Duncan Laurence

Singer

Birthday April 11, 1994

Birth Sign Aries

Birthplace Spijkenisse, Netherlands

Age 29 years old

Nationality Netherlands

#22215 Most Popular

1975

He is the fifth Dutch entrant to win the competition, and the first since Teach-In won the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 with the song "Ding-a-dong".

As a result of the following year's contest being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Laurence is the longest reigning Eurovision winner, having held the title for two consecutive years.

After his Eurovision victory, Laurence embarked on a concert tour across the Netherlands and Europe.

1994

Duncan de Moor (born 11 April 1994), known professionally as Duncan Laurence, is a Dutch singer and songwriter.

2013

Formed in 2013, the band went on to perform at Eurosonic Noorderslag.

2016

In March 2016, he left The Slick.

2017

Laurence graduated from the Rock Academy in 2017.

2018

He, with Jihad Rahmouni, wrote the music to K-pop duo TVXQ's song "Closer" for their 2018 album New Chapter #1: The Chance of Love.

2019

He represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with his song "Arcade" and went on to win the competition, giving the Netherlands its first Eurovision win since 1975.

"Arcade" became one of the most successful Eurovision Song Contest winning entries on streaming platforms and international charts in recent history.

Prior to Eurovision, Laurence was a semi-finalist in the fifth season of The Voice of Holland.

Born in Spijkenisse, Laurence grew up in Hellevoetsluis.

He began writing his own songs as a teenager, as an escape from being bullied.

He started his musical career at the Rock Academy in Tilburg, playing in a number of school bands, including his own, The Slick and Suited.

In January 2019, Laurence was internally selected to represent the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019, held in Tel Aviv, Israel.

He was nominated by DeLange, with whom he remained in contact after The Voice.

His song, "Arcade", was released in March 2019.

Arriving as the main favourite to win, Laurence eventually went on to win the contest, having received a total of 498 points.

On 10 June 2019, he performed at the 50th anniversary of Pinkpop Festival in Landgraaf, the first Dutch Eurovision winner to perform at the event.

He replaced the Swedish duo First Aid Kit who dropped out due to health reasons.

On 23 October 2019, Laurence released his second single, "Love Don't Hate It".

It was also announced that he signed a recording contract with Capitol Records.

2020

In February 2020, he revealed that he had oxygen deprivation at birth, and thus has had a motor disorder affect his right hand.

Laurence participated in the fifth season of The Voice of Holland, choosing Ilse DeLange as his coach.

He advanced to the semi-finals before being eliminated.

In 2020, the artists' entrance at Rotterdam Ahoy was renamed "Door Duncan" in his honour.

On 13 May 2020, Laurence released his first extended play (EP), Worlds on Fire, which included the singles "Arcade", "Love Don't Hate It", and "Someone Else", along with two new tracks.

His first studio album, Small Town Boy, followed on 13 November 2020.

It was certified platinum in the Netherlands three days after its release.

The album's release was preceded by "Feel Something", a collaboration with fellow Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren.

In the second half of 2020, "Arcade" went viral on video sharing service TikTok, resulting in the song's new chart success and rise in streams on various platforms.

In January 2021, "Arcade" became the most-streamed Eurovision song on Spotify, surpassing a record previously held by Eurovision 2019 runner-up Mahmood and his entry "Soldi".

On 12 February 2021, "Arcade" reached the UK Singles Chart's top 40, and two weeks later it peaked at number 29.

In March, Laurence made his US television debut performing "Arcade" on Today, and later also performed the song's duet version alongside Fletcher on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Following these promotional appearances, the song broke into the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the first Eurovision song in 25 years and the first Eurovision winning song in 45 years to do so; it eventually peaked at number 30.

At the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 held in Rotterdam, Laurence opened the first semi-final with "Feel Something".

In the same event, he was awarded a Global Platinum record for one billion streams of "Arcade".

However, he later tested positive for COVID-19, which prevented him from performing live in the grand final.

Pre-recorded footage of his performance, consisting of "Arcade" and a new single from Small Town Boy deluxe edition, "Stars", was broadcast instead during the final.

On 11 June 2021, the soundtrack album for the second season of the Hulu series Love, Victor was released.