EUROVISION ON TOP

Sieneke (Netherlands 2010) - Interview

SIENEKE: “ IT IS IMPORTANT FOR ME TO FEEL THAT THE DUTCH SUPPORT ME!”

2010/02/19 by Rad Marijnissen

Q: Its almost three weeks ago that you have won the Dutch National Final: how are you doing?

The past two weeks were very hectic; now I am coming down on earth, realizing what has happened. I have done many interviews for radio and TV and I am enjoying it very much. It’s a great feeling! Six weeks ago I had never done a performance in front of a camera and now everybody in the Netherlands knows Sieneke!

Q: What kind of presents did you get after your victory on the 7^th of February?

I got a lot of flowers and chocolate. I like chocolate very much! And I met Marga Bult (red.: Marcha 1987 Dutch Entry ‘Recht op in de wind’); she gave me a small cuddly animal, a rabbit. She got it from a astrologer before she went to the Eurovison Songcontest in Brussels. The astrologer told her that Marcha would become 5^th….. and it became the truth! Marcha gave it to me as a talisman for Oslo!

Q: What kind of experience do you have as a singer?

I don’t have much experience as a singer. I grew up with Dutch Schlager music on the radio. I cannot imagine a day without music. I only did some performances for family. On parties the family asked: “please Sien: sing a song!” . This is all new to me: a dream has come true! My coach Marianne Weber (red: famous Dutch singer) helped me very much. She is like a mother to me! She helps me professional and asked me many times: do you think you can handle all this? I feel like I have proved that can handle the criticism! But Marianne stays also very caring for me; for example if I am going outside without a jacket she says: Sieneke please wear a jacket, otherwise you will get a cold!

Q: … Marianne Weber is your big hero?

Yes, Marianne is the Queen of the Dutch Schlager music. She is an emotional person, like me! Besides her, I like Andre Hazes a lot (red. Famous Dutch singer, died in 2004). Music is very important for me; you can express your feelings and emotions through music.

Q: What kind of memories do you have about the Eurovision Songcontest?

Well I am a young girl of 17 years old. I watched Eurovision since I was 14. But for me the best Dutch entry ever is Ding-a-Dong sung by Teach Inn.

Q: It has been 12 years ago since the Netherlands had an entry with dutch lyrics for the Eurovision Songcontest. Could you explain for the international fans what ‘Ik ben verliefd.( Sha-la-lie)’ is about?

It is about a melody that you have heard somewhere, but you cannot remember where …. still the melody stays in your head.. and with Sha-la-lie this is true: it stays in your head! Hahahaha.. In the song I mention all the cities in Europe where I could have heard the song. Pierre Kartner (red.: composer) did a good job with that! So it is not about a lover, but about a melody! It is a very happy, feel good, swinging song! I hope the song will make the people in Europe feel happy. The strength of the song is that it stays in your head, and you sing it again and again, further more it makes you feel happy and the word ‘Sha-la-lie’ is easy to recognize, like ‘Ding-a-Dong’ in the winning song of Teach Inn in 1975! Probably there will be an English version and a German version of the Dutch entry for 2010.

Q: Any ideas about your performance in Oslo?

I will sing the song in Dutch! ! The stage in Oslo will be huge, so we have to prepare for that! We are discussing now how we can create an act that is bigger than in the National Final. For me one thing is important: the barral organ must be on stage! And I can tell you a secret: the barrel organ will be in Oslo and even much bigger!

Q:…. In the National Final when you entered the stage you waved to the audience.. will you do it again in Oslo?...

