Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
NetherlandsSong: 4 March 2016
| Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2016 | ||||
| Participating broadcaster | AVROTROS | |||
| Country | Netherlands | |||
| Selection process | Internal selection | |||
| Announcement date | Artist: 22 September 2015 Song: 4 March 2016 | |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "Slow Down" | |||
| Artist | Douwe Bob | |||
| Songwriters |
| |||
| Placement | ||||
| Semi-final result | Qualified (5th, 197 points) | |||
| Final result | 11th, 153 points | |||
| Participation chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Netherlands was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Slow Down", written by Douwe Bob, Jan Peter Hoekstra, Jeroen Overman, and Matthijs van Duijvenbode, and performed by Douwe Bob himself. The Dutch participating broadcaster, AVROTROS, internally selected its entry for the contest. Douwe Bob's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 22 September 2015, while the song, "Slow Down", was presented to the public on 4 March 2016.
The Netherlands was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 10 May 2016. Performing during the show in position 6, "Slow Down" was announced among the top 10 entries of the first semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 14 May. It was later revealed that the Netherlands placed fifth out of the 18 participating countries in the semi-final with 197 points. In the final, the Netherlands placed eleventh out of the 26 participating countries, scoring 153 points.
Prior to the 2016 contest, AVROTROS and its predecessor national broadcasters have participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing the Netherlands fifty-six times since NTS début in 1956.[1] They have won the contest four times: in 1957 with the song "Net als toen" performed by Corry Brokken;[2] in 1959 with the song "'n Beetje" performed by Teddy Scholten;[3] in 1969 as one of four countries to tie for first place with "De troubadour" performed by Lenny Kuhr;[4] and finally in 1975 with "Ding-a-dong" performed by the group Teach-In.[5] Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004 contest, the Netherlands had featured in only three finals. The Dutch least successful result has been last place, which they have achieved on five occasions, most recently in the second semi-final of the 2011 contest.[6] The Netherlands has also received nul points on two occasions; in 1962 and 1963.[7]
As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, AVROTROS organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The Dutch broadcaster has used various methods to select its entry in the past, such as the Nationaal Songfestival, a live televised national final to choose the performer, song or both to compete at Eurovision. However, internal selections have also been held on occasion. Since 2013, the Dutch broadcaster has internally selected its entry for the contest. In 2013, the internal selection of "Birds" by Anouk managed to take the country to the final for the first time in eight years and placed ninth overall. In 2014, the internal selection of "Calm After the Storm" by the Common Linnets qualified the nation to the final once again and placed second, making it the most successful Dutch result in the contest since their victory in 1975. For 2016, AVROTROS opted to continue selecting its entry through an internal selection.[8]
Before Eurovision
Internal selection
Following Trijntje Oosterhuis' failure to qualify to the final in 2015 with the song "Walk Along", the AVROTROS issued a statement to the current affairs programme EenVandaag where they revealed that the broadcaster would continue to internally select both the artist and song for the Eurovision Song Contest and that several artists had already been in contact with the broadcaster in regards to participating.[8] Artists that were rumoured in Dutch media to be in talks with AVROTROS included singer Dotan and the winners of the reality singing competition The Voice of Holland Iris Kroes, who won the second series, and O'G3NE, who won the fifth series.[9][10][11]
On 20 September 2015, Dutch media reported that AVROTROS had selected singer Douwe Bob to represent the Netherlands at the 2016 contest.[12][13] Douwe Bob was confirmed as the Dutch entrant on 22 September 2015 during the Dutch talk show De Wereld Draait Door.[14] The selection of Douwe Bob as the Dutch representative occurred through a unanimous decision by a selection commission consisting of singer and television host Jan Smit, television host and author Cornald Maas, radio DJ Daniël Dekker and AVROTROS media-director Remco van Leen.[15] During his interview on De Wereld Draait Door, Douwe Bob revealed that the selected song was an uptempo track that he recorded in Andalusia while working on material for an upcoming album.[15]
On 4 March 2016, Douwe Bob's Eurovision entry, "Slow Down", was presented to the public during a press conference that took place in Amsterdam.[16][17] The presentation was streamed online by AVROTROS via the Periscope live video streaming app, while the song was premiered at the same time during the NPO Radio 2 programme Aan De Slag!, hosted by Bart Arens.[18][19] The official video for the song directed by Hans Pannecouke was released on the same day.[16] Douwe Bob revealed earlier during an interview for the media platform 3VOOR12 on 15 January 2016 that his Eurovision song was written by Jan Peter Hoekstra, Jeroen Overman, Matthijs van Duijvenbode and Douwe Bob himself.[20]
Promotion
In the lead up to the Eurovision Song Contest, Douwe Bob's promotional activities occurred entirely within the Netherlands where he performed at live events, radio shows and talk shows. On 9 April, Douwe Bob performed during the Eurovision in Concert event which was held at the Melkweg venue in Amsterdam and hosted by Cornald Maas and Hera Björk.[21] On 21 April, Douwe Bob released the new single, "Jacob's Song", which followed "Slow Down" as the next single from his album Fool Bar, which was released on 6 May.[22] On 28 April, Douwe Bob performed a concert at the Westergasfabriek theatre in Amsterdam prior to travelling to Stockholm, which was partially broadcast live during the NPO 1 programme De Wereld Draait Door and streamed online in full at the television programme's website.[23]
.jpg)
