Sam Bettens (born in 1972) is a Belgian musician and the lead singer of the Belgian band

K's Choice K's Choice is a Belgian rock band from Antwerp, formed in the mid-1990s. The band's core members are brothers Sam Bettens (lead vocals, guitar) and Gert Bettens (guitar, keyboard, vocals). They are joined by Bart Van Lierde (bass), Tom Lodewyckx ...

. In May 2019, he came out as a

transgender man A trans man is a man who was assigned female at birth. The label of transgender man is not always interchangeable with that of transsexual man, although the two labels are often used in this way. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term that inclu ...

Career

K's Choice

In the mid-1990s, Bettens formed the band K's Choice with his brother

Gert Gert is a mainly masculine given name ( short form of Gerrit, Gerard, etc.) with some female bearers (short for Gertrude). Since 1993 no one in Sweden has been baptised as Gert according to the Swedish Bureau of Census, so the name is becoming ...

. They are the two best-known faces of the band. The band is popular in Belgium, the Netherlands, and France, and has toured in the U.S. with

The Verve Pipe The Verve Pipe is an American rock band from Michigan. It was formed in 1992 in East Lansing by Brian Vander Ark, Brian Stout and Donny Brown. History In November 1992, Brian Vander Ark of the band "Johnny with an Eye" signed a production dea ...

, Tonic,

Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...

and the

Indigo Girls Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo from Atlanta, Georgia, United States, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. The two met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part o ...

, as well as on their own.

Solo

Bettens' first solo effort was the five-track EP, '' Go'', released 31 May 2004. Four of the five songs from ''Go'' were included on his first full-length solo album, ''

Scream Scream may refer to: *Screaming, a loud vocalization Amusement rides * Scream (Heide Park), a gyro drop tower in Soltau, Germany * Scream! (ride), a tower ride at Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Six Flags New England * Scream! (roller coaster), at ...

'', released in Europe on 14 March 2005, and in the USA on 23 August 2005. In March 2007, Bettens released a three-track digital-only EP exclusively through online music labe
Fuzz (music company)/
His second full-length album, ''Shine'', including new mixes of the tracks from the Fuzz EP, was released in 2007. It was produced by

Brad Wood Brad Wood is an American record producer located in Los Angeles. He has produced many albums, including Liz Phair's ''Exile in Guyville'' and Placebo's debut. Career Wood is from Rockford, Illinois, United States. In 1988, Wood, along with ...

. The full CD was distributed for free with 13 October edition of the Flemish newspaper

De Morgen ''De Morgen'' (Dutch for ''The Morning'') is a Flemish newspaper with a circulation of 53,860. The paper is published in Antwerp, Belgium. History and profile ''De Morgen'' originates from a merger in 1978 of two socialist newspapers ' (meaning ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, which sold 180,000 copies. (Normally the paper sells 95,000 copies.) In 2007, Bettens won an

EBBA Ebba is a feminine given name, the feminine version of Ebbe, which is a diminutive form of the Germanic name Eberhard or Everhard, meaning " strong." Alternately, it may be a form of an Old English name Æbbe, of unknown derivation, which was the ...

Award. Every year, the European Border Breakers Awards
EBBA
recognize the success of ten emerging artists or groups who reached audiences outside their own countries with their first internationally released album in the past year. In late 2008, Bettens released the album ''

Never Say Goodbye Never Say Goodbye may refer to: Films * ''Never Say Goodbye'' (1946 film), a romantic comedy directed by James V. Kern, and starring Errol Flynn and Eleanor Parker * ''Never Say Goodbye'' (1956 film), US drama film directed by Jerry Hopper and ...

'', consisting of recordings of live performances of K's Choice and solo songs, covers, and new songs which had been played during previous tours. The album was only available at concerts and from his online shop. There were plans to license the single "Come Over Here" from his LP ''Scream'' for episode 409 of the American series ''

The L Word ''The L Word'' is a television drama that aired on Showtime from January 18, 2004 to March 8, 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated with Ilene Ch ...

''. However, the plans fell through due to problems involving the song's co-writer and record label. The song also appears on the premier Music With a Twist compilation (Sony). After having played

Michigan Womyn's Music Festival The Michigan Womyn's Music Festival, often referred to as MWMF or Michfest, was a feminist women's music festival held annually from 1976 to 2015 in Oceana County, Michigan, on privately owned woodland near Hart Township referred to as "The La ...

in 2006 solo, Bettens organized a band which, at the time, was identified as all-female, for a performance there in 2007. In June 2012, he worked as a firefighter for a year in the Johnson City Fire Department. Bettens has provided vocals for movie soundtracks, including ''

Underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

'', '' Wild Things'', ''

Zus and Zo ''Zus & Zo'' is a 2001 Dutch film directed by Paula van der Oest. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Plot The film deals with three sisters stopping their gay brother's new bride from inheriting the family hote ...

'', and ''

Leef! ''Life!'' ( nl, Leef!) is a 2005 Dutch drama film directed by Willem van de Sande Bakhuyzen. Cast * Monic Hendrickx as Anna * Anne-Wil Blankers as Sybille * Peter Blok as Paul * Sarah Jonker as Robin * as Isabelle * as Jolande * as Gregor * ...

