Nicole & Hugo

Nicole & Hugo are a singing duet from Belgium. Nicole Josy (born 21 October 1946 as Nicole Van Palm, Wemmel) and Hugo Sigal (born 10 November 1947 as Hugo Verbraeken, Leopoldstad/Léopoldville (now Kinshasa) met in 1970. They became romantically involved and formed a singing duet. In 1971, they entered into the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. They won the Belgian final with "Goeiemorgen, morgen" ("Good morning, morning" in Dutch). Prior to their departure to Dublin for the international competition, Nicole fell ill with jaundice and the duo were unable to attend. They were replaced in their absence by Jacques Raymond and Lily Castel. Jacques and Lily finished in 14th place from a field of 18 contestants. On 1 December 1971, Nicole & Hugo got married at Wemmel. Two years later they succeeded in participating in the Eurovision Song Contest finals when "Baby, Baby" won the Belgian national preselection. The song became a hit in the Flanders region of Belgium, but it was not a success in the rest of Europe. At the Eurovision Song Contest (held in Luxembourg on 7 April 1973) they finished in last place. Their performance was memorable, however, because of their purple flared jump suits and also their dance routine. In the World Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, their fortunes improved: They came 2nd with the song "With the summer" in 1974. They also received the Outstanding Composition Award at the same festival. During the 1970s they toured extensively internationally. In 1984, they accepted an offer to entertain on cruise ships, sailing around the world in the process. On 20 October 1990 they were awarded with a medal by the Belgian Authors Society SABAM for their contributions to the Flemish entertainment industry. In 2004, they tried again, after 29 years, at the Eurovision Song Contest. They entered the Flemish preselections, with "Love is all Around". They placed second in the first round, but scored lowly with the jury, so failed to make it to the final round. In 2005, they appeared on Congratulations, the 50th anniversary show of the Eurovision Song Contest. They appeared in all of the compilation videos and finally appeared on stage in the 1973 costumes. They then sang a shortened version of "Baby, Baby". Nicole & Hugo are still recording and bringing out new CDs on a regular basis. They also made guest appearances in television series, such as F.C. De Kampioenen. In 2008 the couple released their latest album Eeuwig Geluk including the hit singles "Pastorale", "Olé Ola" and others. Most of the lyrics have been written by singer/songwriter Hans Lambrechts.