It is still unclear what exactly happened, but the whole thing may be explosive: the Dutch ESC candidate Joost Klein was denied both the appearance in the rehearsal for the final of the largest music competition in the world and the jury final on Friday evening. The reason was “an incident” with the musician, as the European Broadcasting Union EBU announced in a short press statement.
“We are currently investigating an incident that has been reported to us and concerns the Dutch artist. He will not be rehearsing any further for the time being,” it was initially said in the followingnoon. Shortly before the start of the jury final, which was scheduled for 9 p.m. in the Malmö Arena, the follow-up: The investigation is ongoing, as are the discussions with the Dutch television company. Joost Klein was therefore not allowed to appear live in the show that was held specifically for the international expert juries. Instead, the performance from the second semi-final will be recorded.
Picture gallery: Song Contest: That was the 2nd semi-final
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Violence once morest an employee?
There is wild speculation regarding the background to the “incident”. It therefore seems to be clear that there may not have been a conflict with the Israeli delegation, as initially assumed. Israel’s entry into office is highly controversial in Malmö, and Joost Klein has repeatedly criticized his rival Eden Golan. Instead, the Swedish “Aftonbladet” speculates that Klein is said to have been violent towards a production employee, while the TV station Sveriges Television wants to know regarding an attack on a photographer.
The 26-year-old Joost Klein is actually already an established figure in the German-speaking cultural area. The musician, who lost his parents when he was a teenager, landed a million-dollar hit with the cover version of “Friesenjung” last year together with the rapper Ski Aggu and Otto Waalkes.
