Sep Jansen from Tilburg is thirteen years old and on Saturday he will be famous: he will participate in the Dutch final of the Junior Song Contest. Together with Jasmijn from Amersfoort he sings ‘Holding on to you’. And with that he hopes to win, because then he can go to Nice in France for the international final. Sep really likes it all, but he still finds being famous a bit uncomfortable.
At home in the living room, the video for Holding on to you is already ready on the TV. Sep must have watched it many times already? “I think four times..?” he says doubtfully. “Maybe a little more, five times?” That’s not that much at all. “No, I know,” he says apologetically. “I do like it. But I don’t know when to watch it. And I know it.”
“Who should I give these autographed photos to?”
The Junior Eurovision Song Contest poster hangs above his bed in his bedroom. “Finalist 2023 Sep,” it says. He really likes that. And the signed fan cards on his table, showing him with the other finalists? Sep laughs: “I don’t really know who to give it to.” His neighbor must have gotten one, because she made the first fan drawings: ‘Go Sep, come on!’
Suddenly being a famous star: it takes some getting used to. Sep actually especially enjoys singing. His mother knows no better than that he has been singing all day since he was a toddler. Sep did auditions for musicals, including Mees Kees. He played in theater performances for six months and then registered for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest.
He met Jasmijn during the second audition round for the Eurovision Song Contest. The organization let them sing together: “That was a lot of fun, we had a click.”
Sep and Jasmijn sang ‘Holding on to you’ together, were selected and have been in a tight schedule full of rehearsals and preparations ever since. They also perform everywhere. They performed at schools, but also large stages, such as the Tina Festival. “I really enjoyed that, it gave me a lot of energy.”
“The teachers aren’t very strict if I miss a lesson.”
Of course Sep also has to go to school, which can be busy sometimes. “But the teachers at my school are not very strict, so if I miss something, it’s not a big deal.”
Sep has Friday off from school anyway, then he has to go to Rotterdam to practice in Ahoy for the big live show on Saturday evening. In addition to Sep and Jasmijn, there are three more candidates. The video clips of all participants are online, but that of Sep and Jasmijn has been viewed by far the most: almost 300,000 times. “Yes, nice,” Sep laughs shyly.
And does that give him a better chance of winning? “I find it difficult to estimate, because there are four very different acts. But I really want to win, because then it will last longer and I can perform on a very big stage in Nice. That seems really nice to me.”
The Junior Song Contest is on Saturday at 7:20 PM on NPO Zapp.
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