Do you want Yves Berendse at your party? Then you have to dig deep into your pockets. An artist who has scored a few hits demands a sky-high salary. Whatever René Froger thinks about it…
There was some fuss a while ago about statements René Froger made on television. He himself only gets halls full of the hoempapa music of De Toppers, so he is apparently a bit jealous of artists who still score one hit after another. According to the singer, the wages that emerging artists ask are downright ridiculous.
Grabbing
You have to build up such a wage slowly goodwill to create at the halls, so that they ask you back even in bad times, René believes. With his criticism he seemed to mainly point to Samuel Welten, the very young one rising star who, after one big hit, is also singing for very high wages. Grab it before it’s over, that’s kind of the idea.
But things also happened quickly with Yves Berendse. He stood around singing for years, but suddenly the big breakthrough came and now he no longer leaves his expensive villa in Vinkeveen for a cheap snack. Anyone who wants to book Yves must have money. And he is absolutely not ashamed of that.
15,000 euros
Yves confirms The Telegraph that he takes 15,000 euros for half an hour of performance. René thinks it goes a bit too far. “That’s his opinion. He can think what he wants. Everyone can. But in the end my popularity pays my price tag.”
The singer ofBack in Time continues: “If I don’t have a hit, I’ll sing for less pay. If you score with a song, everyone wants you. Supply and demand. Look at Samuel Welten: all festivals want him.”
‘Don’t shame me’
There is no reason to ask for a lower wage, Yves believes. “The organizer books us because he knows that he will sell 5,000 tickets. I could say: I’ll come for half. But why would I do that? I don’t have much to do with what others consider high or low. I’m not ashamed of those amounts either.”
He continues: “There was no comment when I performed for 450 euros gross seven years ago. I did that a lot and for a long time. At the beginning of my career I had to make ends meet. As a result, I was only able to leave home when I was 24. That’s late.”
In my shoe
Everyone would ask for a higher wage if that were possible, Yves emphasizes. “Now people sometimes fall off their chairs because of my merits. I understand that very well. But hey, what would you do if you were in my shoes?”
He concludes: “I also share with booking agencies, a manager and other employees. And I do a lot for charities that I never tell anything about.”