“Europapa” is the name of the song with which Joost Klein will represent the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden. Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS chose him out as a candidate from more than 600 submissions.
The song is a tribute to Europe and Klein’s late father. “The song is a letter I wrote to my father. He taught me that the world has no borders. There are a lot of references to the 1990s in it, but wanted to make it as Dutch as possible,” Klein told talk show ”Avondshow” host Arjen Lubach, where his song “Europapa” was introduced. He sings mostly in Dutch. The music video features European flags as well as windmills and well-known Dutch singer René Froger. Klein sings about friends in France, about Vienna, taking a bus to Poland, or a train to Berlin, about Germany (“Ich bin so allein”), about Italy (“Io sono in Italia”), escargots, paella and fish and chips.
Klein also makes a reference in his song to a song Papaoutai by Stromae. (“Papa, where are you?”). ‘I miss you every day, is what I secretly whisper.
You see, dad -I’ve been listening to you.’
“Europapa” is an energetic, electronic song with a very catchy rhythm, with typical Dutch music ‘’gabber’’ elements.
On Thursday, May 9, Joost Klein will perform in the second semifinal of the song contest. He Joost will be wearing a bright blue suit, with triangular shoulder pads, which is his own design.
Two months ago, Joost Klein was designated a Song Contest candidate for the Netherlands. Klein promoted his participation via social media, with the support of radio station 3FM. Their petition around Klein was signed 25,000 times. It was a clear signal, upon which Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS chose him out as a candidate from more than 600 submissions.
Joost Klein was born in 1997, a native of Friesland. He started the YouTube channel “UnicornJoost” at age 10, with humorous videos about his daily life. His parents died when Joost was 12 and 13. He wrote poetry, made singles. In 2017, he signed a record deal with hip-hop label TopNotch. A year later, he starts his own label, Albino Sports. The press calls Klein the “prince of gabber pop.”
Image: ©communications-unlimited.nl
