Like no other, he knows how to capture the spirit of the times in his work and left his mark on the 2023 pop year. Rapper, musician and artist Joost Klein is the winner of the 2023 Pop Prize, it was announced on Saturday evening at the Noorderslag pop festival in Groningen. Last year, Goldband won the prize awarded by Buma Cultuur, which since 1986 has been awarded to the person or artist who has made the most important contribution to Dutch pop music in the past year. The prize consists of a cash prize of 10,000 euros and a statue of Theo Mackaay.
Joost Klein combines elements from mainstream pop with happy hardcore and pop punk in absurdist music shows in which samples and streams of words splash over each other. The 26-year-old idiosyncratic artist from Leeuwarden, who started as a vlogger, became very popular in a short time. There are impressive streaming figures, he has international success, sold out shows and high-profile performances at the largest festivals at home and abroad. Last summer Klein scored with 'Friesenjung' a number 1 hit in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The song has 100 million worldwide streams.
According to the jury, the winner of the 2023 Pop Prize has a clear signature. “In his songs he translates the chaos of being young, problems with his mental health and the lack of help options. That this resonates with his target group and gives them strength became more clear than ever in the past year.”
Outsider
The jury sees how young people have concerns “about, among other things, the climate, war in Europe, politics, the housing crisis, education, the flood of information and incentives via (social) media and the pressure to perform.” As a result, life can feel overwhelming and stressful, with few bright spots. In his music and lyrics, Klein “dares to be extremely vulnerable.” “He is an outsider par excellence and uses that position as a handout to others who need support. Honest, unpolished and full of expressiveness, and yet also with humor and lightness, both lyrically and musically. With his openness, self-mockery and perspective, he provides recognition and hope.”
It is also praised how Klein started as a YouTuber and developed into an audiovisual artist. “He also has unprecedented creative power and productivity.”
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Joost Klein to the Eurovision Song Contest, from tireless party act to pop hero of a new generation
Not so long ago it was announced that Joost Klein will represent the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest in Mälmo, Sweden in May. There he promises to bring “a breath of fresh air” by “doing who I am.” In more than a month it will be announced which song he will participate in. According to the AvtroTros selection committee, it is 'a hit that can conquer the whole of Europe'.
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