Paul de Leeuw (born March 26, 1962 in Rotterdam) is a Dutch television come… Read Full Bio ↴Paul de Leeuw (born March 26, 1962 in Rotterdam) is a Dutch television comedian, singer and actor.

De Leeuw gained national fame in the late eighties and early nineties with television shows for the public broadcasting company VARA. Though satire was only a part of these shows and much of its humour was essentially harmless he came into publicity with satire about Dutch show business personalities who were often ridiculed.

Besides, many obscure musical acts were featured in his shows, many of which managed to gain national fame after they had been in De Leeuw's programme (e.g. Twarres and AIDS suffering singer Rene Klijn). VARA has since continued his shows apart from a few interruptions, often with considerable success.

In the early nineties, Paul de Leeuw also had some shows celebrating the new year. In the 1993-1994 show he ridiculed the new commercial television channel RTL 5 by announcing another new channel, "RTL 6" (RTL six, beter dan niks (at least better than nothing)). This led to a trial by the RTL company, who demanded that De Leeuw withdraw his joke.

He and his partner, Stephan Nuger, have adopted two children: son Kas (adopted in October 2001) and son Tobey (adopted in December 2002).

Paul de Leeuw has had many hit singles in The Netherlands. He is most famous for: Vlieg met me mee (#2), Ik wil niet dat je liegt / Waarheen, waarvoor (#1), and 'k Heb je lief (#3). Since the beginning of his television and singing career he released albums and singles, always becoming a big success.
In 2006, he recorded the song "Mijn Houten Hart" (My Wooden Heart) with Raffaela, which was later released as a single and peaked at #18 in the Dutch Singles Top 100, becoming one of his smallest hits.

Eurovision Song Contest 2006 incident

De Leeuw is, despite being famous for a long time in the Netherlands, best-known internationally for presenting the results of the Dutch televote in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. De Leeuw was supposed to present the televote by simply thanking the presenters, performers and fans, before giving the result but instead the openly gay De Leeuw gave his mobile number to the male presenter Sakis Rouvas live on-air, and made other comments which somewhat lengthened the Dutch results.

De Leeuw also made a reference to gay culture when he remarked that Rouvas and his female co-presenter Maria Menounos reminded him of Will & Grace. As the results were live and required for the contest to continue, De Leeuw could not be cut off until he finished giving the voting results.

De Leeuw's actions resulted in negative comments from the commentators, with the BBC's Terry Wogan calling the act "pathetic" and asking "Who selected this eejit?" during the United Kingdom coverage of the contest. Other commentators, like the Portuguese Eladio Climaco, didn't translate properly the gay remarks and said he was saying that they really look like Greeks. Parts of the dialogue were also shown on the German comedy show TV total.

The dialogue between De Leeuw and Rouvas

Rouvas: Hello Netherlands! Paul...

De Leeuw: Hello Greece, kalisperma everybody! [note that sperma means sperm in many languages, at least both in Dutch and Greek]

Rouvas: Kalispera Paul. [kalispera means 'Good evening', which was supposed to be said]

De Leeuw: You look like Will... [stops, likely due to the cheering of the crowd behind him] You look like Will & Grace, you two. So here are the votes, the Dutch votes. Let's come. [In an extremely high tempo] One, Ukreene (sic), two, Russia, Germany, three, Ireland, four, Greece, five, Lithuania, six, Finland, seven points! [resumes normal tempo]] Now the eight points. Are you ready Chaci, tzatziki, cichaci?

Rouvas: Yes, haha.

De Leeuw: Are you ready? Eight points... I like your blouse... The eight points are for Bosnia-Hoshegovina (sic). Yeah.

Rouvas: Bosnie-Herzegovine, huit points.

De Leeuw: Yes, I say. And the ten points, Zhacki, Zhicka, Chucka, are from (sic) Armenia!

Rouvas: Armenie, dix points.

De Leeuw: Ok, and Chacki, do you have my mobile number now or after twelve points?

Rouvas: Give it to me now. I bet it's 69 69 69. [In Greece, mobile numbers always begin with 69, but the rest of the 69's are a sexual innuendo, since Rouvas did not seem to like Paul's lines.]

De Leeuw: Ok, 00... [interrupted by Rouvas' remark] no no no no no... I'm not the French guy! [Probably refers that Rouvas was once interviewed for a French magazine, in which the interviewer assumed that Rouvas was gay and directed his questions accordingly.] Its 00 31 6 24 74 44 32 10 dial 1. Twelve points goes to, I'm very proud to say, Turkey! Twelve points.

Rouvas: Turquie, douze points.

