Dutch lady of soul Trijntje Oosterhuis returns to the spotlight with her new Dutch language album Leven van de liefde, and an accompanying tour.

Leven van de liefde by Trijntje Oosterhuis is a musical tribute to a life lived through love, consisting of covers of some of the greatest Dutch love songs, and is the artists’ first fully Dutch album.

The album contains songs by artists and bands such as Frank Boeijen, De Dijk, Doe Maar, Guus Meeuwis, Herman van Veen, André Hazes, and Willeke Alberti, among others.

Trijntje Oosterhuis gives her own soulful interpretation of the songs, and will also showcase them during her new Dutch tour, starting on 16 September 2017. Trijntje Oosterhuis will not only sing songs from her latest album, but also her previous Dutch hits, such as De zee and Vlieg met me mee.

Oosterhuis speaks of latest album

Recording an album dedicated to Dutch songs was a longtime dream of Trijntje Oosterhuis:

This was a long cherished wish. I have always had a great respect for the Dutch repertoire, and therefore was deliberately very careful with it. Dutch lyrics can quickly become a sort of flat doggerel that doesn’t appeal to me, or a hardcore artform: pretty vehement. I felt either too old or too young for it! But seriously: I find the Dutch repertoire such a delicate terrain, you have to be ready for it.

Last year I did a Christmas church tour, with only singing and my regular ‘partner in crime’ Leonardo Amuedo on guitar. In the show we did a Dutch block. I received so many positive messages from enthusiastic people, that I couldn’t get around it anymore. The next tour had to be in Dutch, I decided. A sort of Dutch songbook, with my own older hits, the collection of beautiful songs that are available and maybe even some new ones.

Leven van de liefde with covers will be followed by a Dutch album full of original songs, on which Trijntje Oosterhuis is working with the help of artists such as Paskal Jakobsen of the band BLØF, Alain Clark, Dotan and Diggy Dex, and which is scheduled for next year. The artist says:

The Dutch language song is clearly a new direction in my career, although I will not stop with all the other genres. It feels as if I have gained something new.

About the compositions chosen for the album, she states:

Songs that are dear to me, songs of all times, songs that should still be sung and heard, songs that remind me of important moments in my life, forgotten pearls or big hits that I wanted to sing in my own manner for years.

Leven van de liefde is out now, including on Spotify and iTunes:

For all information about Trijntje Oosterhuis’ new album and Dutch tour, ticket sales and prices, please visit the artists’ official website.

About Trijntje Oosterhuis

Trijntje Oosterhuis (born Judith Katrijntje Oosterhuis, Amsterdam, 1973) is a Dutch jazz, pop and soul singer. Regarded as being one of the top female artists of the Netherlands, she has won numerous prizes, and has collaborated with international stars such as Burt Bacharach and Lionel Richie.

Trijntje Oosterhuis, who is the daughter of former priest Huub Oosterhuis and nurse Jozefien Melief, comes from a musical family, with many ties to the Eurovision Song Contest: her brother is composer and producer Tjeerd Oosterhuis, who has composed many entries for the national Dutch selection for (Junior) Eurovision, and he is married to singer Edsilia Rombley (Eurovision 1998 and 2007).

Trijntje, who has two sons from a previous marriage, has a relationship with musician Alvin Lewis, who is the twin brother of singer Berget Lewis (national selection for Eurovision 2003), the couple have a baby daughter together.

Furthermore, Trijntje Oosterhuis used to be part of the group Ladies Of Soul, which also included Edsilia Rombley, Berget Lewis, Glennis Grace (Eurovision 2005), and renowned Dutch saxophonist Candy Dulfer, although Trijntje has recently stated she is to leave as permanent member of the group, focussing on her solo career.

Eurovision 2015

Trijntje Oosterhuis represented the Netherlands at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria. With the song Walk along, written by artist Anouk (Eurovision 2013), she performed during semi-final 1.

Unfortunately, although placing 5th with the jury vote, Trijntje Oosterhuis did not do so well in the televote and didn’t go through to the Grand Final, reaching 14th place with 33 points. Afterwards, Trijntje Oosterhuis won the (in)famous Barbara Dex Award for worst dressed participant.

Enjoy Trijntje Oosterhuis performing Walk along at Eurovision 2015: