In December 2024, the Netherlands announced that 21-year-old Claude would represent them at the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest. Now his Eurovision entry, ‘C’est La Vie’, has officially been released.
Last year, following the disqualification of Joost Klein, many speculated whether the Netherlands would compete in this year’s contest. However, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS have not only confirmed their intent to compete but also to participate in next year’s contest. They will undoubtedly be hoping for a successful result in Basel this year.
Read on to learn all about Claude and his journey to Eurovision!
Who is Claude?
Claude Kiambe was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2003. Due to ongoing conflicts in the area, Claude’s mother was forced to flee the country with him and his siblings when Claude was just nine-years-old. The family initially lived in an asylum centre in Alkmaar before settling in Enkhuizen.
In 2019, aged 15, Claude took part in the eighth season of The Voice Kids. In his blind audition, all four judges turned their chairs for his rendition of ‘Papaoutai’, a song written by Belgian singer Stromae who Claude continues to cite as one of his main influences. The song is also directly referenced in last year’s Eurovision entry ‘Europapa’. Although Claude was ultimately eliminated in the show’s battle rounds, it made him realise he wanted to pursue a future in music.
The following year, Claude took part in another show, Are You Next?, which he ended up winning, signing a recording contract with the record label Cloud 9 and kick-starting his music career.
Career So Far
In 2022, Claude released his debut single ‘Ladada (Mon dernier mot)’ (translating in English as ‘Ladada (My Last Word)’). The plan was originally for the song to be solely in Dutch. However, whilst in the recording studio Claude had the idea to incorporate French, his mother tongue, into the track. The single went on to reach number one in the Dutch Top 40, where it remained for six weeks, as well as charting in several Eastern European countries. Claude also released an English version of the song, which also contains French lyrics, which you can listen to below:
Since then, Claude has continued to release music in a mixture of Dutch, French and English with the majority of his singles charting in the Netherlands. He released his debut album ‘Parler français’ (‘Speak French’) in November 2024 which peaked at number 6 in the Dutch album charts.
Claude has won numerous awards for his music throughout 2024, including 3FM Awards for Best Newcomer, Best Song and Best Collaboration. He has also won the Qmusic Top 40 Award for Best National Artist and the MTV EMA for Best Dutch Act. In 2023, he was also given the opportunity to open for his idol Stromae at his concerts at the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam. However, Stromae would ultimately cancel his tour due to health concerns.
Eurovision 2025
Since 2013, the Netherlands have elected to select their Eurovision entrants internally. Claude and his song were chosen from a pool of 331 submissions with the selection committee saying:
“This year, as a selection committee, we have chosen a meaningful, connecting and hit-sensitive song with international appeal, that can effortlessly conquer the hearts of young and old Eurovision viewers.”
In order to promote his Eurovision entry, Claude’s song was premiered not only on the Eurovision YouTube channel on Spotify but also on every Dutch radio station simultaneously, guaranteeing him exposure both in the Netherlands and across Europe.
Claude’s song is titled ‘C’est La Vie’ and is sung in a mixture of English and French, starting as a slow-ballad before progressing to a more upbeat pop chorus, the song showcases Claude’s powerful and distinctive vocals. In a contest shaping up to consist of mainly televote-friendly entries, this song could have some much-needed jury appeal.
The Netherlands will perform in the second half of the first semi-final, which will take place on Tuesday 13th May. While we’ll have to wait until then to find out how Claude will fare, we certainly wish him the best of luck!
You can follow Claude on social media!
Instagram – @claudekmb
TikTok – @claudekmb
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