Oh I don’t know.. haha.. it was spontaneous. You have to know I never did a performance for such a big audience, and I saw family and friends and I just waved! We will travel to Oslo on the 17^th of May and we will stay there for two weeks. I hope to take the three backing vocals with me.. well, it is sure for 98%! The three girls were very nice and they have a lot of experience. It is important for me that I have people around me that are self-confident. Marianne Weber and my producer Tommy Peters will travel with me and a professional team; of course my parents and family will be in Oslo with me! I don’t know yet what clothing I will wear on stage. I even don’t know if it is going to be a dress or something else. Important for me is a bright colour! Accidentally today we are deciding what kind of coiffure and haircut I will wear! I cannot tell any details yet…

Q: …. Actually you are following education for hairdresser..

Yes , it is quite difficult to combine it nowadays, but I am still schoolable. So I cannot stay away from school till the 1^st of april, when I will become 18!.. and I want to get a diploma. Not that I will be a hairdresser all my life, but I want to have a diploma. I only have to do two exams till June.. but if I will not succeed, I will do the exams later, after Oslo!

Q: The reactions about ‘Ik ben verliefd. (Sha-la-lie)’ are very different: some are negative, some are positive and even changed their view and say: she is the winner of 2010! In the top 100 in the Netherlands you are number one! It is the first time in history a Dutch entry for Eurovision reaches number one in the chart! How do you explain that?

Well I can understand the different reactions. When I hear a song for the first time I can also feel.. I like it or I don’t like it. I realize some people must get used to the song! But it is important for me to feel the Dutch support me!

Q: What will be your tactic in Oslo? How will you get votes from other countries?

Well I don’t have a special tactic! I am going to be myself: with my honest simplicity I will attract the people. In April we will travel to other countries to do some interviews and to promote my song. I am really looking forward to Oslo: to meet all contestants from different countries, all the interviews. In March I will follow a five days language course with my coach Marianne Weber to learn English better for all the international interviews. I hope to become more self-confident to speak English!

Q: Did you already hear the other entries till so far for 2010?

I heard some songs on the internet. There are very good songs chosen in other countries. It might be tough to reach the final, but I like that because it is a challenge!

Q: What is your dream for the future?

This is a dream!! To represent the Netherlands for Eurovision songcontest! And after that: performing for an audience in a sold-out -Ahoy in Rotterdam (red.: the Netherlands)! After Oslo I will record a full album with Dutch songs. On the album there will not be a Eurovision-medley, but I will definitely sing a Dutch Eurovision-medley in my performances in future!

Thank you very much dear Sieneke for this interview!

www.eurovisonontop.com whishes you good luck in Oslo!

For further information www.sieneke.com .

RUTH JACOTT ON TOUR - NO MORE ‘VREDE’, ITS TIME FOR ‘PASSION’!

(Utrecht, 27^th of January 2010)

The last performance of Ruth Jacott in theatre was several years ago as Billy in the wonderful musical Billy Holiday. From October 2009 till January 2010 Ruth was back in the Dutch theatres with the show ‘Passion!’. On the 27^th of January 2010 the audience was very enthusiast about the sensual act of Ruth in the Queen Beatrix Theatre (Utrecht, the Netherlands). She sang with a live band (eight musicians), four dancers and three wonderful backing vocals.

She worked almost for eight years on the unique concept of her cd ‘Passion ‘. Passion consists of two cds with latin-american songs: one cd with Spanish lyrics, one cd with Dutch lyrics. All songs were chosen by Ruth herself. When you hear the songs of the album you feel the sun on your skin, a great atmosphere and above all: PASSION.

In the show she performed almost all songs of the cd. The show was about Passion and Love! Of course Ruth had a great voice and she created a sexy sensual atmosphere from the first second till the end of the show. She changed clothes several times from very sexy to very elegant. She danced with the dancers on stage. It was clear: Ruth is not only a very good singer but also a great dancer! She has a lovely, very warm personality and between the singing she also seemed to be very humoristic and made the audience laughing a lot! Ruth is an all-round artist!

Beside the Passion songs, she did several songs from previous cds. Most impressive were ‘Ik ga door’, ‘Tastbaar’ and ‘Sterker’. Some older songs were mixed in a kind of latin medley; very well done. The backing vocals were really great! It brought back memories when Ruth sang ‘Vrede’ in Ireland!

