, but above all sincere. Influences of Phoebe Bridgers, Stella Donnely and Holly Humberstone are not far away. Already appreciated by Luminous Dash, daMusic and Dansende Beren.
Ventus
Ghent, °2003, 5 musicians
Pop
Video - Facebook - Instagram - Vi.be
Duo Emma Demoor (vocals) and Gonzalo Temmermans (vocals, piano) bring catchy pop songs with a message, wrapped in intoxicating melodies and compelling voices. Recently, the duo has been joined by drummer Rune De Groote and guitarist Tijl Coorevits, which makes for a punchier - but still typical Ventus - sound. Here and there, dreamy synths can be heard as well. They are only 17 years old, but already very busy with music thanks to their education at MUDA. Ventus wants to touch their audience! Also noticed by Luminous Dash and Dansende Beren.
ShiroKuro
Verviers, °2000, duo
Rock, pop, electronics
Video - Facebook - Instagram
ShiroKuro is the solo project of Nathanaël Paulis, a young musician, singer and (electric) violinist from Verviers. He studies contemporary composition at the Royal Conservatory of Liège. Nathanaël is passionate about underground music genres but also has a fascination for video game music, traditional Asian music and progressive music styles. He is accompanied on stage by guitarist Louis Comblin and performs songs about broken loves, nature and the light in/of darkness.
Jens en Isabel
Turnhout, °2000-2001, duo
Classical
Video
Jens Vermeiren (piano) is in training with Nikolaas Kende at the Royal Conservatory in Antwerp. He became 2nd finalist of the Cantabile Piano Competition for Youth in 2018. In 2020, he was invited to play at the Arte Amanti International Chamber Music Festival.
Isabel Dhallé (violin) has been studying at the Royal Conservatory in Antwerp with Guido de Neve since 2019. In 2016 she had the opportunity to play a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The Chalkheads
Herentals, °2000-2001, 5 musicians
Alternative, (pop)rock
Video - Facebook - Instagram
The Chalkheads is a five-piece band from the Kempen region. They mainly play alternative rock and released their first EP 'Unknowned' in 2019. Their repertoire consists of solid own songs and sing-along covers, always energetically brought.
Millennial All-Style Collective
Ghent, °2000-2007, 6 musicians
Jazz, folk
Video - Facebook - Instagram - Website
The Millennial All-Style Collective is a collective of young and passionate musicians who play in various line-ups and styles under the leadership of Djalt Baculalay. The Millennial All-Style Collective wants to keep old and traditional music styles alive and bring them in their own unique way with a lot of feeling and passion.
Marie Mawet
Péruwelz, °2001, solo
Singer-songwriter
Video - Soundcloud
Marie Mawet grew up in a musical family and took lessons in piano, guitar, voice, chamber music and jazz music. She is currently studying Musicology at ULB. She has taken part in several music competitions. For the past few years, she has been writing her own songs, which she would like to perform on stage, accompanied by other musicians, in the future.
MARGO
Dinant, °2000, 5 musicians
Jazz, pop, electronics
Video - Facebook - Instagram
MARGO is the band around singer and songwriter Margo Jacquart, a vocal student at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. Margo comes from Dinant where she received a classical education in piano and singing. She has been singing and writing songs since she was 6 years old. Thanks to a year in La Réunion, she came into contact with Maloya (Creole traditional music) and was able to broaden her musical horizon. Furthermore, influences from British pop, jazz and all corners of the world can be heard. Margo says she feels unconsciously nostalgic for the past, hence the retro sounds from the 70s and 80s in her songs.
Nathan Andrien
Julémont, °2000, solo
Classical
Nathan Andrien is a young classically trained guitarist from Herve.
-due to circumstances Nathan Andrien can unfortunately not participate in the final-
Ventus is winner of Imagine Belgium 2021
We are proud to present the winner of Imagine Belgium edition 2021!
Ventus will represent Belgium during the international Imagine final on Saturday 4 September 2021 in the Botanique and will compete against the winners from Brazil, France, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Zimbabwe!
UPDATE: Ventus is also winner of the international Imagine Music Experience 2021!
Read more
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Ventus (Ghent)
Gonzalo Temmermans, Emma Demoor, Tijl Coorevits, Rune De Groote, Zohrabyan Taron
Video - Facebook - Instagram - Vi.be - Spotify
Duo Emma Demoor (vocals) and Gonzalo Temmermans (vocals, piano) bring catchy pop songs with a message, wrapped in intoxicating melodies and compelling voices. Recently, the duo has been joined by drummer Rune De Groote and guitarist Tijl Coorevits, which makes for a punchier - but still typical Ventus - sound. Here and there, dreamy synths can be heard as well. They are only 17 years old, but already very busy with music thanks to their education at MUDA. Ventus wants to touch their audience! Also noticed by Luminous Dash and Dansende Beren.
© Sofie De Backere
On Friday 25 June 2021, all finalists received coaching sessions from Alice Vande Voorde (multi-instrumentalist & composer), Pascale Snoeck (sound engineer), Nora Helali (singer & sophrologist) and Aram Santy (musician & producer).
On Saturday 26 June 2021, we welcomed a modest audience in the Orangerie of the Botanique and all finalists played a short set in front of a jury consisting of Loubna Gaïch (House of Cultures and Social Cohesion of Molenbeek), Milo Meskens (musician & ex-winner Imagine), Marianne Binard (organiser La Semaine du Son), Caroline Bertolini & Pablo Fleury (Court-Circuit) and Christophe Loyen (director Centre Culturel de Chênée).
The final can be (re)viewed in its entirety on the Imagine Music Experience YouTube channel (see also below) and was broadcast on RTC Liège, ACTV, No Télé and BX1.
In addition to the Imagine Belgium award, many other great prizes were handed out:
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Sabam for Culture award: Ventus
Cash prize worth € 1000 -
Good Vibes award: Gloria Diana Maria & Jen & Millennial All-Style Collective
Stage opportunity as part of the Good Vibes concert series in the House of Cultures and Social Cohesion of Molenbeek during the 2021-2022 season -
CC Chênée award: ShiroKuro
A residency in the cultural centre of Chênée -
Court-Circuit award: ShiroKuro
Coaching and follow-up during the residency in CC Chênée -
Semaine du Son award: Marie Mawet & Ventus & Jens en Isabel
Stage opportunity during La Semaine du Son in September 2022 -
Gaume Jazz award: Marie Mawet
Residential jazz camp within the framework of the Gaume Jazz Festival during the summer in Tintigny-Rossignol -
JM Luxembourg BE award: Jens en Isabel
Supporting act for a Christmas concert in December 2022 in Tintigny -
Le Monde est un Village award: Jen & Marie Mawet
Acoustic session during the radio broadcast Le Monde est un Village (RTBF/La Première)
Imagine Belgium Insta
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