Her Eurovision song was one of the biggest commercial hits to come out of the contest in recent years. And now, just over three years since she graced the stage in Kyiv, Blanche has released her debut LP.
“Empire” is the first studio album from the Belgian singer-songwriter and was released on 29 May 2020 through [PIAS] Recordings Belgium. However, it doesn’t contain “City Lights” or many of her other singles.
Writing on her official website, Blanche says:
“Empire is an album to be digested from start to finish, whereby every song has been placed with intention. Empire is rich in arrangements, nuanced in its rhythms and dripped in diversified themes. This is my album; these are my songs and my feelings. Some songs are more personal, others are like modern tales.”
On Instagram, she adds:
“My first album ‘Empire’ is out now on all platforms! I can’t believe this three year process is now revealed to the world. I’m so lucky for all the people I had the chance to work with. Now it’s all yours, I hope that you will like it and that it’ll make you feel all sort of things.”
Blanche EMPIRE album
Songs
“Empire”
“A melancholic pop song, where the voice of Ellie Delvaux blends with traditional instruments and modern electro. “Empire evokes the construction of a self-empire. A cold empire of certainties, flawless and where emotions are absent. Love is a fever that you have to escape from,” says its author. “There is also talk of opening treason and abandonment.” (team Blanche)
Talking about the song on Instagram, Blanche notes the track has been a long time coming:
I started writing the song “Empire” in my studio in Brussels in November 2017, it evolved a lot through the years and through the new people I met who worked on it. I couldn’t be happier with the way things have turned out and I truly hope the song reaches your heart.
“Fences”
“The track sees Blanche turn the BPM up a bit and is perhaps her most danceable track to date (at least in the chorus). But, it’s still well within her moody-pop repertoire. A drum beat underlines the song, while electronic instrumentation is added into the chorus to create dynamism.” (Jonathan)
“The song is this cheesy but forever important message: tear down the fences of rejection, open yourself to the other, accept and respect their differences; try and think with your heart. We’re in a world where the fear of people for the other and the unknown is growing day after day. It is sometimes hard to believe we can counter this, but I’m trying my best to persuade myself that it is not a lost cause.
More and more people are striving for it and bringing in hope. When you’re listening to the song, I hope you’ll see (like I do) a person making a step on every bar of the song, a determined step to progress. With this repetitive rhythm I try to make you want to move forward. Through pictorial lyrics I invite people to make this journey in their head. This is not a moralizing song; it is not my place to do so. I’m trying to spread a positive message.” (Blanche)
“1, 2 Miss You”
“In an ocean of blur, one special person will make you feel like you’re cured as long as you’re with him. It seems impossible to be happy without. You can only count the days and fight against the nights of loneliness when nothing seems to make sense anymore. How much can you miss someone? How convinced can you be that what you have is stronger than anything anyone’s ever known… You pour your whole heart out and trust in that.” (Blanche)
Blanche Empire tracklisting
- Intro
- Empire
- Till We Collide
- Fences
- Only You
- Lonely
- How Does That Sound
- Soon
- 1, 2, Miss You
- Summer Nights
- Pain
- We Had
- Stubborn
EMPIRE is available to buy and stream on all the major music platforms.
Blanche at Eurovision
Blanche — real name Ellie Delvaux — represented Belgium at Eurovision 2017 with “City Lights”. The dark and moody song proved to be an early favourite and was hotly tipped to win before the contest took place. Ultimately, it finished fourth in Kyiv, securing Belgium a third top ten finish in as many years.
Blanche after Eurovision
After the contest, “City Lights” charted across Europe and earned Blanche a prestigious European Border Breakers Award (EBBA). She also won two gongs at both the D6bels Music Awards and the Music Industry Awards (MIA).
She released three songs in 2018 — “Wrong Turn”, “Soon” and “Moment”.
What do you think of Empire? Which song is your favourite from the album? Let us know in the comments.
The album is very good, but it’s weird that City Lights and the other 3 singles were not included. Nothing on the albums is as good as City Lights or even Moments, so it’s really strange that she hasn’t included them.
Strong music, I love it. Blanche, my ESC 2017 favourite, this album was worth while all your work.
This album is gold, seriously! Empire is a masterpiece. Blanche deserves way more attention than what she receives but the most important is that she loves what she does.
Amazing album
Seriously guys, give this album a listen. It’s a perfect balance between boppy pop and atmospheric production. My favourite is Till We Collide, Lonely, Summer Nights
This is a masterpiece
Truly loving the album
Honestly one of the best artists to ever participate in Eurovision.
I love the way she dresses. I’d say that to all female singers, just put on a nice dress, don’t dress as if it’s Halowin.
I’ve been listening to “Empire” on repeat! It’s so damn good.
That song is gold