As Ruth is really a theatre animal she found the distance to the audience too far. So she stepped down the stage and went through the audience, in the meanwhile singing the song ‘Blijf bij mij’. It was the song in the 1993 Dutch national final, which was the number one of Ruth herself! She kissed several people, got lots of flowers and suddenly she recognized Ben Kramer ! Ben represented the Netherlands in 1973 with ‘De oude muzikant’; a song which was composed by Pierre Kartner. As known, Pierre Kartner is also the composer of the Dutch song for Oslo 2010: ‘Ik ben verliefd. Shalalie’. On the 7^th of February the Netherlands will decide out of 5 beginning young artists (the group Loekz, Vinzzent, Marloes Oosting, Peggy Mays and Sieneke), which one will perform the song in Oslo.

There was no more ‘Vrede’ , but it was all time for “Passion”. Of course it would have been great to hear Ruth singing one of the best entries of the Netherlands in eurovision history, but the show was great anyway! The audience enjoyed the show very much and of course Ruth got a Big applause.

Well done Ruth! Hope to see you back in theatre very soon!

Rad Marijnissen, the Netherlands

Interview with Micke Wennborn

Micke Wennborn is the composer of the most voted song in Eurovision On Top in 2009, "Fri" from Jan Johansen. The work of Micke is impressive as a musician, producer and songwriter. His songs were recorded by artists like Barbados, Tom "Bon Jovi" Nordahl, Py Bäckman, Magnus Bäcklund, Jan Johansen and many many more... He had a total of 3 songs in the Swedish pre-selections and another 4 in other countries within the EBU - all up to the finals of those countries. Micke gave us this interview to talk about his life and his projects.

Q: As a composer you've submitted songs for National Finals including Sweden and Lithuania. According to your experience, what are the biggest differences between both National Finals?

A: That the Lithuanian selection process is much more straight forward. You actually send your submission to a specific guy at LRT. He picks out the songs and chooses the artists. Quite similar to the actual Swedish procedures. Musicwise I have a sense that the Lithuanian song festival is a bit torn between passing on the legacy of traditional Lithuanian musc compared to what others realise is more commercial. The most interesting part of being in the Lithuanian selections is to learn more about another country's culture, economy, philosophy and traditions.

Q: Are you planning to submit any songs for this year?

A: Me and my closest co-writers submitted a couple of songs, but nothing new. That's much because of the current situation in the selection procedure, it just didn't feel worth while. We did the assumption that we really wasn't a part of the special circle that more or less has the festival as their playground and that we had too much other things going that were more important. However, at the end of the day, we managed to get a song through, "Magisk Stjärna (Magic Star)" that I wrote together with Py Bäckman (who among other things wrote "Stad i Ljus" for Tommy Körberg back in 1988).

Q: Is it a dream (or goal) for you to go to Eurovision? Why?

A: Hmmm, no, I wouldn't say that. I'm very divided about the Swedish Melodifestivalen. Of course, there's a lot of media coverage, but for the music itself it's all about the 3 minutes and if you're unlucky, that's all you get. That's about half the time than the average Idol-/X-Factor-contestant gets every week. Kind of strange considering it's a contest for songwriters, isn't it? And you always risk not being able to choose any artist you want for the song which also is weird as you very often aim for more consistent and long term collaborations. On the other hand, competing for Sweden would of course mean that you'd get to meet a lot of different interesting people abroad. But to take part for Sweden is absolutely not necessary. I'd love to be in the final waving a Polish flag for instance.

Q: If one of your songs can manage to go Eurovision, would you like to be on stage?

A: That depends on the song and the concept, but of course I would. If you want to be seen in this songwriters' contest, you have to be on stage, not "just" being the composer *laughs*. But then again, I am not an artist and never had the ambitions to be that either, so it would have to be as a musician or band member. That'd be cool. Who knows, I might show up on stage 2010.

