The Netherlands in Eurovision
The Netherlands debuted as one of the original competing countries at the very first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956 and has competed in all but four editions since, missing the contest in 1985, 1991, 1995 and 2002. The nation has been victorious at the competition five times, making them one of the most successful countries in the contest.
Since the semi-final system was introduced in the early 2000s, the Netherlands had a run of non-qualifications from 2005 to 2012. They then turned things around in 2013 when singer-songwriter Anouk broke their streak and qualified for the Grand Final for the first time in nine years. Since then the country has seen great success, qualifying every year except 2015.
2022 Entry: S10 - 'De Diepte'
Semi-Final: The Netherlands is peforming 8th in the semi-final 1 running order.
My Eurovision Scoreboard fan ranking: 4th of 40 entries
Odds to win ranking: 9th out of 40 entries
(Rankings as of 29 March 2022)
About the artist
S10, born Stien den Hollander, is a 21-year-old Dutch Indie singer-songwriter from Abbekerk, Nord Holland.
Her career kickstarted in 2016 when S10 self-released her very first album 'Antipsychotica'. Songs on the first mini-album were recorded through her headphones and released to the online audio sharing website, SoundCloud. A year after the release of her album, S10 was discovered and signed to rapper Jiggy Djé's record label Noah's Ark.
With the new label backing S10, she released her sophomore EP titled 'Lithium', which like the first album, dealt with the themes of her life-long struggles with mental illness and depression. Many tracks tell of her experiences with bi-polar and being admitted to a psychiatric hospital at a young age.
In 2018 she began studying at Herman Brood Academie in Utrecht, which specialises in the technical aspects of music production. A year later, S10 released her debut studio album 'Snowsniper' which received critical acclaim and was awarded the prestigious Edison Award, the Dutch equivilent to a Grammy. Later that year S10 released her second LP 'Vlinders', which she described as a much lighter album compared to her previous catalogue. This album peaked at 5th on the Dutch album charts and really solidified S10 into the mainstream Dutch music scene.
About the song
'De Diepte', which translates to 'The Depth', tells the story of depression and mental health after a harsh breakup. S10 herself describes the song as a love letter to grief. The lyrics express the longing and pain of separation.
"Everyone experiences difficult times in their lives. That's something we all have in common and I hope you will feel less alone when you listen to this song."
Even though the contempory, atmospheric track uses the metaphor of a broken relationship throughout, S10 has explained that its actually telling of a multitude of hardships she has had to face throughout her entire life. From the Stien of three years ago to her six-year-old self, S10 wrote this song as a homage to the sadness and memories that you carry with you.
The track written by S10 and Arno Krabman is the first song since 2010 to include the Dutch language at the Eurovision Song Contest. The entry was released alongside an accompanying music video which stars S10 in a story of a tumultuous relationship breaking down. The video has already reached over 2 million views since its release in early March.
How she was chosen for Eurovision
The Dutch traditionally decide their entry to the Eurovision Song Contest through an internal selection. S10 was revealed to be the one to fly the flag for the Netherlands in an announcement video which premiered on the YouTube channel of the Dutch broadcaster Avrotros on December 7, 2021. 'De Diepte' beat out some major names who were rumoured to have also bid for the spot, including Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren and 'The Voice of Holland' 2016 winner, Maan.
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The Netherlands will compete in semi-final 1 on May 10 (European time) in Turin.