Douwe Bob, the Dutch representative at the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm, Sweden, will feature in the upcoming episode of the Dutch cultural TV-show Volle Zalen.

In the depth interview in Volle Zalen, Douwe Bob will discuss personal, cultural and social issues with host Cornald Maas, who is also one of the official Eurovision-commentators for the Netherlands.

A frank Douwe Bob will reflect on contemporary topics, talk about his musical influences, and reveal aspects of his soul. For example, the young Dutch artist speaks about his love for the works of South African anti-apartheids poetess, Ingrid Jonker, and those of the sixteenth-century religious composer Carlo Gesualdo. Jonker’s poetry touches the artist because of the purity of the South African language, while the music of Gesualdo had a strong, almost addictive influence on Douwe Bob:

I experienced that I didn’t leave my house for three days when I listened to it, it was all-encompassing, almost frightening.

The singer also talks about the situation of refugees across Europe, which goes to his heart:

When you see that there are people that are throwing firecrackers at those people… That touches me deeply.

Douwe Bob also reflects on his own musical work, how it fits within the contemporary musical scene, which seems dominated by dance-music.

Here you may find a sneak preview of Douwe Bob’s interview with Cornald Maas (in Dutch):

Volle Zalen with Douwe Bob is aired Thursday 21 April from 21:15 CET on NPO 2.

Douwe Bob Posthuma (Amsterdam, 1992) will represent the Netherlands at the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm, Sweden, with the song Slow down.

The song, written during sessions in Portugal, Spain and Sweden, conveys a message of enjoying life each moment, and was inspired by friends of the singer who suffered from burn-outs at a young age, due to the pressure laid upon young people nowadays. It also tells the tale of Douwe Bob’s own hectic life within the musical scene of Amsterdam, and the peace he finds when he slows down and just enjoys the beauty of life around him.

Douwe Bob will perform Slow down during semi-final 1, Tuesday 10 May, from position 6.

Enjoy the official videoclip for Slow down: