Disclaimer: The video and written reaction below features the opinions and views of the reviewers and does not necessarily represent the views of That Eurovision Site as a whole!
As we now have the songs competing for this year’s competition in Malmö, the team at That Eurovision Site will be reacting to the entries that will be participating at Eurovision 2024. The next entry we will be reacting to is The Netherlands, who will be competing in this year’s competition with “Europapa” by Joost.
Our thoughts on “Europapa”
In this series, we will be providing our opinions in two methods. One of our team members will be reacting on video, which you can see below, whilst up to three members of the team will be giving their written opinion on the entry. Shiloh will be on the main seat and will be giving his reaction to “Europapa”
What did the other members of the team think of “Europapa”?
Georgia: What could be more quintessentially European than Europapa? After Brexit, I feel like this especially resonates with me, a British person who has dual nationality with a European country (I just think that freedom of movement is cool!). I do really enjoy this but I feel like there are a few things that concern me ahead of the contest: firstly, will the Dutch lyrics translate well enough to non-Dutch speakers? I don’t feel like it should be an issue if they stage it well (i.e. emphasising the Europe-ness as much as possible) but some of the specifics in the lyrics could get lost in translation. Secondly, while I really like the extended outro, I fear that some people could find the switch to the emotional ending too abrupt, almost as if it’s two different songs. But, overall, Joost should deliver an absolute banger in Malmö and I am very excited to see how he does.
Daniel: For the second year in the row, The Netherlands are my personal Eurovision winner. This love letter to both Joost’s late father and the European continent is as touching as it is uplifting. Europe love a banger and I think this will resonate throughout the continent regardless if they speak Dutch or not. Joost is a natural live performer, just look at any of his festival performances to see that, and I think the atmosphere he creates on stage in Malmö will be electric. One thing I hope to see is the shortened outro segment present in the music video, which I think could be really striking and do well for him in the juries – anything similar to his live performances of his song Florida 2009 would be a great thing for me.
Person 3: I will admit this song took me a few listens however now I absolutely love it and really hope it does well in May. Not only is the song great energetic fun it has a great message about how we should all come together and also about the lessons he learnt from his father. This has the ability to be a real moment in Malmö.
Listen to “Europapa” on streaming platforms
You are able to listen to The Netherlands’ Eurovision 2024 entry on the following streaming platforms
Spotify
Apple Music
The Netherlands’ Eurovision Journey
The Netherlands are one of the founding countries of the ESC, having performed the very first song ever on the Eurovision stage back in 1956. While the result of “De Vogels van Holland” is unknown, the Netherlands have clocked 5 wins, with their most recent in 2019. However the Netherlands are also known to have had the longest ever non qualification streak in the semi-final era – they missed out on the final a whopping 8 times between 2005-2012.
The most recent Dutch entry to the Contest was in 2023, when Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper represented the nation with “Burning Daylight” – written by Eurovision winner Duncan Laurence. The Netherlands failed to qualify for the final in Liverpool, placing 13th with a total of 7 points from the televote.
What do you think of “Europapa”? Are you excited to see what Joost will do in Malmö? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Tumblr, Threads and Bluesky as we gear up for Eurovision 2024!
News Source: That Eurovision Site / Joost
Photo Credit: Joost