School of Rock
Random article All articles A–Z
2 languages

Guus Meeuwis

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Guus Meeuwis was born in 1972 in the monastery of Mariahout, a Brabant village where his parents were living temporarily. He grew up in neighbouring Lieshout and studied law in Tilburg. After a romantic weekend in Bruges with his girlfriend he wrote the song Het is een nacht. With his student band he won the first student song contest in Leiden with it in 1994. A talent scout offered the group a record contract. The band continued as Guus Meeuwis & Vagant, named after their regular pub.

Music and breakthrough

In 1995 Het is een nacht went to number 1 in the Dutch Top 40, and a year later Per spoor did the same. Hits such as Zo ver weg and Ik wil met je lachen followed. In 2001 Vagant split up, and from 2002 Meeuwis continued solo, with his brother Marc and the pianist Jan-Willem Rozenboom still in his band. His first solo album included Brabant, which was soon called the unofficial anthem of the province. More than 30,000 people even signed a petition to make it the official anthem. In 2015 he was the first Dutch-language artist to give a sold-out concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Influence

Meeuwis sings Dutch-language songs about love, friendship and home, with simple melodies that are easy to sing along to. As a result his performances became great parties where the audience sings every word. In 2013 he was made a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Brabant and pay attention to the chorus. Hear how simple the melody is and how the song is made to be sung along to by a large group of people.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

Categories: Artists