Q: You wrote songs for well known Eurovision artists in many different styles. How do you feel writing and working with Jan Johansen?

A: You can always see a pattern in my songs. First, 95% of them I compose at my grand piano at home. The melody and the chords is what's important, and all my songs suits perfectly fine to play just on the piano. Second, I am a classical trained arranger and apart from that I always put much time in trying to weave production and arrangement together. I know that people who tried to analyse my style of arranging often find a common pattern, even if the sound itself can vary.
Working with Janne is fantastic. He has the same attitude to his singing as for example Rod Steward. He just sings. There's no need of vocal coaching, nothing you need to add, delete or patch up with his voice. He sounds as he sounds and if he has the right feeling for a song, it's always good. The only thing I introduced when we started working together was the ban of Autotune. There were absolutely no need for Janne to use that even if he sometimes was worried about pitch and besides, I don't want a vocal to sound like the GPS-voice in my car. I wish more music nowadays had more traces of human timing and pitch.
We have also played gigs together, and Janne is a super pro. A bad day of his is still a very good day and if something goes wrong, nobody would even notice, he's such a professional. His stagepresence is extraordinary and he's got a lot of routine. To be Janne's sidekick is great fun because you have quite a lot of freedom in how you play. Once you've built a personal relationship with the musician, Janne feels secure which makes it easy and fun to play together.

Q: How do you see the success of "Fri" and which opportunities do you expect for your work?

A: "Fri" was a big surprise, and I still can not see it as a "hit" in spite of gold discs, chart success and lots of airplay in Sweden, Norway and Finland. Maybe because I do not look at myself as a hit composer. I'm more the guy who has a high level of performance with songs and production, but never gets "THE" hit. But "Free" as a craft has received much praise and there have been lots of inquiries about collaborations, and right now I have to say that I'm on overload with work. Whenever talking about "Fri" I always want to mention my sidekick, Patrik Tibell, engineer. We work well together and that the fact he understands what I mean absolutely super important. However, I'm a sucker for anyone that really knows how to deliever. Last summer I saw LaGaylia Frazier on stage right after a gig we had with Janne. thriller! Her voice, her stage presence and her total control over everything on stage gave me goosebumps. It was almost unbelievable.. After the gig I ran into her, but as we did not know each other, I just smiled and would pass when she grabbed me and said 'Hey, I've heard about you ", and later asked if I was interested in possibly playing with her live. I felt like a shy little boy ...

Q: Is there any special or funny situation you want to share with us?

A: There's plenty. Last summer for instance. I was supposed to play unplugged with Jan Johansen, live on radio. My memory is getting worse with age, so I need the sheet music, otherwise I'm lost. We came on stage and did a soundcheck. I glued the sheets to the floor and thought we were on air right there and then. Instead there were a couple of other acts and we were supposed to come back later. When it was our turn I discovered that a bunch of dancers had been dancing all over my sheets, they were impossible to read, they were covered with black footprints. The interesting part was that Janne followed me even when I played wrong, and I followed him. A blind leading a blind. Well, hopefully Janne got some new fans among those who normally likes free jazz. *laughs*

Q: Personally, what’s kind of music do you prefer?

A: I'm a typical AOR-guy, I love the slick West Coast sound but also energic music. I guess in a way I've been labelled as being a hard rock guitarist which I think it's kind of strange, and with the kind of music I'm playing these days, I'm definitely not hard rock. If I had to pick a band or an artist. Hmm... Billy Idol, perhaps? Even though his only good songs were "White Wedding" and "Rebel Yell". Other favourite artists are Duran Duran, Ultravox and Toto. Among Swedish artists I think it would be Johan Kinde. I think he has an extremely good "eye" for everything.

Q: Which song from Melodifestivalen do you wish you had wrote?