Je Hoort Bij Mij
Paul de Leeuw Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Je hoort bij mij,
met elk gebaar, met ieder woord, bij mij.
Je weet zo zuiver waar je scoort, bij mij.
Je treft me in mijn hart. Je past bij mij,
je bent al lang niet meer een gast, bij mij.
Je kleren horen in de kast, bij mij.
Het wit in al mijn zwart

Je bent van mij,
ik hoop van harte dat je went, bij mij.
Je zoete zweet ruikt zo bekend, bij mij.
Je wist mijn zorgen uit. Je leeft bij mij,
je zit te klieren en je beeft, bij mij.
Je lacht me uit, 's is of je zweeft, bij mij.
Je zit in mijn huid

Maar als je naast me ligt te slapen,
ben je mijn geheime wapen.
Je bent mijn lotgenoot, mijn maat,
het beste rustpunt dat bestaat.
Je bent mijn meest geliefde last,
dus laat me los en hou me vast.

Je eet bij mij,
je zet je voeten op het kleed, bij mij.
Je bent mijn lief en deelt het leed, bij mij.
Je warmt je aan mijn kou, en je baadt bij mij,
je uit je liefde en je haat, bij mij.
Je zeurt, je stottert en je praat, bij mij.
Ik denk dat ik je hou

Want als je naast me ligt te slapen,
ben je mijn geheime wapen.
Je bent mijn lotgenoot, mijn maat,
het beste rustpunt dat bestaat.
Je bent mijn meest geliefde last,
dus laat me los.......

Maar als je naast me ligt te slapen,
ben je mijn geheime wapen.
Je bent mijn lotgenoot, mijn maat,
het grootste rustpunt dat bestaat.
Je bent mijn meest geliefde last,
dus laat me los en hou me vast.

Je hoort bij mij,
jij hoort bij mij

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Paul de Leeuw's song Je Hoort Bij Mij describe the deep intimacy and connection between two people who love each other. The first verse highlights how the person being sung to belongs with the singer in every way, from their actions to their words. The second verse touches on the familiarity between the two, the way they share each other's burdens and joys. The chorus emphasizes the importance of the person to the singer, emphasizing the closeness between them and how essential they are to each other. The idea of being each other's "lotgenoot" or comrade further speaks to the deep bond and shared experiences they share. The song concludes with an affirmation that the person being sung to belongs with the singer.

Overall, this song speaks to the idea that love is about much more than just a simple attraction or affection. It's about finding someone who truly understands and accepts you, who is always there for you through thick and thin. It's about the deep, unbreakable bond that exists between two people who truly belong together.

Line by Line Meaning

Je hoort bij mij, met elk gebaar, met ieder woord, bij mij.
You belong to me, every gesture, every word, with me.

Je weet zo zuiver waar je scoort, bij mij.
You know exactly where you stand with me.

Je treft me in mijn hart. Je past bij mij, je bent al lang niet meer een gast, bij mij.
You touch my heart. You fit in with me, you haven't been a guest for a long time.

Je kleren horen in de kast, bij mij. Het wit in al mijn zwart
Your clothes belong in the closet with me. You are the light in all my darkness.

Je bent van mij, ik hoop van harte dat je went, bij mij.
You are mine, I sincerely hope you get used to being with me.

Je zoete zweet ruikt zo bekend, bij mij.
Your sweet sweat smells so familiar to me.

Je wist mijn zorgen uit. Je leeft bij mij, je zit te klieren en je beeft, bij mij.
You erase my worries. You live with me, you tease and tremble with me.

Je lacht me uit, 's is of je zweeft, bij mij. Je zit in mijn huid
You laugh at me, as if you were floating, with me. You are under my skin.

Maar als je naast me ligt te slapen, ben je mijn geheime wapen.
But when you sleep next to me, you are my secret weapon.

Je bent mijn lotgenoot, mijn maat, het beste rustpunt dat bestaat.
You are my fellow sufferer, my buddy, the best resting point that exists.

Je bent mijn meest geliefde last, dus laat me los en hou me vast.
You are my most beloved burden. So let me go and hold on to me.

Je eet bij mij, je zet je voeten op het kleed, bij mij.
You eat with me, you put your feet on the rug, with me.

Je bent mijn lief en deelt het leed, bij mij. Je warmt je aan mijn kou, en je baadt bij mij, je uit je liefde en je haat, bij mij. Je zeurt, je stottert en je praat, bij mij.
You are my love and share the suffering with me. You warm yourself with my cold, and you bathe with me. You express your love and hate with me. You whine, stutter, and talk with me.

Ik denk dat ik je hou
I think I love you.

Je hoort bij mij, jij hoort bij mij
You belong to me, you belong to me.

Contributed by Olivia T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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