Froukje faces off against Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding

Without a doubt, one of the Netherlands’ most acclaimed artists right now is Froukje. The twenty-one-year-old talent first made waves in 2020 with her climate change anthem “Groter Dan Ik”. Success then rapidly continued with big releases such as “Ik Wil Dansen” and collaborations with S10. On this week’s chart, Froukje makes her first moves towards Number 1 as “Als Ik God Was” peaks at #2. She is blocked by Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding, who enter a second consecutive week atop the chart with their trance hit “Miracle”. It is already their longest-running collaboration, surpassing 2014’s “Outside” which spent one week at Number 1. “Miracle” is boosted by solid streaming numbers and a hypnotizing new music video.

In the streaming age, the phenomenon of a sleeper hit occurs much more frequently. Recent examples include Goldband their Number 1-hit “Noodgeval” or The Weeknd his “Save Your Tears”, which both took more than twenty weeks to reach their peak. This week, Rema his sleeper hit “Calm Down” finally breaks the Top 10 after more than twenty-four weeks. The single was originally released last year and began steadily climbing the worldwide charts in the summer. It was then boosted by a remix featuring pop star Selena Gomez, which helped it break the Billboard Hot 100. On my personal list, “Calm Down” first appeared to be a minor hit, peaking at #15 in September. Aided by the Selena Gomez remix, it has now peaked at #8. It marks Nigerian singer Rema his first ever Top 10, while Selena earns her sixteenth – and first since 2019’s “Lose You To Love Me”.

Dutch pop giants Maan and Goldband have scored an undeniable hit with “Stiekem”. It has spent eight consecutive weeks at Number 1 after an impressive opening week and is currently certified quadruple-platinum. It is set to triumph Maan and Goldband their previous successes and could go down as one of the biggest hits of all time. This week, “Stiekem” spends a fourteenth week inside the Top 3. Although very impressive, it is not a record yet. Dua Lipa her 2017-hit “New Rules” holds the record for single with the most weeks inside the Top 3, with seventeen weeks total. If they are not overtaken by other hits and maintain their stable streaming figures, Maan and Goldband only need three weeks to match Dua her record. “Stiekem”, however, already is the Dutch song with the most weeks spent inside the Top 3, surpassing Maan her own “Hij Is Van Mij”.

Dutch-Molokan singer Zoë Tauran scores the highest debut of the week with “Er Was Eens Een Meid”, entering at #25 on this chart. Tauran was one of last year’s biggest breakout stars. Her debut solo single “Solo” did well on Spotify and the follow-up “Adrenaline” with Kris Kross Amsterdam & Ronnie Flex became a Top 10-hit. She then continued with the acclaimed “Therapie”, which peaked at #12 on my personal list. Zoë Tauran now debuts with “Er Was Eens Een Meid”, her most personal release to date. The single sees Tauran singing at a young woman’s funeral who took her own life. The sensitive subject matter is supported by an incredible vocal performance and emotional nuance.

2023 is proving to be the year of the sleeper hit, as Dutch-Belgian cross-over “Wat Wil Je Van Mij” by Metejoor & Hannah Mae re-enters this week at #29. It previously stalled at #40, but has since resurged in streaming figures. Further down, this week’s chart-topper Ellie Goulding capitalizes on “Miracle” its success and enters at #36 with “By The End of the Night”. It is one of the promotional singles for her new upcoming album. It marks Goulding her twenty-sixth Top 40-apperance. Cameroonian American star Libianca makes her chart debut at #40 with the incredible “People”. It is the newest addition to the small Afrobeats take-over on this chart, which is led by Ayra Starr and Rema.