A: "I want you to want me", with Cheap Trick. Oh, it was never in Melodifestivalen. *laughs*. But imagine it there, it would've won big time!

Q: What’s your next project?

A: There are many different projects. We're working on new songs for Janne and I'm producing Py Bäckmans forthcoming album from her church concerts. I've been working with Elena Risteska from Macedonia and her producer Darko Dimitrow. Me and Patrik Tibell have our own little project and I'm also composing for some of the leading modern dance orchestras. But of course, at the moment I'm mostly involved in our song for Melodifestivalen 2010. We've really made an effort to think as much outside the box as possible when it comes to production and musicians. It's a very interesting line-up. Right now I can't reveal any names, but they are all very respected British and Amercian musicians within folk and west coast who never has been participating in this context before. We've been trying to keep the whole thing as far from "plastic fantastic" and "loudness war" as possible and instead present well performed and good sounding music. I don't say that will guarantee anything but we can at least stand for the 3 minutes we have, that's the best we can do. Py and I have created a special website for the song "Magisk Stjärna", www.magiskstjarna.se, where we will keep a diary, upload pictures and stuff all through the contest as long as we're in.

Thanks a lot for your time, it’s been really great talking to you. Good luck and hope to hear from you in the future!

For more information about Micke Wennborn http://www.myspace.com/wennborn or http://www.magiskstjarna.se/

By Micke Hjernestam for Eurovision On Top.

2010-01-14

Jan Johansen Interview - November 2009

Jan Johansen is on the train back from Borås where he performed at a tribute concert to Ted Gärdestad. Eurovision On Top catches him on a somewhat shaky telephone line to talk about past, present and future.

Tell us some more about the tribute concert!

- Well, this is a tour and concert concept that’s been going for 2 years in different line-ups, at the moment it’s Sara Löfgren (MF 2004) , Johan Boding, Janne Schaffer and myself. Ted Gärdestad (ESC 1979), who sadly passed away in 1997, is one of the most beloved singers and composers of all time in Sweden and his musical legacy still lives on.

Congratulations to the top spot on EurovisionOnTop’s Top 20! Can you tell us something about the song “Fri”?

- Just by coincidence I found this song on composer Micke Wennborns MySpace, and began to rework it. We got in touch and kept sending the song back and forwards and later Py Bäckman (MF 1979, 1992) wrote new Swedish lyrics to it as it originally was in English. I really love Py Bäckmans lyrics. I didn’t actually meet up with the Micke until we did the video clip. I wanted to do a videoclip with echoes of Aerosmith and 80’s and I think we managed pretty well.

Your new album was only released in Norway. Why?

- “Se På Mig” has been played on Norwegian radio on a daily basis ever since 1995, and Universal Norway thought it was just about time to release a Best Of Compilation, “Minnen”, but we decided to put in a couple of new songs as well. There have been several different Greatest Hits compilations released in Sweden over the years and I wanted to wait until I could release a whole new album for the Swedish market with all new material. Last summer I performed at “Allsång På Glenten”, a Norwegian sing-a-long TV-show with 1 million viewers, Other artists in the same show were Anita Skorgan (ESC 1977, 1979, 1982) and Norwegian boy band A1. Apparently I did very well as it all lead up to the release of “Minnen”, which currently has sold about 13,000 copies in Norway.

What’s your strongest memory from 1995 when you represented Sweden and reached Number 3 in Dublin?

- 1995 was such a crazy year. After winning Melodifestivalen it was a whirlwind with gold records, going to Dublin, tours and everything. It was my big break and during these years it was a bit hard to absorb what was happening. That’s why I needed some time off at the end of the 90’s and then step by step began preparing for coming back. “Se På Mig” then went on to become an all time classic and one the most popular Swedish entries of all time. The lyrics can apply to everyone in so many ways, it’s all about what you choose them to be about, a lover, a friend or even God. I guess that’s why it can be sung in so many different contexts, even at weddings or funerals.

