Rap culture in the Netherlands (Dutch hip hop or Nederhop) began with Dutch-speaking musicians in the Netherlands and Belgium. The term “Nederhop” was coined in the 1970s, and a few Dutch Hip Hop records had already appeared in the early 1980s. However, duo MC Miker G & DJ Sven earned the first top 10 hits in 10 countries across Europe with “Holiday Rap” in 1986.
The same year, another Dutch rapper, “Extince” debuted with his first song: Rap Around The Clock. He found a moderate hit with The Milkshake Rap in 1987. In the late 1980s, the Nederhop gave birth to other rapers, including Def Rhymz, Blonnie B, Dynamic Rockers, Alex and the CityCrew, and the Osdorp Posse.
It’s tough to figure out who pioneered the path of Nederhop. But the Osdorp Posse, a group from Osdorp, have proved that they were the first to release tracks in Dutch. Their first single, Moordenaar (“Murderer”), was released in 1989, which was the beginning milestone of the Nederhop. Another notable rap artist in the 1980s was Allstar Fresh, who won the Dutch Mixing Championships (DMC) in 1988 and was known as King Bee.
Until 1990, the Nederhop had already begun the journey but couldn’t have received the recognition as expected. In 1992, the Osdorp Posse released the first-ever Dutch language hip hop album called “Osdorp Stijl.” First, they translate N.W.A Songs to Dutch and later began writing their own rhymes in Dutch.
Then, the year 1995 came that commercialized Nederhop, and the audience of rap of the Netherlands grew. All was possible through Rapper Extince, who came with his two singles Spraakwater and Kaal of Kammen, which became the biggest hits of the mid-1990s.
The rap music culture in the Netherlands had already been established since 1995 and 2000s evolved the genre in the country. From 2000 onward, the number of rap artists grew, and Dutch language hip-hop became popular in both underground and mainstream. In the early 2000s, the popular MC fronted band Relax had impressed by releasing four albums, and the first three earned the place in Dutch album top 40.
Some of the successful rappers in 2000s include Def Rhymz, Spookrijders & Brainpower, Typhoon, Lange Frans & Baas B, Cilvaringz, Ali B. and Raymzter and De Jeugd van Tegenwoordig. Besides, another Dutch hip-hop duo, Pete Philly and Perquisite, had also successfully earned fame in the Netherlands, Germany, and Japan.
After some decades, the 2010s were a crucial part of the journey for Nederhop as some prominent rappers created their masterpieces in this decade. For instance, Broederliefde has released at least 7 albums since 2014 and their “worst one” topped at 13 in the charts. Moreover, the internet had already boomed the world. It started the New Wave” generation of Social Media that helped other Dutch rappers find their fame since 2015.
The famous rapper Bilal Wahib also began his journey in the late 2010s. He debuted in the industry with his single was “Vliegen” from the soundtrack of the film De libi. The “Tigers” and “501” are Bilal’s 2020 and 2021 hits. Both rap songs had topped the Dutch Single Top 100 chart and earned the third position on the Dutch Top 40 charts. Bilal had also received a nomination at top 5 of the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Dutch Act for 2020.
After its establishment, the Nederhop has also witnessed some hot conflicts between rappers via distracts, which is evident in 2021. Some Dutch feuds in hip-hop include Osdorp Posse vs. Extince and BrainPower vs. Extince.
So, which Dutch rapper is your favorite? Let us know in the comment section.
