Jérémie Makiese (; born 15 June 2000) is a Belgian singer and

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

, who rose to fame after winning ''

The Voice Belgique ''The Voice Belgique'' is a Francophone Belgian reality television singing competition. The TV show is part of the international "Voice" franchise that started in the Netherlands as ''The Voice of Holland''. It began on 20 December 2011, one m ...

2021''. He represented at the

Eurovision Song Contest 2022 The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the with the song "" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and h ...

with the song " Miss You".

Early life

Makiese was born in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

Congolese Congolese or Kongolese may refer to: African peoples * Congolese people (disambiguation) * Kongo people, a Bantu ethnic group who live along the Atlantic coast of Africa from Pointe-Noire (Republic of Congo) to Luanda, Angola, primarily defined by ...

parents. At 6 years old he and his family (including his three brothers and sister) moved to

Berchem-Sainte-Agathe Berchem-Sainte-Agathe ( French, ) or Sint-Agatha-Berchem ( Dutch, ), often simply called Berchem, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-western part of the region, it is bordered by Gansh ...

, then to

Dilbeek Dilbeek () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Provinces of Belgium, province of Flemish Brabant, in the Flemish region of Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Dilbeek proper, Groot-Bijgaarden, Itterbeek (with Sint-A ...

a few years later, spending his childhood between the two municipalities, where he learned to speak both

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

and

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

. They finally settled in

Uccle Uccle (French language, French, ) or Ukkel (Dutch language, Dutch, ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the southern part of the region, it ...

. Makiese took up singing from both of his parents (his mother also playing the

tam-tam A gongFrom Indonesian and ; ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ; ; ; ; is a percussion instrument originating from Southeast Asia, and used widely in Southeast Asian and East Asian musical traditions. Gongs are made of metal and are circular and fl ...

), starting in a church choir at a young age and later moving on to singing lessons at school, where he took part in, and won, a contest.

Musical career

2021: ''The Voice Belgique''

Makiese auditioned for season nine of ''

'' performing

Labrinth Timothy Lee McKenzie (born 4 January 1989), better known by his stage name Labrinth, is an English singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Labrinth signed as a recording artist with Simon Cowell's record label Syco Music in 2010, ini ...

's "

Jealous Jealousy generally refers to the thoughts or feelings of insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions or safety. Jealousy can consist of one or more emotions such as anger, resentment, inadequacy, helplessness or disgust. ...

", with all four coaches turning for him. He chose to join

Beverly Jo Scott Beverly Jo Scott (born May 15, 1959), also known as B. J. Scott, is an American-born singer-songwriter living in Brussels, Belgium. Biography Born in Deer Park, Alabama, Beverly Jo Scott grew up nearby in Bay Minette, where, as a teen, she beg ...

's team. In April 2021, he won the show.

2022: Eurovision Song Contest

On 15 September 2021, broadcaster (RTBF) announced that they had internally selected Makiese to represent Belgium in the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

, Italy.

Artistry

Influences

Makiese cited

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

Gregory Porter Gregory Porter (born November 4, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. He has twice won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album: first in 2014 for '' Liquid Spirit'' and then again in 2017 for '' Take Me to the Alley''. Ear ...

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He is known for having several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), "Use Me ( ...

and

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

among his inspirations, as well as

Damso William Kalubi Mwamba (born 10 May 1992 in Kinshasa), better known by his stage name Damso (), is a Belgian- Congolese rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is popular in France, where all of his albums have been certified at least platinum. Early ...

and

Stromae Paul Van Haver (; born 12 March 1985), better known by his stage name Stromae (), is a Belgian singer, rapper, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his music, which is a blend of hip-hop and electronic music styles. Stromae came ...

Personal life and other activities

Makiese has reportedly always had an interest in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

: at the age of 13, he started to play as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

for

BX Brussels BX Brussels is a Belgian football club from Brussels. They currently play their first team games at the Communal Stadium in Jette. History Foundation The club was founded in Bleid on 18 March 1986 under the name ''FC Bleid'' by passionate ...

. In September 2021, he signed a one-year contract with

Excelsior Virton Royal Excelsior Virton is a Belgian football club, based in the city of Virton, in Luxembourg province. The club will participate in Belgian National Division 1 from 2023 to 2024 after relegation from Challenger Pro League in 2022–23. They w ...

, after playing with Jeunesse Molenbeek, Royal Wallonia Walhain, and briefly with La Louvière Centre in summer 2021. Following his success at ''The Voice Belgique'', Makiese took a break from his higher studies in

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

to focus on his singing and sports careers.

Discography

Singles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Makiese, Jeremie 21st-century Belgian male singers 21st-century Belgian singers The Voice (franchise) winners Belgian men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers 2000 births Musicians from Brussels Living people Belgian people of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent English-language singers from Belgium French-language singers of Belgium 21st-century Belgian sportsmen Eurovision Song Contest entrants