You participated in Melodifestivalen 4 times a singer (1995, 2001, 2002 and 2003). Would you do it again?

- Of course I would, as long as it’s a good song. I still get lots of proposals from different composers and I’ve been singing on many various demos submitted for the preselections over the past years, not only in Sweden but also in other countries. So, I’m keeping fingers crossed that one day I’ll be back. It’s all about getting a song that suits me and my kind of rockier and husky voice. Not too many notes, not too many words, but lots of feeling! I don’t feel limited to one specific genre, but pop/rock and power ballads I think suits me best.

Do you still watch Melodifestivalen & ESC? Any ideas on what Sweden need to win the ESC?

- Yes, I still follow both Melodifestivalen & ESC with great interest. There are so many different styles represented these days, so it’s really hard to say what it takes to pick a winner for Sweden. Alexander Rybak (ESC 2009) really had it all, a talented musician and loaded with charm that went instantly to the audience. I think it’s either about having a song and a show that really stands out or to have a really powerful and sensitive ballad. After all, it’s about to be the one who stays on the viewer’s mind after a very long line of entries.

Who are your biggest musical influences?

- It’s hard to mention anything in particular or specific artists, but I’m very much influenced by rock from the 80’s. I have a huge record collection in the basement at home and I always keep coming back to U2, Coldplay, Tom Petty and The Rolling Stones. Apart from that I listen to all sorts of music, I keep staying in touch with all sorts of new music by listening to the radio. Katy Perry’s “Hot’n’Cold”, “Human” with The Killers and the new song by Juanes are some of my favourite songs at the moment. I like everything that focuses on a good melody. Currently I’m also listening a lot to IVO, a Swiss pop/rock-singer who I met during the Baltic Song Festival earlier this year. My song “Fri” won 3^rd place and IVO won.

Your father, Egil Johansen, was a famous jazz musician. How did his music influence you?

- Just as myself, my dad was always fascinated by a good melody. He introduced me to the music of Miles Davis and Weather Report to name but a few. My dad was also a big fan of Prince, and funnily enough, his favourite song was not one of the jazzier or funkier numbers, but “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World”, a slow ballad with a very simple but great melody with lots of feeling and soul.

What about future projects? Will there be a new album?

- I’m still promoting the Norwegian release of “Minnen”, but I’m constantly working on new material. The new songs on “Minnen” will be the base for my new album called “En Ny Bild Av Mig” (“A New Image of Me”). For a couple of months, the Swedish music business is so focussed on Melodifestivalen, so I’ve decided not to release the album until late spring or summer 2010. The album will be in Swedish only, but who knows, I might do some of the tracks in English versions. One of the songs released on “Minnen” is a duet with Norwegian singer Maria Arredondo. For the Finnish market, I recorded the same song with Sonja Bishop (Euroviisut 2004, 2010). I’d like to record it with a Swedish duet partner for inclusion on the forthcoming album, maybe you guys could arrange a poll to decide what female singer would be best? Haha. Other projects are a duet with Elena Risteska from Macedonia (ESC 2006) and I also hope to collaborate with IVO, maybe translate some of his songs to Swedish and include on the new album. During the Swedish OGAE convention earlier this year, I teamed up with the lovely Chiara (ESC 1998, 2005, 2009) from Malta for a version of ‘Let Your Spirit Fly’. Who knows, we might record it in the future and make it available exclusively on Eurovision On Top!

That sounds like a great idea, we’re really looking forward to that! So, before hanging up, do you have a special message to the Eurovision On Top-readers?

- I want to say a big thank you to everyone who’s voted for “Fri” on the Top 20 and it’s great to know that you guys are still out there checking out my new material. It’s a fantastic way for me to spread my music and stay in touch with old and new fans.

Thanks a lot for your time, it’s been really great talking to you. Good luck and hope to hear from you in the future!

For more information on Jan Johansen