Red Sebastian from Belgium: "Qualifying would be the best birthday gift"

If there's someone who truly fought for their spot in Eurovision, that person is Red Sebastian (or Seppe) who will represent Belgium at Eurovision 2025 in Basel with "Strobe Lights" after winning Eurosong.

He is 25-years-old and ever since he was 17 he's been constantly emailing VRT – one of Belgium's Eurovision broadcaster – hoping to be selected to represent the nation in the world's biggest music competition.

– It feels so good to finally be in Eurovision. I've been dreaming about it my whole life, Red Sebastian says.

– I've literally been stalking and emailing VRT, who selects the participants for Belgium every two years, for a chance. I've been working really hard for this and I am glad that my hard work is paying off.

A fun fact? The defining moment for Red Sebastian, the moment he made the goal to go to Eurovision was Loreen's victory with "Tattoo" in 2023. That moment gave him the boost of confidence he needed and two years after, here he is ready to compete.

Let's go back to May 2024. Red Sebastian auditions for the talent show "Sing Again" and thinks it's the perfect time to remind VRT of his Eurovision interest. After querying on the selection format for Eurovision 2025, he goes on and submits his audition to VRT's Head of Music:

– By then, it was my fifth email but... You know, I think you have to make people remember your name, he says.

– I sent my audition and two weeks after, I received an email saying I had been selected as one of the 30 artists shortlisted for Eurosong.

VRT asked that each artist submitted two songs but Red Sebastian went way over that. He came up with 12 different songs and held a listening party with his friends so they could deliberate on the better song.

– I sort of came up with a mini-Eurovision and "Strobe Lights" won. It wasn't close but since VRT also loved the runner-up, I auditioned with both. In the end, they chose "Strobe Lights", they followed my gut feeling, he says.

We will never know how the runner-up would've done and if it would have given Red Sebastian the victory but we know that "Strobe Lights" demolished the competition. There was absolutely no doubts about Red Sebastian's victory in Eurosong 2025:

– I am so grateful and it gives me such a warm feeling that my country is standing behind me and rooting for me. It makes me feel safe.

– Strobe Lights was the last song we wrote for Eurosong, he shares.

– I had written Pop tunes, ballads... Everything was there but I hadn't come up with this club banger yet so when I walked into the studio, I knew I wanted a song that would keep people on the dancefloor. Besides, in Belgium we have a rich history and culture in the EDM dance rave scene.

For the song creation, Red Sebastian and his friends recovered footage of clubs back in the 90s and 00s and made the song come to life. Experimenting with techno rave was something new for him:

– I am more of a pop guy and had never really made that kind of music so it was really nice to combine these two worlds together and create something different.

Birthday in Basel

What about the staging?

– I can't really tell you too much, I am sorry.

Little does he know that's the most common answer for every Eurovision journalist who asks such question.

– What I can say is that it won't be shocking when compared to the Eurosong performance. It'll involve a lot of red, he laughs.

– I really want to bring the underground rave scene with me on stage and turn the whole arena into one big rave club. I want everyone to rave with me so, yes, I can tell you it'll be very clubby and pumpy.

– Also, I don't know if you know but the first Semi-final is actually on my birthday so it would be a very nice birthday gift for me to qualify, he teases.

I really want to bring the underground rave scene with me on stage and turn the whole arena into one big rave club.

As a Eurovision fan himself, Red Sebastian is well aware of last year's tensions in Malmö, Sweden, he addresses the matter:

– I know there was a lot going on, for example, with Joost Klein (Netherlands 2024) but I hope that EBU, as they said they'd do, learned from what happened last year and implements, for example, the antisocial rooms where you can go whenever you don't want to be bothered by a camera, he says.

– I really hope that this year won't be like the last one and I think it won't. I am a hopeful and positive person and I am sure they want us to have a good time and experience.

Gustaph, Red and his voice

The main topics are a wrap and we can now talk more freely about other curiosities. We speak about Gustaph (Belgium 2023):

– He was my coach for five years at the conservatory, he was my vocal coach and I know him very well, he shares.

Since his selection, they've met for lunch and have called each other a few times:

– It's so nice to have someone who has the experience and wisdom of doing Eurovision. If I have doubts or questions, I can just ask him anytime.

What about the red theme?

– For me, red means love and passion. It also means fire, ambition and those are things I like to express on stage.

He goes on the share the multiple things he owns in red: his room at his parent's house, his car, his sofa, etc.

My lifelong dream has always been to win Eurovision so I really hope that it will happen.Red Sebastian

As we conclude our chat, we retrieve the beginning of our conversation: the Eurovision dream.

– My lifelong dream has always been to win Eurovision so I really hope that it will happen and I will work hard for it, he says.

– But even if not, it's so cool to have Eurovision as my starting point, as the launch of my career in order to cross the Belgian border and to be able to tour the world and connect with so many different people. That'd be my ultimate dream: to be a touring artist, full-time artist.

As for when Eurovision 2025 is scratched of his to-do list, Red Sebastian hopes people will remember him from his voice:

– I fell in love with Whitney Houston at a very young age simply because of her voice and the way she sang, he explains.

– I'm a singer deep inside of my heart and before all the show, the styling and everything related, that's the main thing for me.

On 13 May, not only will Red Sebastian turn 26 but he will also compete in Eurovision 2025's first Semi-final with his song "Strobe Lights".