This guide contains everything you need to know about Dutch singer Waylon.
When is his birthday?
20 April 1980
What is his most popular song?
“Outlaw In ‘Em”
What else should I know about Waylon?
Willem Bijkerk, known professionally as Waylon, showed a keen interest in music from a young age, with country artists being his inspiration. He played the drums for the West Virginia Railroad band before EMI offered him a record deal. At the age of eighteen, the singer received a call from his idol, Waylon Jennings, inviting him to work with him out in Nashville. Sadly, the legendary singer passed away only a couple of years later and Waylon returned to his home country.
The singers breakthrough came in 2008 when he auditioned for the first season of Holland’s Got Talent with James Browns “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World”. He impressed the coaches and made it all the way to the final, finishing runner-up to winner Danielle Bubberman.
A year later, he became the first Dutch artist to be signed up by Universal Music on their Motown Label. His debut album Wicked Ways reached number three in the charts and saw the singer win several awards. Waylon’s second album, After All, followed in 2011, and was another success for the singer, winning him the best vocalist award at the 2012 3FM awards.
In 2014, Waylon partnered with Ilse Delange to form the Common Linnets. The duo went on to represent The Netherlands at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark, with the song “Calm After the Storm”. Their song was extremely well received and the duo finished in second place behind winner Conchita Wurst. Later in the same year, Waylon released his third studio album Heaven After Midnight which shot straight to the top of the charts.
In 2016, the singer joined The Voice of Holland as a coach and went on to mentor team member Pleun Bierbooms to victory. Waylon’s fourth studio album Seeds came out later that year reaching number seven on the charts.
In November 2017, it was announced that Waylon would be returning to Eurovision as the representative for The Netherlands at the 2018 contest. His song “Outlaw In ‘Em” was revealed in March after the singer showcased five potential song choices. He will perform “Outlaw In ‘Em” in the second semi-final in Lisbon this May.
What are his social media links?
Finally, don’t forget to let us know what you love about Waylon. Also, we now have all our entries for this years Eurovision Song Contest so let us know who your favourites are by tweeting us @CelebMix.