Back in December 2023, the Netherlands selection committee, which had once again opted for an internal selection, announced that the representative for The Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 would be the artist Joost Klein. At the time, Joost commented “Taking part in the Eurovision Song Contest is a dream come true. I used to watch it together with my parents, glued to the screen, year after year. It's an honour to represent the Netherlands, and I'm committed to giving my all for the best possible outcome.”
Joost is a Dutch singer, rapper and songwriter known for his lively performances and has been winning over a growing national following. He has an eclectic style spanning a diverse musical background of hip-hop, electronic and alternative genres. In the Netherlands, Joost tours regularly with his band and has played festivals like Lowlands and Pinkpop. Last year, he had two sold-out concerts at the AFAS Live, a concert hall in Amsterdam.
Joost has become more popular outside of The Netherlands too. In Belgium, he performed at the Sportpaleis in Antwerp and appeared on the popular TV show De Slimste Mens (The Smartest Person). Last summer, Joost had a number 1 hit in Germany, Switzerland and Austria with “Friesenjung”, which has had over 100 million streams worldwide and won Best Song in Germany's 1LIVE Krone radio awards.
On February 29th 2024, Joost’s appeared on the “Middag/Avondshow met Arjen Lubach” to introduce his entry “Europapa”. Joost was wearing the same blue suit with exaggerated shoulder pads as appears in the video. This suit was actually designed by Joost himself.
When Arjen asked him how it felt to be the representative for The Netherlands, he said that he was very proud to be sitting in in the chair, and that it was an honour for his artistry to be seen.
Arjen noted that he doesn’t appear to be someone who follows the rules easily, and asked how he would cope with the strict schedule he would have to follow in Malmö. Joost replied that he thankfully has a good team around him to look after that.
“Europapa” represents a fusion of genres, blending elements of rap, electronic music and experimental sounds . Lyrically, the song explores themes of identity, belonging and the complexities of modern European society. Joost hopes to deliver a powerful message that resonates with audiences across cultural and linguistic divides. When speaking about “Europapa”, Joost said he tried to make the song as Dutch as he possibly could, and that it was a letter to his father, who died when Joost was just 12 years old.
Since the song’s release, Joost Klein has broken streaming records in the Netherlands and Belgium. “Europapa” was streamed more than 1.2 million times in 1 day in the Netherlands on Spotify, breaking the record previously set by Duncan Laurence. The song also proved popular in Belgium, where it secured the number one spot on the charts.