Netherlands

After winning two of the first four Eurovision Song Contests, Dutch fortunes have taken a downturn in recent years, and the Netherlands last won the compeition over thirty years ago with the victory of "Dinge Dong" in 1975. For the last three years the Dutch entry has failed to make it out of the semi-final and there have been frequent rumours of he Netherlands leaving the contest unless they see a change in results.

For a country that used to be famous for having some of the biggest national finals, this year's Dutch selection was very low key. Dutch broadcast NOS opted for an internal selection and initially chose their 1988 singer Gerard Joling to make a return to the contest. However Joling was unable to find enough time in his schedule and NOS re-started the search for a performer. In early November articles in the local media began to report that former "Idols" discovery Hind has agreed to sing the Dutch song in Belgrade. ON November 23rd, NOS confirmed that Hind would not only perform the Durch Eurovision entry but she would also be responsible for choosing her song. On March 7th in a special Eurovision themed show, Hind presented "My Heart Belongs To Me", a song which she had co-written with experienced Dutch songwriters Tjeerd van Zanen and Bas van den Heuvel.

Hind (Hind Laroussi Tahiri) was born to a family with a Moroccan background in famed cheese-making town Gouda in 1984 and today she needs no introduction in her own country. The Netherlands has come to know her as a young woman with a special, warm charisma and a voice with which she can easily present pop music, Portuguese Fado or Arabian classics. Versatility is not only the word best suited to her singing qualities. As an artist Hind is versatile as well. The row of performances during recent years is long, whether it involves solo performances or shows in which she performed with her own band, in a theatre, during a television show or a major gala such as the Dutch Musical Awards. A Hind show is always special. On Dutch liberation day she had a glorious performance with the Metropolitan Orchestra in the famous theatre Carré in Amsterdam, a performance where the Dutch Queen Beatrix was a guest.

The singing career of Hind rocketed since her participating in the Dutch version of the television programme "Pop Idol" in 2003. Her debut single "Summer All Over Again", released later that year instantly became a big hit, resulting in Hind being frequently on television and in shows throughout the country.In 2004 Hind was awarded an Edison Music Award for 'Best New National Artist' and she received a golden record for her debut album "Around The World". Currently, over 40.000 albums have been sold. While with the debut album Hind presented herself to the public, she further established her name in the world of music with her second album "Halfway Home" in 2005.

Notwithstanding her busy schedule she is very much involved with the world, and acts upon this. As such she uses her fame for the relief organisation Dutch Council for Refugees. Now Hind has another important year ahead of her, the year 2008. She is not only preparing for the Eurovision Song Contest, in May she also started her second theatre tour and she is quite busy with preparations for a third album which will be introduced in the summer of 2008.

The participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 is a new highlight in the life of the singer. "This was my dream when I was a young girl," she explains. "I always watched the song contest in admiration and was mostly impressed by the countries that came with their own song. I even noted down the scores personally." The timing for the participation in the Eurovision Song Contest is ideal since Hind in her search for songs for her new album, suddenly found the song, with which she shall represent the Netherlands in Belgrade. The pop song "Your Heart Belongs To Me" was jointly written by Hind, Tjeerd van Zanen (lyrics, music) and Bas van den Heuvel (music). For Tjeerd van Zanen this will be a third Dutch Eurovision entry, following "One Good Reason" (9th in 1999) and "One More Night" (13th in 2003).

The participation in the Eurovision Song Contest with a song which was written and composed personally is perceived by Hind as a tremendous honour and challenge. Several millions of people throughout Europe will see me perform and listen to the song and Hind says: "I hope to be able to touch many with my voice."

Unfortunatly little has been heard from Hind since her entry was presented and the Dutch entry is not favoured to reach the final, either with bookmakers or on internet fan polls.