Rex Rebel

In 2018, Sam formed the electronic music group

Rex Rebel Rex may refer to: * Rex (title) (Latin: king, ruler, monarch), a royal title ** King of Rome (Latin: Rex Romae), chief magistrate of the Roman Kingdom People * Rex (given name), for people with the given name * Rex (surname), for people with ...

with fellow musicians

Reinout Swinnen Reinout is a given name. Notable people with this name include: * Reinout Oerlemans (born 1971), Dutch soap opera actor, film director, television presenter and television producer * Reinout Scholte (born 1967), Dutch cricketer * Reinout Scholten v ...

(K's Choice's keyboardist) and

Wim Van der Westenthe Wim is a masculine given name or a shortened form of Willem and other names and may refer to: * Wim Anderiesen (1903–1944), Dutch footballer * Wim Aantjes (1923–2015), Dutch politician * Wim Arras (born 1964), Belgian cyclist * Wim Blockmans ...

(K's Choice's drummer). The band released its debut single, "Big Shot", on 21 October 2019, and full-length debut album, ''Run'', on 28 February 2020. File:Rex Rebel.jpg, alt=, Rex Rebel File:Rex Rebel on stage.jpg, alt=, Rex Rebel on stage File:Rex Rebel on stage II.jpg, alt=, Rex Rebel on stage

Personal life

On 17 May 2019 Bettens came out to the public as a transgender man and had his name changed from Sarah to Sam. Sam started transitioning in 2019. In a

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

video, Bettens said, "being transgender is not a choice. I always have been, I just didn't know it until now." He said he is taking

hormone replacement therapy Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), also known as menopausal hormone therapy or postmenopausal hormone therapy, is a form of hormone therapy used to treat symptoms associated with female menopause. These symptoms can include hot flashes, vaginal ...

and noted that this would affect his voice and singing, and that he was working with a voice coach. Before coming out as trans, there was a period where he publicly identified as a lesbian (starting in May 2002), and he has had a large lesbian fanbase since the beginning of his career with K's Choice in the 90s. Sam Bettens was born in

Kapellen, Belgium Kapellen (, old spelling: ''Cappellen'') is a municipality in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality lies in the Campine in the northern part of the province. Kapellen consists only of the town of Kapellen proper. In 2021, Kapellen ...

. He currently lives in

Palm Desert, California Palm Desert is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley, approximately east of Palm Springs, northeast of San Diego and east of Los Angeles. The population was 48,445 at the 2010 census. The city has bee ...

, having moved there from

Johnson City, Tennessee Johnson City is a city in Washington, Carter, and Sullivan counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, mostly in Washington County. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 71,046, making it the eighth largest city in Tennessee. John ...

in 2017, with his partner, two step-children, and two adopted children.

Discography

Albums

* 2004 ''Go'' (EP) * 2005 ''

'' * 2007 ''Fuzz Exclusive EP'' (EP) – digital-only *2007 ''Shine'' * 2008 ''

Singles

* 2002 "Someone to Say Hi To" * 2002 "You Always Know Your Home" * 2004 "Fine" * 2005 "Not Insane" * 2005 "Stay" * 2005 "Leef" * 2006 "Come Over Here" * 2006 "I Need a Woman" * 2007 "Daddy's Gun" * 2007 "I Can't Get Out"

Duets

* 1993 "Why Don't You Try Me (with

Frankie Miller Francis John Miller (born 2 November 1949) is a Scottish rock singer-songwriter and actor. Miller wrote for and performed with many recording artists and is best known for his 1977 album ''Full House'', the singles "Be Good To Yourself", " D ...

) * 1996 "

Not an Addict "Not an Addict" is a song by Belgian rock band K's Choice from their second studio album, ''Paradise in Me'' (1996). It was written by the band's core members—siblings Gert and Sam (then known as Sarah) Bettens—produced by Jean Blaute, and re ...

" (with

Skunk Anansie Skunk Anansie are a British rock band whose members include Skin (lead vocals, guitar), Cass (bass, guitar, backing vocals), Ace (guitar, backing vocals) and Mark Richardson (drums and percussion). Skunk Anansie formed in 1994, disbanded in 2 ...

) * 2000 "I Alone" (with Anouk) * 2016 "All I Want" (with

Niels Geusebroek Niels Geusebroek (; born 4 August 1979) is a Dutch singer and songwriter. In Silkstone In 1996, he formed the Dutch pop group Silkstone becoming the vocalist of the band in partnership with guitar player Frans van Essen. There were many change ...

) * 2017 "Mob Wife" (with

a balladeer A Balladeer (styled as a balladeer) is a Dutch band, originating from Amsterdam, founded by singer-songwriter Marinus de Goederen. In 2002, the band won the 3FM BuZz Award and another award the following year at the final of the annual Dutch mu ...

) * 2020 "Hat in Hand" (with

)

Video

Backstage video of Bettens

"I Can't Get Out"

"It's Alright"

"Put It Out for Good"

Bettens live at l'Elysée Montmartre, Paris - part 1

Bettens live at l'Elysée Montmartre, Paris - part 2

Notes and references

External links

*
Archived interview with Austin Sound CheckSam Bettens on Last.FM
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bettens, Sam 1972 births Living people Transgender male musicians People from Kapellen, Belgium Belgian rock singers English-language singers from Belgium 21st-century Belgian male singers LGBT singers from Belgium