Reynaert (born Joseph Reynaerts; 24 July 1955 – 5 November 2020) was a Belgian singer-songwriter, best known for his participation in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest.

Early career

Reynaert was born in Seraing, and started busking at the age of 18. In 1978 he won the annual music competition in the town of

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with the song "Cerf-volant" ("Kite"), which was released as a single. Another single, "Pas assez" ("Not Enough"), followed in 1982 and he released his first album in 1984.

Eurovision Song Contest

In 1988, Reynaert's song "

Laissez briller le soleil Belgium was represented by Reynaert, with the song "Laissez briller le soleil", at the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place in Dublin on 30 April. Reynaert was the winner of the Belgian national final for the contest, held in Brussels o ...

" ("Let the Sun Shine") was chosen as the Belgian representative in the 33rd Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 30 April in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

. It was a reflective song that finished the evening in joint 18th place of 21 entries, having received points solely from the French jury. "Laissez briller le soleil" was released as a single but met with little success.

Later career

He was a director at Centre Culturel de Soumagne, Belgium, until his death. In the night of 4 to 5 November 2020, Reyneart died of

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during the pandemic in Belgium.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reynaert 1955 births 2020 deaths People from Seraing Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Belgium Belgian male singers Belgian singer-songwriters Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1988 Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium Buskers