Belgian music needs international promotion

Belgian musicians score well in their own country, but fail to arouse interest outside its borders, according to the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA), which represents the producers and distributors of music made in Belgium.

In the past year, 36.6% of the best-selling albums in Belgium came from Belgian musicians, compared to 35.8% the year before. But while interest in Belgian artists is rising on the domestic market, it is as good as non-existent on the foreign market, according to the association, with a few exceptions such as Stromae.

The problem can mainly be attributed to a lack of familiarity. While efforts are being made to draw international attention to Belgian literature and film, BEA points out, this is not yet the case for the Belgian music scene. Therefore BEA is calling for a worldwide targeted campaign for the promotion and encouragement of Belgian musicians.